Applications open for QLD services panel

The Queensland Government has opened up its whole-of-government ICT services panel to applications from suppliers.

The state government’s Chief Procurement Office (QGCPO) will ask the industry to apply for a seat on the panel in three categories. Applications for the first category opened late Friday, with two more tranches to open in the next eight months. 

Tranche One covers IT governance, consultancy, business architecture and strategy, change implementation planning and management, and project management.

Tranche Two covers solution and systems development, implementation and service management, installation and integration, while Tranche Three involves procurement, management support and client interface services, marketing and support.

Infrastructure services are not covered under the ICT services panel, and will continue to be supplied by shared service provider CITEC. The state government made around 110 full time positions redundant within CITEC last year.

The panel has no fixed term and will cover contracts valued up to $5 million, with any procurements likely to exceed $2 million in value required to participate in an Industry Review. 

There is no limit to the number of panel members, and the government will review the panel every 18-to-24 months. Applications for further tranches close on May 10. 

The ICT services panel was initially slated to launch in January this year, but was held back due to the delay of the Queensland Government’s ICT audit. The audit was due for release late last year but stalled at the Queensland IT minister’s review level.

The report was to provide a masterplan for the review of 900 IT projects and 10,000 systems.

A preliminary report found one in six systems were critically vulnerable or fragile: either out-of-date, with declining vendor support or needing large upgrade investments. That report said the state government would need to spend up to $5 billion fixing such systems. 

The audit was further stalled by the recent resignation of the state’s IT minister Ros Bates.

Former assistant minister for planning reform, Ian Walker, was named as her successor.

Walker is yet to provide a release date for the report.