E-auctions came in for criticism at the December meeting of IT trade body the Association of Technology Staffing Companies (ATSCo).

Leading figures in managed service provision taking part in a panel debate said e-auctions were not the way forward.

Paul Mallinson, managing director of Hays Resource Management, and Jerry Collier, director of sales at Alexander Mann Solutions, said they didn’t believe e-auctions were the way to do business.

ATSCo chief executive Ann Swain said it was rare for a client using a “one-dimensional selection process such as e-auction to be thrilled by the level of understanding, service quality and delivery subsequently shown by the so-called ‘winner’”.