Why is former communications consultant Ronalee “Rona” Ambrose, Conservative Party of Canada MP for the riding of Edmonton Spruce Grove, on a list of high profile women executives in the IT channel?
It’s because she recently became the Minister of Public Works and Government Services (PWGSC) for the Government of Canada.
PWGSC has been targeted as a potential area of deficit reduction by the Conservative government, which will inevitably lead to new IT procurement reform.
Of the 13 branches that make up PWGSC, shared services and IT services will be of most interest to Canadian solution providers, vendors and distributors.
While she is new to the role, Ambrose will have to play a huge part in upcoming procurement reforms which may have a significant impact on the small to mid-size enterprise (SME) IT channel in Canada. Some pundits believe Canada’s aging IT infrastructure is costing tax payers about $500 million and needs to be streamlined.
Shared services may be a wild card in this effort. Their role is still undefined. The fear is that Shared Services is being turned into a competitor against the SME channel.
However, Shared Services could also work in tandem with the SME channel to help drive up innovation productivity within the government, while reducing IT costs.
The minister is also committed to ensuring that its electronic waste is disposed of in a safe, secure and cost-effective manner.
“The government takes this issue very seriously. A key element of the government’s greening operations agenda is the implementation of a strategy to ensure federal e-waste is being disposed of in an environmentally sound manner,” Ambrose said.
