ABRSM comments on leaked letter of no confidence in IT infrastructure

ABRSM’s chief executive Chris Cobb has commented on a letter that was sent to the senior management team in which some of the board’s examiners write that they ‘do not currently have confidence in ABRSM’s IT infrastructure and software’. 

The letter was signed by more than 70 examiners and is allegedly supported by over 100 more, and was not intended to be made public.

Addressed to Chris Cobb, the letter calls on ABRSM to ‘undertake a full audit of the current situation’ and provide short- and long-term resolutions so that ‘customer confidence is restored’.

This comes after last week's exam booking period caused 'frustration', 'stress' and 'disruption' for music teachers and parents trying to book instrumental and vocal exams.

When approached for comment about the letter, Cobb told MT: ‘We are in direct contact with examiners in relation to this letter and are deeply disappointed that some of the panel have felt moved to express their concerns in this way. 

‘A good customer experience is an absolute priority for us and whilst this recent booking period opened with issues, for which we are sorry, thousands of people have been able to use the system successfully.’

He continued: ‘We have put significant energy and resource into stabilising and improving both Marcato - the examiner marking platform - and our whole booking system. We are already in the process of auditing recent events and are planning to put in place an independent, external audit of our systems.’

MT will continue to monitor the situation.