Ministry of Defence still has a lot of work to do to benefit from new ICT system
The Dutch Ministry of Defence has been introducing a complex ICT system since 2005 to support and improve its operations. The implementation is known as the SPEER programme
All armed forces will migrate to this new Enterprise Resource Planning system (ERP). The Court of Audit estimated that the total cost had risen to about €650 million by mid-2013. It has also estimated that a further €250 million will be needed to complete the implementation and customise the system. The minister does not recognise these figures, claiming that the project dates from before 2008. The Court of Audit thinks this argument is difficult to maintain in 2014, particularly as the project was reviewed in 2010 and the system must still be customised to the ministry's needs.
The ministry forwarded the final report on the SPEER programme to the House of Representatives in December 2013. The Court of Audit appreciates the ministry's critical and open look at the project. The Court has followed the SPEER programme in recent years and thinks the final report forms a good platform for further implementation. The ministry is working on an action plan to implement the basic ERP functionalities by mid-2015. The Court thinks the minister should make more headway and set a stricter deadline. An action plan is necessary to steer and manage the implementation effectively. The plans to customise the system must also be tackled more vigorously so that the system can process information on all costs associated with the main weapons systems. The longer the ministry waits, the longer it will take before it can benefit from the new system.
The letter is only in Dutch available.