Ict Procurement Trends in the Uk Essay

This report presents the findings from a survey of 136 UK enterprises regarding their approach to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) procurement. The survey investigates the way that UK enterprises like to purchase technology, as well as the major IT and business objectives influencing their IT investment strategies. Introduction and Landscape Why was the report written? To highlight the criteria on which UK enterprises select their IT providers as well as the roles which have influence while making IT purchasing decisions. What is the current market landscape and what is changing? UK enterprises are set to increase their IT spending in 2013. Kable’s survey shows that ICT spending in the UK is being driven by investments in core technology areas such as security, enterprise applications, IT systems management, and content management. What are the key drivers behind recent market changes? With enterprises being continuously exposed to malicious attacks on their business critical information, the demand for security solutions is growing. What makes this report unique and essential to read? Kable Global ICT Intelligence has invested significant resources in order to interview CIOs and IT managers about their IT Procurement. Very few IT analyst houses will have interviewed 130+ ICT decision makers in the UK market in H2 2012. Key Features and Benefits Provides insights into UK enterprises’ preferred buying approaches. Comprehend the business objectives that UK enterprises are looking to achieve through their IT investment strategy. Appreciate the IT objectives that UK enterprises are looking to achieve through their IT investment strategy. Understand the factors that are influencing UK enterprises’ decision to select an ICT provider. Understand which organisational roles influence IT purchasing decisions and signing off budgets. Key Market Issues Despite the uncertain economic conditions across Europe and the UK government’s large scale austerity measures which have impacted public sector ICT spend, the vast majority of respondents from Kable’s survey indicate that their IT budgets will remain at the same level or will increase in 2013. With regards to the authority over signing off budgets, UK enterprises surprisingly give an equal rating to CEOs, CFOs, and CIOs. UK enterprises rate ‘Improve supplier relationships’ with an average rating of X, indicating that enterprises’ focus is weighted more to their own operations, followed by their customers, amidst the difficult global economic outlook. Investments in cloud computing are expected to grow with the penetration of this technology increasing from the current level of X% to Y% in the next twenty-four months, driven by factors such as lowering cost and complexity, and ease of use. According to Kable’s survey, X% of enterprises have a somewhat complex ICT infrastructure with several hardware manufacturers, operating systems, databases, applications, and other elements. Key Highlights Although on-premise deployment is favoured, the demand for hosted applications is also gaining traction, as enterprises are continuously focused on reducing costs in the current economic climate. Raising efficiency is a primary business objective influencing IT investment strategy amongst UK enterprises with the highest rating of X on a scale of 1 to 4. The recent survey reveals X% of enterprises have rated the objective of meeting internal service level agreements as a highest priority. With an average rating of X on a scale of 1 to 4, UK enterprises consider ‘Financial stability’ and ‘Price’ to be the most important criteria in choosing an IT solutions provider. UK enterprises rate the CIO/IT department as the most influential authority when making IT purchasing decisions, with the highest average rating of X on a scale of 1 to 4.