Survey of CIOs Reveals Key Drivers of IT Efficiency

A recent survey of enterprise chief information officers and other IT decision makers clearly reveals that they believe the top three factors that enable more effective use of technology are improved IT project management, standardization and better integration of existing applications.

It probably doesn't surprise most IT professionals to know that all three of these data points happen to be among the most prevalent trends in the IT business.

Improvements and simplification of data center management software, standardization and virtualization of IT hardware and software assets, and improved integration of new technology into existing systems are all proving to contribute mightily to a company's bottom-line profit.

The survey was researched by the London School of Economics in cooperation with Dell, which sponsored the study as a part of its Efficient Enterprise strategy. This was the first of three such research surveys that will be taken during the next several months.

"When speaking to CIOs and IT decision makers across the globe, a common theme of stopping IT waste and unleashing resources consistently arose," said Dr. Jonathan Liebenau of the London School of Economics, who, along with LSE researcher Patrik Karrberg, is running the studies. "Companies clearly place value on efficiencies through technology and new management practices, but many struggle to define the return to the business."

Other findings included:

• About 90 percent of respondents found that IT investments generally provide value for the investment, although more than 30 percent were not able to specifically quantify the value derived from IT.
• 30 percent of those surveyed believe that technology standardization could help their company become more effective.
• 40 percent see better IT project management as driving more efficient use of technology.
• Enterprises are determined to improve productivity, but this goal was not set in a way to reduce work force size; cutting jobs ranked as a last priority.
• More than one-third of respondents measured return on IT investments through staff productivity, improvements in process, and speed and revenue growth.
• Providing better products and services to employees and customers was seen as the main business goal driving IT strategy for close to 40 percent of those surveyed.
• Almost half of the respondents regard information security and work force mobility solutions as two of the main drivers for enterprise innovation, while 45 percent identified data center efficiency.

More information on Dell's Efficient Enterprise strategy can be found here.