UK's state-owned bank launches hunt for core systems worth close to $1b

UK state-owned bank National Savings & Investments (NS&I) is looking for IT suppliers to help overhaul its customer and banking systems in a procurement that could be worth £756.1 million ($938 million). The deal comes hot on the heels of a £172 million ($215 million) procurement launched in February. NS&I is an executive …

[Roj Blake]

"NS&I is an executive agency of the UK's finance ministry, the Chancellor of the Exchequer"

Nope, it's an executive agency of HM Treasury. The Chancellor of the Exchequer is the title of whichever under-qualified politician happens to be running the show at the time.

[wolfetone]

Re: "NS&I is an executive agency of the UK's finance ministry, the Chancellor of the Exchequer"

"The Chancellor of the Exchequer is the title of whichever under-qualified politician happens to be running the show at the time."

Or someone who is closely linked to the (inevitable) new provider, which rhymes with Inforapiss.

[MyffyW]

Re: "NS&I is an executive agency of the UK's finance ministry, the Chancellor of the Exchequer"

I'd settle for under-qualified, to be honest. It's completely-out-of-touch-with-reality that troubles me.

"we all have different breads in my house” (sigh)

[Fruit and Nutcase]

Re: "NS&I is an executive agency of the UK's finance ministry, the Chancellor of the Exchequer"

Translation:

What was probably meant was not "Bread", but "Dough".

Dough being slang for Money, of which there is the UK Tax paid kind (Plain Dough), and the Tax-Haven sheltered kind (SourDough).

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[cantankerous swineherd]

oh dear. time was you could do all your national savings business at the post office instead of faffing about with insecure and unreliable websites.

[wanders off mumbling to self]

[MyffyW]

@Fujitsu - one for you?

[gets coat, the one with a metal file and a copy of Crime and Punishment in the pocket]

[Vikingforties]

Surely Crapita? They can then get their full house or royal flush of IT cockups.

[MyffyW]

I think that is more of a regimental bath than a royal flush.

[IGotOut]

What's a "Post Office"?

Are they like the high street banks I've heard of?

[Captain Scarlet]

Currently most post offices are in the back of Martins newsagents or WH Smiths around here

[NeilPost]

Or like the one in my local Co-op open 6am-10pm, 7 Days a week. Same as the core store hours. Also an Amazon Collect Location so what’s not to like.

[Roj Blake]

Something to do with physical email, I think.

[hairydog]

Due to an unspecified IT cockup a year or two ago, NS&I prevented me accessing my account for nearly four months.

I wonder how well a new system will work, given the track record of government IT outsourcing.

[Richard Jones 1]

It Used To Be Easy

Drift in with pocket money, plus passbook, deposit both on the counter. Get the updated passbook back. Reverse the process to make a withdrawal.

Now God only knows what it is all about, first find a Post Office if some clown has not arrested everyone! Even now, how many kids run internet access?

[TeeCee]

...could be worth £756.1 million...

It will be worth a shitload more than that, once the inevitable massive cost and time overruns that are the hallmark of public-sector IT projects do their bit.

If the final bill come in under a billion pounds, when and if they get it all working, I'll be gobsmacked.

[DS999]

They will switch providers

Because new providers always underestimate the amount of work involved, and are therefore able to undercut the bid of an established provider who knows exactly how much work it is.

The new provider will believe by bringing in new technology to reduce support headcount they can make up the difference (as if the old provider didn't have access to the same) but when they are still operating at a big loss after the first year or two top management will panic.

With a new mandate to "make this account profitable by any and all means" they'll start getting super picky about charging for all the changes the client wants instead of letting them skate by on smaller changes they could technically charge for but hadn't been, which slowly builds up resentment in the client's management. By the time the contract is up for renewal the incumbent bids the actual cost of delivery and wouldn't be too upset if the client left, and the client - thinking "things will be different this time" - happily switches providers for an undercut bid by a new provider who underestimates the work involved and the cycle begins anew.

Source: too many years of consulting for managed service providers, or for clients of managed service providers, and seeing this same story repeated again and again.

[Fruit and Nutcase]

ERNIE

In order to pay for this, they'll fiddle the odds and the payouts on Premium Bonds and other products