At the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo held in Sydney earlier this month, the research analysts advised their attendees to “not wait for signs of a return to growth to begin planning for business growth. Elaborating on this theme, senior vice president and global head of research Peter Sondergaard added that an economic downturn can be a perfect time to undertake projects that warrant priority, because of their impact on future growth.
Releasing preliminary results of its annual Gartner Executive Programs (EXP) CIO survey, Gartner said IT leaders are wary of making dramatic budget cuts because they know it will be difficult to ‘ramp up’ their IT capabilities when opportunities for business growth return.
Of the 444 CIOs surveyed around the world thus far, 48 percent are projecting an IT budget increase in 2009. However, 52 percent of CIOs are reporting flat or IT budget decreases in 2009. On a weighted basis and considering all 444 IT organizations, 2009 IT budgets are set to increase 3.36 percent. “While these are preliminary results, they support what we have observed during 2008 — that enterprises see IT as a way to drive cost out of the business in the face of an increasingly challenging economic climate,” observed Sondergaard.
