NZ government project $30 million over budget and three years late

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freitasm

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#157640 8-Dec-2014 09:36

Is there any ICT project out of a government department involving a big name IT company that doesn't run over-budget and over-time?

The first stage of the Joint Border Management System (JBMS) - merging the computer systems of Customs and the Ministry for Primary Industries - was supposed to be finished by the end of 2012 at a cost of $75.9 million.

Secrecy has shrouded the problems which beset the project, but the Herald can reveal the budget has soared to $104.1 million, and the system is now expected to be operating by the end of next year.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11369088

MikeB4

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#1190359 8-Dec-2014 09:41

Or should it be .... Is there any ICT project involving a big name IT company that doesn't run over-budget and over-time?

Dratsab

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#1190414 8-Dec-2014 10:47

My experiences on one such project were illuminating. One side of the fence is the big company which promises utopia. The other side is the client changing their requirements and, over time, wanting more and more extra bits bolted on. The resulting delays and blowouts are as inevitable as death and taxes.

jonb

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#1190446 8-Dec-2014 11:00

This will all pale into insignificance compared to the new IRD project - that one is going to blow out into the hundreds of millions.

surfisup1000

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#1190453 8-Dec-2014 11:10

Rod Drury had some interesting ideas on the IRD project.

Outsource IRD collections completely I think.

MikeB4

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#1190476 8-Dec-2014 11:24

surfisup1000: Rod Drury had some interesting ideas on the IRD project.

Outsource IRD collections completely I think.

Outsourcing Tax collection would be a very silly and dangerous undertaking. and another topic entirely.

wsnz

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#1190520 8-Dec-2014 12:16

Dratsab: My experiences on one such project were illuminating. One side of the fence is the big company which promises utopia. The other side is the client changing their requirements and, over time, wanting more and more extra bits bolted on. The resulting delays and blowouts are as inevitable as death and taxes.

Add to that the myriad of IT-impacting regulatory changes that can occur over the project implementation phase and you have a recipe for disaster. Obviously there are ways to mitigate against the risks, but that often opens a whole new set of issues.

nathan

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#1190524 8-Dec-2014 12:22

bring in a flat tax rate, which is fairer and simpler

Government tax and benefit bureaucrats and accountants will be able to find something more useful to do with their lives.