Review into Optus triple-zero outage finds ‘at least ten mistakes’
Make us a preferred source
Make us a preferred source on Google
The news: Former Sydney Water CEO Kerry Schott’s review into Optus’ triple-zero outage found “there were at least 10 mistakes” between Optus Networks and contractors Nokia.
Optus’ board has found 21 possible improvement measures following the review into the failure of the telco’s triple-zero services, which identified gaps that need “urgent attention”.
The context: A dedicated work program has been set up within Optus to implement Schott’s recommendations.
This takes place alongside ongoing “comprehensive cultural reforms underway to further strengthen accountability, transparency, risk responsibility and a customer first mindset at all levels of the organisation”, according to Optus.
Optus chair John Arthur reiterated that the company is “deeply sorry for the 18 September outage” and described the Schott report as “a sobering read for everyone at Optus”.
He also outlined that further action to hold individuals accountable will include “financial penalties through to termination in appropriate cases”. However, Schott noted in her report that “calls to replace the current CEO are not helpful at the start of this large program of change”.
Schott was brought in to lead an independent review into the service failure, which was linked to deaths, in late September. The Optus board accepted all its recommendations on 16 December and released the report on Thursday.
What they said: “The Schott Review makes an important contribution to support the work underway to reform Optus,” Optus CEO Stephen Rue said.
“When I started as CEO last year, we launched a company-wide program of change, underpinned by a long-term strategic plan which would transform the company over the coming years.”
The sources: Optus Independent Review, Optus media release
