CIO State of the State
Reduce Costs, Increase Efficiency, Manage Risk
Updated with Success Stories from Business March 2010, Robert Klotz, Akibia, Inc.
Executive Summary
In 2009, economic pressures left their mark on IT budgets. An Akibia survey of 100 CIOs and vice presidents of IT at Fortune 1000 organizations in the beginning of 2009 showed that companies were laser focused on IT initiatives that could:
- Reduce costs
- Increase efficiency
- Manage risk
In early 2010, Akibia followed up with the survey respondents to learn which IT initiatives they had undertaken, how they were able to meet the objectives, and how these initiatives have better positioned the companies as faster, agile, lean and more effective organizations. We have updated this whitepaper with specific examples of how companies achieved these IT initiatives and goals and are now better positioned for 2010.
The original survey results showed organizations had identified five key areas to focus on in 2009:
- Vendor Rationalization
- Evaluating and Leveraging Existing Investments
- Strategic Investments that Reduce Costs
- Cost and Time-Efficient Practical Training
- New Approaches to Managing Compliance
In follow up we found most companies had focused in on these core areas over the past year and were seeing significant benefits as a result of their focus.
Perspective of the CIO - Results from the original survey
Akibia’s survey was conducted over a period of 4 months in 2009, and consisted of one-on-one interviews with CIOs and Vice Presidents of IT at Fortune 1000 organizations across the United States and Europe. The interviews were conducted by Robert Klotz, vice president of technology at Akibia. Survey questions focused on budget realities, how those realities were impacting spending and the IT leaders’ focus and pain points in the near term.
