One size fits f**k all

I’m currently working on a web development project in the public sector. It’s mostly resourced with contractors (this is not a pop at contractors – that’s a blog post for another time). The project is to develop a public facing website which has some pretty tricky bits of integration with internal systems and databases, which doesn’t lend itself well to outsourcing. The site has to follow brand guidelines so no need for graphic design work.

Ideally, this type of project should be delivered end to end by a team consisting of:

• 1 x Project Manager


• 1 x Business Analyst / QA (producing simple wireframes – no 200 page spec!)


• 2 x Developers


• 1 x user group from a representative cross section of users – no more than 20 users


• Several Meetings to establish vision and project objectives and a few update meetings along the way


• Estimated Schedule = 3 months (max, including several iterations of release/review with users)

Following the project methodology mandated by this public sector body (PRINCE2 & MSP), the following is what they truly believe they need (this is real, right now, in the public sector!):

• 1 x Programme Director


• 1 x Programme Manager


• 3 x Project Managers


• 2 x Project Assurance


• 6 x People from the OGC Gateway Review Team (Central Government)


• 4 x Business Analysts (producing reams of documentation that no one ever reads)


• 1 x Development Manager


• 4 x Developers


• 2 x QA


• 3 x internal steering groups


• 1 x product review board


• 1 x web standards committee


• 2 x working groups


• 4 x user groups (by segmentation)


• 100 + workshops to engage with stakeholders (all of the above)


• All decisions made by committee.


• Actual Schedule = 18 months and still not gone live :(

In the private sector this would never happen. Why? Because in the private sector you ultimately get measured by profit. No profit, no job. In the public sector there is no profit – you only spend money so what’s your motivation? In the public sector it’s all about covering your ass. The more governance you can put in place, the more your ass is covered. Due to the low wages paid by the public sector it tends to attract employees of a lower grade. To combat against this the public sector puts ‘rigorous’ processes in place to cover their ass’s. They just keep throwing bodies at the problem. In the private sector, throwing more bodies at the problem makes it economically unviable.

So, if it’s much cheaper and quicker to deliver this project in the private sector then why not outsource it? Introducing public sector procurement. Here’s a typical team to outsource the same project – it follows roughly the same structure as above due to it still being a project but adds 6 months minimum to the schedule due to procurement process activities:

• 1 x Programme Director


• 1 x Programme Manager


• 3 x Project Managers


• 2 x Project Assurance


• 2 x Procurement officers


• 1 x Lawyer


• 6 x People from the OGC Gateway Review Team


• 4 x Business Analysts (producing reams of documentation that no one ever reads)


• 3 x internal steering groups


• 1 x product review board


• 1 x web standards committee


• 2 x working groups


• 4 x user groups by segmentation


• 100 + workshops to engage with stakeholders (all of the above)


• All decisions made by committee.


• Outsourced team = (1 x project manager, 1 x business analyst, 2 x developers)


• Actual Schedule = 24 months+

Public Sector - stop pissing my hard earned tax payers money down the drain!