PA. says Over $100 Milllion Wasted on Failed Computer System

[JPZenger]

I watched a press conference by the secretary (head) of the PA. Dept. of Labor and Industry. She said the state was pulling the plug on a computer system designed to calculate and send out unemployment compensation checks. That sounds like a very basic and common type of computer system - it is not quantum physics. She blamed it on the Rendell Administration, which approved the original selection of IBM in 2006. However, her dept. had 2.5 years to fix it.

IBM specializes in software services for large organizations and corporations, and you would think they would endeavor to fix any problems to protect their reputation.

Over $170 million was spent on the whole system. The Secretary could not say exactly how much of this was wasted, but she said it was a large majority, which would likely be at least $100 million.

The state is saying they had a group from Carnegie-Mellon U. look at the software, who said they should stop paying IBM any more money to work on it. IBM said they were not given a chance to see this review before the state told IBM to take a hike.

http://www.businessinsider.com/pennsylvania-kills-ibm-project-2013-8

The report says some of the blame may lie with IBM's layoffs and constant changes to the staff assigned to the project.

http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?open=514&objID=613015&mode=2


http://www.informationweek.com/government/enterprise-applications/pennsylvania-ends-troubled-contract-with/240159301

[PDJane]

1. What they should do is get a start-up or small geek company to do it.

IBM (once upon a time known as I've Been Moved by the wives of executives) is proof positive that size does not equal efficiency.

[Curmudgeoness]

2. There is no other excuse except that IBM was milking this.

Like so many other companies, they see government jobs as ways to continually take advantage. They can bid low, then add and add and add to what they bid. I don't understand why this is still tolerated, and why governments don't put their feet down about what a "contract price" is. IBM was hired to do a job, and they should have been able to determine what was needed to get that job done satisfactorily, then bid accordingly. And I cannot imagine a reason for this computer system to cost this much money for that one purpose......or to cost one-tenth of that money. This program and the computers to run it should not be that complicated.