Business executives' priorities are changing as companies look to get more from their IT investments, according to Gartner.
The analyst firm said in a new report that chief executives will retain a "recession era mentality" for the next five years, and will insist that future IT investments result in cost savings.
"From the chief executive's perspective, growing confidence tempered by business caution will result in an aggressiveness to harvest the successes of the past through improved productivity," said Jorge Lopez, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner.
"At the same time, chief executives are taking those returns and investing them in building a future that can deliver high returns."
Gartner has identified a number of key issues for executives, and made some recommendations for the IT directors charged with overseeing the changes.
IT bosses should get the most out of any restructuring work, including the dumping of any non-strategic or underperforming assets, and should avoid anything that could lead to another "economic shock".
Gartner said that IT directors should also be prepared to work under constrained budgets, and expect to "finance future IT projects from the cost savings obtained in other parts of operations".
Chief information officers, meanwhile, should be prepared to open up their systems to increased scrutiny, and expect to see demands for more open and transparent ways of doing business.
"IT directors should expect to see increased interest in capabilities and technologies that help provide transparency to internal operations of the sort that increases trust," Gartner said.
"More openness will surround the financial structure of the organisation, and expenses will be examined to high levels of detail."
This will lead to increases in the use of governance tools, and companies should be ready to accept new regulations in the coming years.
IT directors under pressure to deliver cost savings
Staff Writer on Mar 30, 2010 9:55AM

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