US cos hint at larger IT spend

[OhioChick]

< MONDAY, MARCH 26, 2007 12:08:16 AM>

NEW DELHI: Fears of a slowdown in the US economy notwithstanding, chief information officers (CIOs) of Fortune 1000 and Global 1000 corporations have indicated a likely growth in their company’s IT budgets in the US while their counterparts in Europe expect the spend to be flat.

A Citigroup Research survey which polled 200 global CIOs to gauge the IT spend outlook for 2007 said CIOs appear bullish on the economy and IT spend for the current year. “However, the underlying numbers indicate low single-digit growth in IT budgets,” said the survey.

The buoyant sentiments had also resonated in Dell CEO Michael Dell’s statement in India last week. When asked if he anticipated a blip in tech spending in case of a slowdown, he said: “The US is still quite healthy.”

Echoing the sentiment is global sourcing advisory firm TPI, which says that the firm’s pipeline continues to be extremely strong. “Although there are fears of a slowdown, there’s no immediate reflection on IT spending.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Infotech/Software/US_cos_hint_at_larger_IT_spend/articleshow/1807179.cms

[Little Wing]

1. The question is - where?

[Captain Angry]

2. A good many companies did not upgrade for 5+ years

I think the CIOs know that they're due to cycle their hardware. It's been put off for a very long time at some companies.

With Vista finally out, there are programs that Microsoft will help do the work to move a business to Vista. So, by waiting, they can get hardware they know will work, with driver support, and have Microsoft pay to develop their image and deployment strategies.

It had to happen at some point. Might as well do it while the earnings are still good, since next year, the whole economy could be in the toilet. Budgets and workforces may shrink significantly.