Re: “State terminates 15 contractors as talks continue on refund of software project spending” (April 23):

I used to manage software-development projects for a company whose customer base included the Maine Office of Information Technology. Three points:

• Implementing a system such as Workday is a lot like changing out an engine on a car racing down the highway. A lot can go wrong as you replace legacy functionality, infrastructure, databases, networks, security protocols and so on with more modern ones. Please don’t judge until the facts are in.

• Of the dozen or so state IT departments I’ve worked with, Maine’s Office of Information Technology ranks among the best. I found my OIT colleagues to be smart, capable, dedicated and accommodating. The only problem is that there aren’t enough of them. What some commentators don’t understand is that the folks at OIT already have full-time jobs caring for existing systems. A project such as Workday is yet another mound of mashed potatoes heaped on an already overflowing plate, which is why OIT hires contractors to boost them over the hump.

• Unless the state is absolutely sure it’s going to pull the plug on Workday and never look back, it may want to hang on to its contractors – at least the ones who’ve scaled the learning curve – even if it means paying them to twiddle their thumbs for a while. Workday consultants are in high demand, and if the state cuts theirs loose, they may never get them back. Starting afresh with rookies would be a major step backward.

Keith Vallencourt
Gardiner

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