For me, the warning signs were there from the very beginning. Discussions I had with senior Guernsey Deputies as early as June 3, 2019 raised red flags about the Agilisys contract; I described it as ‘void speech’ lacking substance and questioned how something so vague could be enforced. It was clear to me from years of dealing with Guernsey’s Civil Service that they were unlikely to even know what they wanted or had the required skills to specify or manage such a project.
Deputies were reportedly generally uninformed, with only five present at critical briefings. The procurement process was fundamentally flawed – there was only one preferred bidder, Agilisys, with Fujitsu positioned as a backup but not genuinely considered. Any alternative, including an in-house IT solution, was dismissed without serious evaluation. These concerns, voiced before the contract was signed, were ignored, and now the taxpayer is left footing the bill for this fiasco.
(Redacted WhatsApp screenshots from my phone. )
There were also various telephone conversations about this; I recall being very specific about the potential issues. I’ve been involved in IT for 30 years and I have a good nose for bullshit.