blog When you think about software as a service or cloud computing, the phrase “Australian Taxation Office” doesn’t naturally come to mind. The ATO is such a huge, traditional and relatively conservative organisation that you don’t really expect it to be pushing the envelope when it comes to new IT paradigms. However, a request for tender that the agency released this week goes some way towards demonstrating the interest that even organisations such as the ATO have in cloud software.
On the Department of Finance’s technology blog, ATO procurement officer Janai Stevens writes:
“The ATO is seeking a simple, accessible and easy to use HR Performance Management and Rewards and Recognition Solution (solution) to support their new Performance Management Framework.
It is preferred (but not essential) that the solution is cloud based, provided as a web accessible Software as a Service (SaaS) solution and is hosted, maintained and supported on an Australian based data centre that satisfies the ATO’s security requirements.
The Supplier will implement, modify and maintain an electronic HR Performance Management and Rewards and Recognition solution meeting the requirements of the ATO’s new Performance Management Framework. At a high level the solution will allow the ATO’s approximate 20,000 staff to easily and simply capture their goals, feedback, actions and outcomes. Additionally the solution will enable staff and managers to capture all performance conversations and keep track of progress.”
We’re starting to see this kind of SaaS/cloud computing deployment in the Federal Government. It’s a slow process, but each kind of ‘safe’ deployment such as this one — with data and processes which could be considered non-mission-critical — increases the comfort level of mega-agency chief information officers and secretaries regarding cloud computing. We’re getting there.
Image credit: theaucitron, Creative Commons
I guess this falls in with the Fed Governments Cloud First policy. It was introduced 4 years ago? As far as I’m aware, and very simply, it’s a directive to replace in-house apps and hosting and move to a cloud environment. But this is when replacing systems. If it aint broke don’t fix it. As cloud tech gets more mature we will see the clear winners and that’s a couple of years away. Not that they should shy off the idea but I wouldn’t throw money over fist to make systems fit.
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