The Buffalo Blog

Weekly Outsourcing News

BBC
Attacked Mumbai hotels to reopen
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7782991.stm

Personnel Today
More than half UK workers fear for their jobs
http://www.personneltoday.com/articles/2008/12/12/48721/more-than-half-uk-workers-fear-for-their-jobs.html

£81m HR shared services project slammed by MPs
http://www.personneltoday.com/Articles/2008/12/17/48779/81m-hr-shared-services-project-slammed-by-mps.html

Computing
Santander to shed 1900 UK jobs
http://feeds.computing.co.uk/c/554/f/7121/s/28c6787/l/0L0Scomputing0O0Ccomputing0Cnews0C22325830Csantander0Eshed0E190A0A0Ejobs/story01.htm

IT leaders nervous about 2009
http://feeds.computing.co.uk/c/554/f/7121/s/2928174/l/0L0Scomputing0O0Ccomputing0Cnews0C22327420Cleaders0Enervous0E20A0A9/story01.htm

Orange UK extends outsourced CRM contract
http://feeds.computing.co.uk/c/554/f/7121/s/291f557/l/0L0Scomputing0O0Ccomputing0Cnews0C22326980Corange0Euk0Eextends0Eoutsourced/story01.htm

Vnunet
HCL completes £440m Axon buy
http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2232638/hcl-completes-axon-deal

Palestine promoted as outsourcing destination
http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2232889/palestine-promoted-outsourcing

Computerworld UK
Borders Agency picks IBM for immigration project
http://www.computerworlduk.com/management/government-law/public-sector/news/index.cfm?RSS&NewsId=12437

Ovum: Is cloud computing 'vapourware'?
http://www.computerworlduk.com/management/infrastructure/applications/news/index.cfm?RSS&newsid=12492

Silicon
Department for Transport "incompetence" over shared services
http://www.silicon.com/publicsector/0,3800010403,39365414,00.htm

Reuters
Tata Consultancy eyes China growth
http://uk.reuters.com/article/technology-media-telco-SP/idUKSIN38421720081217?feedType=RSS&feedName=technology-media-telco-SP

Infosys says India IT to see slow growth for a while
http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/reuters/UKmedia/~3/_FblZiwyrPc/idUKBMA00203020081217

PRNewswire
CSC Acquires Log.Sec Corporation
http://news.prnewswire.com/ViewContent.aspx?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/12-18-2008/0004944719&EDATE

Channel Business Solutions
Nearly three quarters of techies believe UK's IT skills gap is growing
http://www.channelbusiness.com/channel-news/nearly-three-quarters-techies-believe-uks-it-skills-gap-growing

Business Green
Clean tech investment sees record first three quarters
http://www.businessgreen.com/business-green/news/2232893/clean-tech-investment-sees

Weekly outsourcing news

Channel Business Solutions
ATOC awards Fujitsu £13m contract to upgrade Rail Journey Information Service
http://www.channelbusiness.com/channel-news/atoc-awards-fujitsu-%C2%A313m-contract-upgrade-rail-journey-information-service

FinExtra
BancTec acquires French BPO services provider Document@Work
http://www.finextra.com/fullpr.asp?id=24980

Barclays to axe 100 staff in outsourcing move
http://www.google.com/reader/view/#stream/user%2F03370932863783993600%2Flabel%2FOutsourcing

Computing
NHS to roll out new organ donor system
http://www.computing.co.uk/computing/news/2232213/nhs-roll-organ-donor-system

Computerworld
Friends Provident signs £200m outsourcing deal with IBM
http://www.computerworlduk.com/management/it-business/services-sourcing/news/index.cfm?RSS&newsid=12362

NHS 'can’t go on and on' with IT rollout problems
http://www.computerworlduk.com/management/government-law/public-sector/news/index.cfm?RSS&NewsId=12401

Personnel Today
Whitbread signs five-year HR and payroll outsourcing deal with Ceridian
http://www.personneltoday.com/Articles/2008/12/11/48709/whitbread-signs-five-year-hr-and-payroll-outsourcing-deal-with-ceridian.html

Sourcingfocus.com
Gartner Identifies Top 30 Countries for Offshore Services in 2008
http://www.sourcingfocus.com/index.php/site/newsitem/1157/

TRYG Insurance signs US$80m ITO contract with CSC
http://www.sourcingfocus.com/index.php/site/newsitem/1158/

Olivier Vallet appointed CEO of Steria France
http://www.sourcingfocus.com/index.php/site/newsitem/1152/

Movers and Shakers September/October 2008

Welcome to a new regular feature for the Buffalo Blog detailing all the recent important moves in the press. Readers can find an even more detailed document on the Buffalo website at Moversandshakersoct2008

IT trade press

Former Editor of the Official Windows Vista Magazine, Paul Douglas, has moved to the same position at Techradar.com.

Andy McCue, deputy editor of silicon.com, has left the CNET Networks UK site to go freelance.

Among his freelance work McCue will regularly write monthly columns for silicon.com including ‘lifehack’ advice for business execs and CIO profiles, as well as some writing and editing for environmental blog, Greenbang.

CIO Connect has appointed Mark Samuels as editor of CIO Connect magazine.

Samuels, who previously worked on Incisive Media's Computing and Computing Business, started his new role on 1 September 2008.

Blocks & Files has now been incorporated into Situation Publishing's The Register.

Vertical Markets

Jon Hay, previously editor of Euroweek, has joined FO Intelligence in the same role, with effect from September 1st.

Nick Yates replaces Daniel Wilkins as editor of Corporate UK.

Katherine Brandon has been appointed as reporter at Professional Broking.

The Grocer has hired Charlie Wright as web editor.

Former freelancer Meg De Jong has joined B2B Marketing as a full-time reporter.

Sita Shah has been appointed business reporter at SCRIP – World Pharmaceutical News. Shah was previously deputy editor at Animal Pharm.

Centaur Media's Precision Marketing magazine will now be published monthly.

Meaty woes for Ireland

It’s been a while since meat last hit the headlines and, to be honest, I really missed it. Not the contaminated meat I mean, the haphazard way in which these major reputation crises are usually managed. Well, I say ‘managed’ but that is the operative word – there is usually no management going on whatsoever and here lies the problem. When bad meat makes the press you can almost guarantee it will make a communications textbook – these are 101s in how not to manage a crisis.

The latest episode in disastrous carnivorous comms is currently taking place from across the Irish sea. Apparently some of the pork producers have been feeding their pigs contaminated feed, making it potentially carcinogenic – lovely. I wonder just how long it’s going to take Eire and Northern Ireland to regain their piggy credentials and start selling the stuff in decent quantities again – a long time no doubt.

The competent management of a crisis should always start with a definite action and the wide-scale communication of that action. In this case, a complete recall, or call for consumers to dispose of all Irish bacon, was that action. Good so far you may think but then ask yourself, do you think you’ll be buying Irish again next week?

All is not lost yet but companies must move quickly on damage limitation. So far it seems most if not all comms have come from the foods standard agency. By choosing to stay quiet the companies responsible for the contamination seem content to sit back and let all pork producers in the two countries take the flack. Reasoned and placating comment is scarce while worry about safety abounds.

If Ireland wants to ensure its long-term future as a successful pork-producing nation it needs to start talking. Silence in a crisis only breeds conjecture and doubt. Granted, it would be unwise for one farm to step forward and say ‘it was me’, but the farmers do need to speak. The key culprits, or victims as they may be, need to band together to form a popular voice and put their message out there.

Without the voice of the pork producers all we have is a public health emergency and an exhortation to stay away from Irish pork for the foreseeable future. If the farmers stay quiet, people are going to stay away for a lot longer than if they speak up.

Irish farmers – speak and speak loudly before it’s too late.