Many CIOs are failing to deal with demands for innovation and their business colleagues are choosing to source their own IT, according to research.
A poll of senior decision makers by market research specialist Vanson Bourne found 67 per cent of respondents have been commissioning and sourcing IT products from outside the IT department for two years or more.
More than half (57 per cent) feel shadow IT activity will increase in their organisation during the next two years.
Worse still for CIOs, 41 per cent of business managers believe they understand their technology requirements better than the IT department.
Claranet CIO Andy Wilton said this research shows large numbers of IT leaders have more work to do to align their IT departments with the needs of the wider business.
"Many CIOs feel tied down to just keeping the lights on and, while understandable, the knock-on effect of this approach is that more business leaders are taking it upon themselves to source their own IT," he said.
"CIOs need to move beyond the gatekeeper function and embrace a new world, in which they are able to provide the tools and support that business unit heads need to make effective, co-ordinated IT decisions."
Vanson Bourne surveyed 200 business decision-makers Claranet in organisations with more than 1,000 employees in the UK and the US.
