UK IT chiefs are still confident of meeting their targets for 2009 despite the economic uncertainty, according to research commissioned by Cisco.
The survey, carried out by Loudhouse, quizzed 500 IT departments across the UK and Ireland in early October 2008.
68% of respondents were confident of reaching their goals in 2009. Cisco has identified ‘reality gaps’ between targets that companies have set and the ability to meet them. The ‘reality gaps’ are biggest in core infrastructure areas such as network performance and network security.
Network security was cited by 56% of respondents as a high priority, but only 30% believed achieving security objectives will be straightforward. Similarly, 52% cited network performance as critical, but only 27% see achieving this goal as straightforward.
Of the businesses that claimed to be cutting edge in terms of innovation, 84% are confident about meeting their targets. This figure drops to 44% of the companies that consider themselves to have a cautious approach to innovation.
Wendy Mars, head of Cisco’s technical operations in UK & Ireland, said: “While there are some exceptions, the compelling message is just how confident and business-aligned the UK’s IT departments are. Whilst IT is certainly not insulated from the prevailing economic climate, it is clear that there is an appetite from UK plc to continue to drive innovation, as long as measurable objectives can be set.”
David Clarke, Chief Executive of the British Computing Society, said: “IT innovation has a critical role to play in a challenging commercial environment, as do clarity, flexibility and confidence. It is those businesses that are best prepared for ‘stormy’ weather that will have the greatest chance of success.”
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“While IT is seen as a strategic enabler in many businesses, it’s important that businesses also recognise the impact that constraints such as skills, resources, budgets and time can have on the IT department’s ability to enhance business performance.”
