Firms Still Planning IT Initiatives

SAN FRANCISCO—Seventy percent of chief information officers (CIOs) say their companies will invest in information technology initiatives over the next 12 months, despite the economic recession, according to the results of a survey conducted in January by consultancy Robert Half Technology. Information security topped the list of projects CIOs expect their firms to invest in, with 43 percent of the response, followed by virtualization (28 percent) and data center efficiency (27 percent), according to Robert Half Technology (Menlo Park, Calif.). The phone survey of more than 1,400 CIOs from U.S. companies with 100 or more employees was developed by Robert Half Technology and conducted by an independent research firm. CIOs were asked which areas, if any, would their IT departments invest in over the next 12 months. In addition to information security, virtualization and data center efficiency, voice-over-Internet-protocol and software-as-a-service inititiatives were frequent responses, with each mentioned by 26 percent of the CIOs surveyed, according to Robert Half Technology. Green IT, business intelligence, social networking, Web 2.0 and outsourcing initiatives were also mentioned by 16-20 percent of respondents, according to the firm. "Although times are lean, many companies are finding that they can't afford to postpone IT investments that lead to increased security, efficiencies or revenues," said Dave Willmer, executive director of Robert Half Technology, in a statement. "Organizations also are trying to make sure they are prepared for growth when conditions improve, and enhancing their IT infrastructure is part of that process." Last month, Hewlett-Packard Co. said a survey of potential customers revealed that 56 percent were still planning to do server consolidation projects despite the recession.