Stop the Sprawl: How to build a unified Government technology ecosystem

When the general public imagine government they might picture the House of Commons, Westminster, the Prime Minister. They are unlikely to see an archipelago. However, our current technological landscape in government looks more like a scattered collection of islands, each isolated, with its own unique infrastructure, language, and rules, than a unified and effective institution. These islands rarely communicate, struggle to truly collaborate, and consume vast resources just maintaining their individual existence. This is the current state of government technology: A fragmented landscape of digital territories that fails to realise its collective potential. However, digital diplomacy across these islands has shown promise in the past ten years, with the successes of GDS and cross-gov collaboration shining through. We need to transform this archipelago into a connected, collaborative technological continent. The key? Treating internal developers not as inhabitants of separate islands, but as citizens of a unified technological nation. In this talk, Jonny Williams, best-selling author of "Delivery Management: Enabling Teams to Deliver Value" will explore how to navigate this challenging situation by breaking down territorial barriers, encouraging inter-departmental recommoning of capabilities, and building structures that are empowered to operate beyond silos without falling back into the trap of project based delivery. Transforming our technological archipelago isn't about departmental conquest - it's about creating meaningful connections, shared resources, and a government technology ecosystem that is responsive, efficient, and collectively intelligent. Sharing the lessons of successful initiatives such as cross-gov unconferences, common technological achievements, and lessons learned from the enterprise open source world, Jonny will deliver a strategic perspective on how to unify government technology.