As a self-employed person, I am constantly looking for assignments where I can use my expertise. Recently, I stumbled upon a public contract issued by the Municipality of Hellendoorn It started with the following sentence:
“Improving information management and compliance with laws and regulations by transferring network drives to SharePoint/MS Teams and OneDrive.’
I had to read it twice.
Not because of the complexity, but because of the short-sightedness. At a time when trust in foreign cloud providers is faltering, in which the Dutch government itself is working on a own cloud solution, and in which European digital sovereignty is a hot topic, a government organization simply shifts all its information to Microsoft. And that without any nuance or guarantee. Under the guise of ‘improvement of information management’. I'm about to fall off my chair.
“The biggest risks often lie in the choices that are presented as self-evident.”
Digital sovereignty: Who dares to choose?
We live in a world where technology has become an extension of geopolitics. Choosing an American cloud provider is no longer a neutral, technical decision in 2025. It is a strategic, societal, and yes – even ethical choice. Especially when it comes to public data and public sector information.
The U.S. has shown time and time again that data from non-Americans can fall under U.S. jurisdiction, regardless of where that data is physically stored. Think of the CLOUD Act and the enforced access to data of European citizens. And yet, time and time again, we choose convenience over control.
“Sovereignty is not something you claim in policy, but what you exercise in choices.”
The governance illusion of migration to the cloud
The wording of the command assumes that migration to SharePoint and OneDrive automatically leads to ‘legislative compliance’. That's a myth. Tools like Microsoft 365 are just infrastructure. Governance is not a check mark in an admin console, it's a culture of choices, processes, and responsibility.
In fact, reliance on a single supplier only makes maintaining governance more difficult. You lose grip, vision and autonomy – exactly the things you want to improve in your information management.
“Good information management starts with ownership, not export.”
Why I Doubt to Register
I don't want to be sour. I want to help. But somewhere it wrings. Do I really have to sign up just to tell them not to? Should I write a proposal in which I challenge their own assignment, question their starting point, and confront their comfort zone?
It feels paradoxical. But maybe that's exactly what's needed. Because we do not need more consultants who literally carry out the assignment, but more who dare to question the question.
“Sometimes the best service you can provide is to reformulate the demand.”
Finally: pragmatism versus principled choices
It is tempting to think: "Ah, everyone does it." But the question is not whether something is common, the question is whether it is wise. Maybe we should stop following indiscriminately and start thinking. Perhaps we, as self-employed people, architects and advisors, should occasionally assume the role of conscience function. Even if it costs us chances.
“The right decision is rarely the easiest one. But always worth it.”
English (UK)