Category: Digital Transformation Agency

April 10, 2025

Canberra’s AI transparency laggards fall in line

Federal government agencies that missed a key AI transparency deadline earlier this year have now largely fallen into line, with just two mandatory declarations still outstanding across the public service. Agencies reached near full compliance with the requirement to produce an AI transparency statement over the past month following a concerted push by the government’s…

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April 8, 2025

Whole-of-govt tech mega-deals review gets underway

The federal government has opened the consultation process for an independent review of its seven technology mega-deals, collectively worth more than a billion dollars each year. The review of the single-sourcing arrangements with tech giants like IBM, Microsoft and SAP was first flagged in November and got underway ahead of the federal Budget last month….

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April 1, 2025

Mass migration: Half of Canberra’s SAP systems nearing ‘cliff’

Almost two dozen instances of SAP across the federal government rely on twenty-year-old software that is set to lose mainstream support in 2027, setting up a mass migration and costly extended support to protect critical services. The federal agencies using the enterprise resource planning (ERP) product, known as SAP ECC 6.0, include Defence, Services Australia…

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March 12, 2025

DTA’s ‘early warning system’ flashes for nine govt IT projects

As many as nine major digital projects in Canberra are off track and will require significant changes if they are to meet their targets, a new report by the Digital Transformation Agency has revealed. Among the most high-profile projects deemed least likely to successfully land is a $174.7 million platform to help older Australian’s access…

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March 3, 2025

Dozens of agencies miss major AI transparency deadline

Almost forty per cent of federal government agencies duty-bound to produce an AI transparency statement have missed the February filing deadline, in a blow to Canberra’s efforts to build public trust in its use of the technology. The nearly 100 agencies compelled under the mandatory transparency standard faced a Friday deadline to publish their statements,…

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February 18, 2025

Failings trigger call to break up govt’s tech work

Large government technology projects should be broken up into smaller bundles of work and delivered in an agile way with sustainment and upgrade funding factored in from the start, according to a committee that dissected a series of Canberra tech wrecks. While the audit committee reserved its final recommendations for incremental changes to procurement policy…

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February 17, 2025

One and done: No plans for future across govt AI trials

The Digital Transformation Agency has ruled out future cross-government trials of generative AI products just months after more than 7,600 public servants tested Microsoft Copilot. The decision, which puts the tech giant further in the box seat with the federal government, comes despite assurances from the agency’s top brass that “more opportunities” would follow. It…

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January 17, 2025

DTA extends two IT mega-deals ahead of review

Two federal government technology mega-deals have been extended for another year, even as the Digital Transformation Agency prepares to review the single-sourcing arrangements. Microsoft and enterprise software support player Rimini Street both secured 12-month extensions earlier this month, allowing departments and agencies to continue software and services from the vendors. The deals – which have…

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January 15, 2025

Canberra’s IBM deal nears $1.2bn after just two years

IBM’s whole-of-government sourcing deal with the federal government has shot past the $1 billion mark in less than two years, far exceeding the initial $725 million expectation with three years left to run. The Department of Home Affairs last week published a $165 million contract with Big Blue, pushing the value of the arrangement to…

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December 5, 2024

DTA procurement review looks to ‘level playing field’

A strategic review of whole-of-government technology sourcing arrangements will look at options to boost procurement from local small and medium-sized businesses, according to Finance minister Katy Gallagher. Senator Gallagher said the Digital Transformation Agency-led review, which is set to begin in the new year, will “be looking to what opportunities exist” to enable more smaller,…

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November 18, 2024

Unlocking public sector success after GovERP

Public sector organisations increasingly rely on enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems as a unified platform to streamline business processes across finance, human resources, procurement and asset management. While ERP systems promise operational efficiency, implementing them involves more than just a technological upgrade — it is a fundamental business transformation challenge. Success lies in balancing these…

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November 15, 2024

Govt tech procurement ‘fast lane’ goes under the microscope

Billions of dollars worth of sourcing agreements with the likes of IBM, Microsoft and SAP will will be reviewed by the federal government, as it considers shifting the deals to a more competitive marketplace. Amid calls to scrap what has become a procurement “fast lane” for the public service, the Digital Transformation Agency has commissioned…

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November 6, 2024

DTA resisters pique Cabinet committee interest

Federal agencies that go rogue and defy whole-of-government digital policies and standards are attracting the attention of the powerful Expenditure Review Committee of Cabinet. Finance minister Katy Gallagher on Tuesday night revealed agencies resisting engagement with the government’s digital investment cop have piqued the committee’s interest as it tries to limit future tech wrecks. It…

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November 4, 2024

Digital proposals reaching Cabinet without DTA review

Almost 40 per cent of federal government technology projects are progressing to Cabinet for sign-off without being reviewed by the agency tasked with overseeing digital investment. As the government looks to step up project assurance, new data shows that just 61 per cent of digital investments proposals were reviewed by the Digital Transformation Agency before…

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October 23, 2024

APS workers saved an hour a day during Copilot trial

A six-month trial of Microsoft Copilot saved some federal public servants up to an hour each day when searching for, summarising information and drafting documents, an evaluation has found. But only a third of the public servants taking part in the trial used the tool daily due to “adoption challenges”, highlighting the limitations of large-scale…

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October 14, 2024

DTA delivers digital reality check after $1b in tech wrecks

Federal public servants have been warned not to underestimate the cost of digital projects or exaggerate expected benefits in new guidance that follows around $1 billion in failed tech projects over the last two years. The advice from the Digital Transformation Agency, released on Monday, also recommends that agencies avoid an over-reliance on consultants and…

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September 25, 2024

Backlog hits new high on data sovereignty scheme

The number of companies waiting for sign-off under the federal government’s troubled data sovereignty scheme has reached its highest level in two years. Amid a review of the scheme that remains unfinished after two years, more than 40 cloud and data centre providers wanting to carry protected-level public sector data have applications snarled up at…

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August 20, 2024

APS leaders to be schooled in digital as tech wrecks pile up

Federal public servants tasked with leading digital government projects will undergo mandatory training from next year, after a series of high-profile tech wrecks across Canberra. As GovERP becomes the latest casualty of the government’s attempts to rein in “wasteful” tech spending, the new training program intends to help senior leaders navigate digital design and delivery….

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August 18, 2024

DTA in talks with Microsoft over future Copilot use

The Digital Transformation Agency is in talks with Microsoft to extend the volume sourcing discounts enjoyed on its products to Copilot long-term following an APS-wide trial of the artificial intelligence tool. The discussions come just weeks after a six-month trial of the AI-powered assistant wrapped up and as the federal government’s digital advisory agency continues…

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July 26, 2024

Govt ends ERP ‘lock-out’ with new marketplace

The federal government has unveiled its ERP marketplace, giving departments and agencies a choice of local and multinational software vendors for their back-office system for the first time since 2016. The ERP reset comes eight months after the government abandoned its long-running GovERP consideration project, ending SAP lock-in for around 100 agencies. Services Australia is…

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July 22, 2024

APS runs with Microsoft Copilot after trial

An APS-wide trial of Microsoft Copilot might have wrapped up but it has not stopped federal government agencies from continuing to pay a premium to use the generative AI tool — even before the trial has been evaluated. InnovationAus.com can reveal a handful of agencies, including two of Canberra’s largest, have signed on with Microsoft…

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June 3, 2024

DTA stripped of ‘life events’ services push

The Albanese government is under fire for a slow down on reforms for ‘life event’ services after revelations it had not funded a proposal to reinvigorate the mammoth project and is shifting its responsibility out of the Digital Transformation Agency (DTA). Responsibility will be passed to Services Australia in July, which will continue the development…

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May 17, 2024

SAP bribery scandal draws DTA scrutiny

The federal government’s digital agency sought assurances from the local arm of German software giant SAP after it settled a bribery investigation involving foreign government officials earlier this year. The extraordinary step by the Digital Transformation Agency amid negotiations with the company on a lucrative procurement was prompted by charges brought by the US Justice…

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April 10, 2024

Cost of APS-wide Microsoft Copilot trial grows

A six-month trial of Microsoft Copilot across the federal government has surpassed the $1.2 million it was originally costed at and could grow higher still as more users sign up to try out the generative AI tool. But the agency coordinating the trial, which will wrap up at the end of June unless extended, has…

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April 3, 2024

Home Affairs mulls cut-down data sovereignty rules for SaaS

A cut-down version of the government data hosting rules that currently apply to data centres and cloud storage will be extended to cloud software and third-party IT services under the second iteration of the Hosting Certification Framework. The proposed carve-out for software-as-a-service and managed service providers comes as the Department of Home Affairs continues a…

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March 28, 2024

Landmark digital identity laws clear Senate

Australia’s digital identity scheme is set to expand beyond the federal government to states and territories and the private sector after a landmark bill, first drafted more than three years ago, passed the Senate. The Digital ID Bill sailed through the upper house on Wednesday evening with the support of the Greens, the Jacqui Lambie…

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March 20, 2024

Calls for govt to scrap billions in foreign tech agreements

The federal government is being urged to tear up billions of dollars’ worth of agreements with IBM, SAP and other foreign tech giants in a bid to close off what has become a procurement “fast lane” for the public service. In a frank assessment to the parliamentary inquiry probing sovereign capability in the tech sector,…

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March 15, 2024

DTA opens door to Digital Marketplace 2.0

A new cohort of tech firms are being called up to join the federal government’s new and improved Digital Marketplace, which is poised to open in the second half of the year after a lengthy overhaul. Applications for the Digital Marketplace Panel 2 arrangement opened on Friday afternoon, ending a redesign process that locked new…

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March 12, 2024

Govt looks to reuse NDIS Salesforce platform

The Digital Transformation Agency is exploring opportunities to reuse the National Disability Insurance Scheme’s new Salesforce CRM system elsewhere in government despite an ongoing investigation into the original procurement. In recently tabled answers to questions on notice from a parliamentary inquiry, the National Disability Insurance Agency said it is currently in talks with the government’s…

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March 11, 2024

DTA adds IP flexibility to Digital Marketplace contracts

Startups and SMEs will soon be able to negotiate with federal government agencies on who owns the intellectual property developed under contracts won through the Digital Marketplace. The change, to be inserted within the next iteration of the Digital Marketplace later this year, introduces greater flexibility around IP ownership into the arrangement to address the…

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