The former chief technology officer at the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) Philip French has left the civil service to join Steria, a major provider of IT services to the department.
French joined the Steria on 3 September in the role of business engagement director after working at the MoJ for three years.
Last year, Steria was selected by the MoJ to provide application development around Oracle's enterprise resource planning (ERP) software for five years as part of a major shared services programme.
In his new role, French will engage with clients across the public sector with the exception of the Ministry of Justice. The appointment has been approved under the Government's business appointment rules, which specify that French will not have any dealings with the Ministry of Justice or the National Offender Management Service for 12 months from his last day of service, unless at the explicit request of the MoJ.
"The departure of MoJ's former chief technology officer was approved by the department's business approval committee which considers the appropriateness of such moves," said a spokesman for the MoJ.
"A condition of the approval was that he should have no involvement in any bid Steria might wish to make under our Future ICT Sourcing Programme."
The impediment around French's involvement with Steria bids to the MoJ will last for a period of two years.
In a statement, the IT services firm said: "Recruiting experts from the sectors we work in is a key part of how Steria builds its capabilities and services to ensure that we offer our clients the best possible solutions for their requirements.
"In some cases these experts will come from the industry, in others from the public sector. We consider ourselves fortunate to have secured the services of Philip and are delighted to welcome him to the Steria team."
French is also a non-executive director at Eduserv, a not-for-profit organisation providing technology services for education and the public sector.
