by Pamela Cook
It was in the news this week that the government has spent over £1bn since 2012 working with SMEs to develop and deliver their cloud and digital services. This is nearly half of the total spend: roughly £1.39 in every £3 of the government’s spending in this area has gone to SMEs. As a member of the Cabinet Office SME Panel and Chair of the Supply Chain Working Group, I am delighted to read that the dedicated work of government SME champions within the cabinet office and CCS is beginning to pay off.
There are an increasing number of case studies highlighting the savings to be made for local governments by improving data quality and using data in innovative ways to deliver key services. Owing to their size and inherent agility, SMEs can play a significant role in the creation of pioneering technology and the deliverance of agile data solutions, to keep up with the ever-changing digital landscape. The government are right to utilise these kinds of companies to ensure they are getting the most value out of their data to better support their citizens.
Hopefully, these shining examples of data quality and innovation will provide the evidence, confidence and drive for other departments and local authorities to follow suit. This can only be good news for our SME industry in the years to come.