Citec consults on future

State-owned ICT services vendor Citec will shortly bring in external consultants to develop a new business model as the Queensland-based group reins back services to the private sector in favour of government work.

Citec -- which has around 550 staff and offices in Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne -- has always focused on providing technology services to the Queensland government since its inception in 1964, however, it started taking on private sector clients in the early 1990's. Corporate clients have included Startrack Express, Orix Australia, Ricoh and Xstrata Copper.

Late last year, the group's mission statement changed yet again, as Queensland IT Minister Robert Schwarten announced a package of reforms that would see Citec cease seeking commercial work and re-orient itself as the state government's systems integrator and infrastructure provider.

"Consultants are expected to be appointed in the next few weeks to undertake the first phase of developing an appropriate business model for Citec that will recognise its strengthened focus on government business," the office of Queensland's interim state chief information officer Peter Grant said in a recent statement to ZDNet Australia.

Citec will undertake to honour all current commercial contracts, but will no longer seek private sector work.

"Citec is to become the ICT infrastructure provider to the Queensland government, and as such will be the government's source of technology expertise, and will actively manage whole-of-government requirements for data centres, networks, infrastructure and essential ancillary services such as e-mail and authentication," the statement added.

ZDNet Australia's question and answer session with Queensland state CIO Peter Grant and state CTO Bob Gurnett is available in full here.