MCN Direct Newswire

Vol. 6 No. 21, 19 November 2007

This issue is sponsored by:

CODA, The UK Consulting Industry Report 2006/7 and PMP Research

This issue news

1. Raytheon team scoops UK e-borders contract
2. MCA names stars of consulting
3. Capita buys services from Atos Origin
4. Deloitte poaches education experts from KPMG
5. Accenture acquires US defence business
6. Further information - feedback/pass on to a colleague/remove from mailing list

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1. RAYTHEON TEAM SCOOPS UK E-BORDERS CONTRACT

Trusted Borders, a consortium led by Raytheon Systems and including Accenture, Detica, Capgemini, Serco, Qinetiq and Steria, has beaten the BT Emblem consortium to a £650 million contract from the UK Border Agency for a passenger screening system.

The disappointed BT consortium - which includes LogicaCMG, HP, Anite, Lockheed Martin and Arinc - had been tipped to win the contract as it was led by a UK firm.

The contract is part of a wider £1.2 billion programme that includes the global rollout of fingerprint-based visas and is aimed at strengthening the UK's offshore border controls. The programme will be run by the UK Border Agency, a newly formed organisation that integrates the work of Customs, the Border and Immigration Agency, and UKVisas.

The passenger screening technology includes electronic security passenger checks across the UK's international airports, railway stations and ports, with all high-risk routes into the country covered by mid-2009.

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said: "A unified border force means a stronger British border. All travellers to Britain will be screened against no-fly lists and intercept-target lists. Together with biometric visas, this will help keep trouble away from our shores."

The e-borders contract award follows a two-year pilot project, Operation Semaphore, which has helped police across the UK make 1,300 arrests. John Donlon, the Association of Chief Police Officers' lead on ports policing, said: "The trial has underlined the potential that this system has in supporting the multi-agency fight against terrorism and criminality."

2. MCA NAMES STARS OF CONSULTING

Deloitte consultants starred in the Management Consultancies Association's inaugural Consultant of the Year Awards, winning three of the competition's nine categories.

Annette Swinburn of Deloitte was named HR consultant of the year, while Richard Forrest became IT consultant of the year and Paul Vivash claimed the best new consultant award.

Other category winners were: Helen Pyecroft of Avail, part of Tribal, for change management; Hamish McKechnie-Sharma of Capgemini for performance improvement; Isabelle Bailey from Ernst & Young for future consulting leader; James Eteen, also from Ernst & Young, for strategy; Kirsty Cowan from Propaganda for marketing; and David Wilson from Accenture for best director/partner.

Commenting on the awards, MCA chief executive Peter Hill said: "In their first year, these awards have been a huge success with well over 70 consultants at different stages of their careers fighting it out to be recognised for their contribution to the industry and their clients. Once again, this is a good example of the MCA and consulting firms working closely together to highlight the value management consultants deliver to businesses and the wider economy."

Sponsor

The UK Consulting Industry Report 2006/7

The latest 'UK Consulting Industry Report' from the Management Consultancies Association (MCA) is now available. It is based on unique data and performance metrics unavailable elsewhere.

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The Consulting Industry Report 2006/7 is sponsored by Maconomy.

3. CAPITA BUYS SERVICES FROM ATOS ORIGIN

Capita has awarded three IT infrastructure hosting contracts worth £20 million to Atos Origin.

The five-year deals are part of a 10-year framework agreement whereby Atos Origin and Capita Life & Pensions Services will jointly support Capita clients. Atos Origin will offer outsourced IT infrastructure hosting services to two of Capita's clients, Resolution and Lincoln Financial Group, while Capita provides business process outsourcing.

Commenting on the agreements, which bring two IT services competitors together, Atos Origin UK financial services head Joe Edwards said: "In today's business world, it is imperative to collaborate with other organisations in order to create competitive advantage and enable greater business agility."

Craig Rodgerson, IT director at Capita Life & Pensions Services, added: "Combining the benefits of Atos Origin's IT hosting solutions with our life & pensions outsourcing will enable us both to continue delivering benefits to current and future clients."

4. DELOITTE POACHES EDUCATION EXPERTS FROM KPMG

Deloitte has hired seven education and skills consultants from KPMG and recruited another 11 staff from education and the civil service to expand its public sector practice.

The seven consultants equate to about one-third of KPMG's core education team - leaving the firm with a substantial gap to fill.

Deloitte's expanded team is the result of nine months' investment in growing its education capabilities to consult for a range of public and private sector organisations including central government departments, local authorities, colleges and private sector companies on issues of policy, implementation and strategy.

Mike Turley, head of public sector consulting at Deloitte, said: "Deloitte's new, enlarged team will focus on assisting organisations to deliver the targets set out in the Leitch report - which warned that the UK must become a world leader in skills by 2020 if it is to sustain and improve its position in the global economy - and those on the wider education agenda."

Deloitte is a recognised leader in employability skills programmes for young people and over the past six years has led a programme to help 16-19 year olds develop the skills they need to secure employment. The Deloitte Foundation has committed £2 million to support a further five-period of training higher-education teachers to deliver employability skills courses.

Sponsor

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If you would like a bespoke analysis of your firm's presence at a strategic level and a detailed analysis of your firm's delivery information as part of this study, please contact Chris Thomas. Email: ChrisT@pmp.co.uk.

5. ACCENTURE ACQUIRES US DEFENCE BUSINESS

Accenture has agreed to buy US-based defence consulting business Maxim Systems for an undisclosed sum.

Based in San Diego, California, Maxim is an employee-owned firm that designs and installs systems for command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance services - known in the defence market as C4ISR - for military and intelligence agencies.

Accenture is due to complete the acquisition before the end of this year and will then incorporate Maxim's 135 employees in its national security services business.

Accenture US defence practice managing director Eric Stange commented: "Along with our other recent acquisitions of the George Group and Gestalt, this acquisition will enable Accenture to penetrate deeper into C4ISR, a key strategic growth area. Our vision is to provide new levels of service and leading-edge practices that support our defence clients and help them to achieve high performance."

Among Maxim's contracts is support for the Combined Enterprise Regional Information Exchange System, a secure wide area network that allows the US and over 30 coalition nations to share intelligence and other operational information.

6. FURTHER INFORMATION - FEEDBACK/PASS ON TO A COLLEAGUE/REMOVE

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Written by Sarah Underwood. Copyright 2010 PMP (UK) Ltd.

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