Indian IT leaders are investing 65% of their IT budget in delivering new services, according to a CA Technologies sponsored global study – “TechInsights Report: The Changing Role of IT and What to Do About It,” conducted by Vanson Bourne.
As software-driven business transformation becomes the norm, and businesses use new applications to engage their employees and customers, this trend is expected to continue, and accelerate, in the years to come.
The survey findings show that the top trends impacting IT in India today are Cloud Computing (53%), DevOps (53%) and Big Data (33%). With the focus on innovation, 71% of India Inc’s top management considers IT to be fundamental to the organisation’s success or very strategically important, compared to 51% in the US. The survey also reveals that 92% of the top IT executives in India report to the CEO or the most senior officer in the organisation.
“Today, every business is technology driven. Customers are demanding new applications and a different experience, and employees require new tools to succeed and be productive. This is compelling CIOs to evolve the role of IT. Hence, the need of the hour for Indian CIOs is to become senior advisors and business enablers that leverage new technologies to win in this new business landscape,” commented Sunil Manglore, Managing Director – CA Technologies India.
The way technology is seen, purchased, used and deployed across enterprises is changing. In India, 55% of IT spend is happening outside the IT department. This is the highest percentage in the world of company-wide IT spending controlled by other lines of business.
The consequences for IT leaders are enormous as they must influence and guide and not just manage a corporation’s IT investments. As such, IT leaders must increase their IT interactions with lines of business from the current levels which are encouraging: 39% act as a service broker and advise the business on recommended vendors while 13% act as a consultant to the business.
Other notable findings in India include:
• 89% of respondents in India anticipate further changes in the roles of IT in their organisation over the next five years, compared to just 42% in the US.
• 49% of respondents list ensuring the organisation’s critical data is secure as their primary role
• 52% of IT leaders say more training on new technologies like Cloud, DevOps and Big Data are needed to leverage these technologies for the business
Survey Methodology
Vanson Bourne conducted the CA Technologies-sponsored study of 1,300 senior IT leaders in six Asia-Pacific countries (Australia, China, India, Japan, Singapore and South Korea) and 15 other countries around the world in May through July 2013. The study’s respondents assume IT executive, management, project lead or enterprise architect positions at enterprises with revenues of $100 million or more.
