The States of Guernsey is terminating its £200m contract with Agilisys, the IT infrastructure services provider, half-way through the ten-year deal signed in 2019. This leaves an opening for multiple alternative services providers.
The Channel Islands local authority suffered serious IT outages in 2023, that affected benefits payments and a hospital, but its own recent report into ongoing problems admitted a lack of internal management of the Agilisys contract was a big factor.
Failing infrastructure hardware, including backup devices and power supplies in data centres caused outages and needed replacing, but it wasn’t clear who was responsible for replacing these in terms of the contract scope. Agilisys, which supports a number of public sector bodies, has chosen not to comment on the contract termination.
The States of Guernsey states: “Contract termination will take effect by midnight on 31 July, 2025 at the latest. While the States cannot, for legitimate commercial reasons, go into specifics, it is terminating for reasons relating to Agilisys' performance of the contract.”
It adds: “The States will move to a multi-vendor model, meaning services and projects will be delivered by a range of providers rather than one. The States believes there are many benefits from a multi-vendor model.”
These “benefits” include the ability to select the best vendors/suppliers for specific services or technologies, working with a range of providers will “increase supplier accountability to deliver”, “easier access to specialised expertise”, and “enhancing resilience” and “reducing the risk of service disruptions”.
The States said it was in “advanced discussions” with a “range of providers” as part of its plans to move to a multi-vendor model.
The States put several contractual protections in place when it first signed with Agilisys. This included holding a “golden share” in the company which States staff transferred into on their States of Guernsey terms and conditions. The States intends to exercise this share so those staff can be retained. The States will also invite Agilisys Guernsey staff to a meeting in June to “discuss the new delivery model”.
Gé Drossaert, States chief digital and information officer, said: “This multi-vendor model will give us the ability to select the best suppliers for specific services or technologies, which will include a mix of international and local opportunities focused on getting the best value for money for taxpayers.
“We're currently in discussions with a range of providers for various services and projects. While it is not possible to provide specifics at this stage due to the commercial nature of those discussions, we are confident of securing agreements with a mix of providers for the delivery of general IT services and projects in time to ensure a smooth transition.”
Earlier this year, a States report admitted the number of staff with technical expertise to oversee the contract was "totally inadequate", adding that the scale of the work was “underestimated”.
It also admitted that the implications of entering the partnership with Agilisys were "not fully understood".
"This lack of retained internal resource and, arguably, capability, meant that adequate and effective oversight and monitoring of the contract was not in place from the beginning, and throughout at least the first three years of the contract's operation," the report said.
"This deficit in management and effective public sector staff oversight led to significant problems, leading to programme implementation delays and money being wasted."
