IT Landscape Trends

In today’s economic stress, IT budgets are being scrutinized and business is requiring ROI analysis and prioritization to approve current and proposed projects. Technology became an integral part of business but is still perceived as a supporting or enabling capability and not as a core competency (unless you are in the IT business). So what should you expect in the next 2009?

• Organizational shakeup: Whether it is mergers, acquisitions, offshoring or inshoring, expect major transformation requiring IT systems to adapt quickly and efficiently.
• Better valuations: CIO’s need to get better at valuing projects and estimating costs. Rough estimates and sandbagging will get you in serious trouble.
• Financing options: Businesses are becoming more creative to finance large IT items. Think long-term leasing and vendor financing. This minimizes the upfront cost.
• Scarcity of resources: Cuts in budgets is requiring businesses to get more done with the same amount of resources.
• Legal and security: With the Satyam fraud situation, businesses realized how vulnerable their data and security was. Expect more involvement from your legal department and less flexibility to handling data.