Staying the course? Technology decision-making in turbulent times

• Economics Intelligence Unit

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25 June 2009In the business world, no aspect of company operations will emerge unscathed from the toughest economic crisis in three generations. But IT, and the hard-won influence that CIOs and other leaders have gained for it, appears to be surviving the crisis with confidence largely intact in many if not most companies.

The reputations of technology and the IT function did not fare well following the previous downturn early in this decade. Since then, technology has become firmly embedded in company processes, and CEOs, CFOs and boards have become convinced of the importance of IT to their businesses. In the preceding crisis, overambitious technology investment was blamed for many corporate ills; in this one, business leaders appear to view technology as an important instrument in preparing their firms for recovery. Such executive-suite confidence means that in many companies technology-led projects and IT budgets are enjoying greater protection than other categories of spending.