Report: State CIOs predicting lower budgets in 2011 through 2013, outsourcing more function

Thursday, July 29, 2010

According to research conducted by the National Association of State Chief Information Officers, in conjunction with TechAmerica and Grant Thorton, state technology officers anticipate lower budgets during the upcoming years.

Two-thirds of the state CIOs responding to the 2010 survey stated they anticipate decreased IT budgets in 2011 through 2013. A mere 13 percent felt their budgets would increase during this time period, while 23 expect no significant change either way.

Thus, with lower budgets, state CIOs have begun looking for cost-efficient solutions, such as consolidating applications and data centers. In addition, other technology professionals have embraced shared or managed services to cut costs while keeping IT functionality at a premium.

In fact, nearly 50 percent of the surveyed CIOs stated they currently outsource aspects of their IT infrastructure. Forty percent of the respondents outsource IT applications operations as well. Furthermore, 27 percent said they plan to outsource more functions going forward, with 19 percent outsourcing for the first time.

In addition to outsourcing, many CIOs see cloud computing and social media as cost-effective ways to improve IT efficiency.

The NASCIO's report comes in contrast to several other reports from market research firms anticipating increased corporate IT budgets going forward.