Siemens Business Services (SBS) has surprised analysts and competitors by appearing on the shortlist for the Australian government’s largest outsourcing contract, the A$1bn ($660m) Centrelink contract which had been expected to go IBM Global Services Australia, CSC Australia or EDS.
Although SBS has been successful since being formed through a reorganization at the parents Siemens Group last year, and had won major banking outsourcing contracts in both the UK and Australia, its consideration for plum Federal Government business has taken analysts by surprise.
CSC last year picked the A$160m ($106m) Cluster 3 contract, and in May EDS won the A$500m ($300m) Australian Taxation Office business while IBM GSA had earlier secured major outsourcing contracts from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs and the Department of Finance and Administration.
Until Siemens entered the picture, IBM GSA had been regarded by analysts to have been in pole position for the Centrelink business, as it had a long history with its predecessor, the Department of Social Services.
