Highlights: Progress this week on a new supplier framework, approaching launch around the end of this month, which will provide the whole of government with access to a broader range of digital and agile suppliers. GDS have also been working closely with the Student Loans Company in their selection of a technical transformation partner. The Digital Advisory Board also met this week. Next week, the monthly all-staff meeting will see updates from all the different projects and workstreams across GDS.
(Full transcript below)
Interviewer:
Hello Mike. What have we been up to at GDS this week?
Mike:
So a few things; firstly our supplier framework, which is a means to get a much broader range of digital and Agile-type suppliers working across the whole of government. That is making its final way into a thing called the OJEU [Official Journal of the European Union] process, which means we go out to the market, and we get suppliers signed up to that. We are hoping some time around the end of this month, to actually issue that. It is a lot of legal work, but that has been going on for six months now. We are getting to the final throes of that, which will be a real big step for us. Because it will open up to all departments, a whole new supply chain. So that is good progress. I spent the last two days in Glasgow with Mat Wall, helping SLC [Student Loans Company] select a technical transformation partner. So viewing supplier presentations, catching up with the good folks like Gordon Simpson and Tom Mead, and Martin Campbell up there, on the work they are doing there. We had a good meeting in the Digital Advisory Board this week, on Wednesday, where they all came in to meet with us.
Interviewer:
Excellent. We have got a big meeting here as well next week.
Mike:
Yes. Next week is our monthly all staff meeting. So that happens on Wednesday afternoon. So we are all looking forward to that, to see what the updates are across all the different projects and workstreams in GDS.
Interviewer:
Cool. There will be a few new faces.
Mike:
There are a few new faces around, who started this week as well. A person called Ian Chick, has just started in the transformation team, central programme office there, to help us get a bit more mature and established in how we run some of these big programmes in GDS.
Interviewer:
That is excellent. We have had some good weather since the Bank Holiday as well?
Mike:
We have, yes. Thankfully, the ice age is over and the GDS Griffins, our softball team, went out there and won their first game. Good old Albert Massa was named our MVP, or "man of the match," as we used to say.
Interviewer:
Excellent, until next time.
Mike:
Thank you.
