National Monitor
VERNON HILLS, Ill. – March 9, 2010 – There may be signs of growing confidence among IT decision makers in some sectors, but it is not widespread, and there are still lingering areas of pessimism. According to the latest CDW IT Monitor, increased optimism about growth among federal government and large corporate IT decision makers is balanced against a less confident outlook among those in local government, state government and small businesses.
First the good news: more than three out of five (62 percent) of IT decision-makers at large businesses expect IT budgets to increase in the next six months, 14 percentage points higher than October 2009, or the beginning of Q4 2009. In addition, 44 percent of large businesses expect to replace/install new hardware for a significant part of their company in the next six months, up 11 percentage points since October 2009.
However, in stark contrast, only 27 percent of IT decision makers at small businesses expect budget increases in the next six months, 35 percentage points less than their large business counterparts. On the bright side, that number is up four percentage points since October 2009. In addition, only 15 percent of small businesses plan to use a portion of their budgets to implement discretionary IT projects, versus 63 percent of large corporations.
“While we are encouraged by pockets of optimism, there are clear disparities in confidence among IT decision makers during what is still a challenging economic time,” said Thomas E. Richards, president and chief operating officer, CDW. “The relative confidence we see from large businesses, which have more resources to leverage infrastructure and efficiency, has not yet spread to small businesses, which are still exercising caution as they begin 2010.”
In the public sector, federal IT decision makers are significantly more optimistic than their state and local counterparts. Almost half (49 percent) of federal IT decision makers anticipate increased budgets in the next six months, up six percentage points since December 2009. Only 27 percent of state and 16 percent of local government IT decision makers anticipate budget increases in the same time period.
“President Obama’s recent fiscal year 2011 budget proposal includes plans to invest in IT at federal agencies to create greater efficiencies,” Richards added. “On the other hand, state and local government organizations are struggling to close budget shortfalls.”
The uneven nature of the recovery is reflected in the overall CDW IT Monitor score, which remained flat at 72 for the second consecutive reading. The CDW IT Monitor is based on an online survey of at least 1,000 IT decision makers from businesses of all sizes and all sectors of government. For more information about the mindset of IT decision makers please visit www.cdwitmonitor.com.
Additional findings from the February CDW IT Monitor:
| Investment in IT Infrastructure Helps Performance/Efficiency | Dec 09 | Feb 10 |
| Small Businesses (1-99 employees) |
54% | 55% |
| Medium-Size Businesses (100-999 employees) |
73% | 79% |
| Large Businesses (1,000+ employees) |
82% | 85% |
| Local Government | 71% | 74% |
| State Government | 68% | 68% |
| Federal Government | 76% | 72% |
About the CDW IT Monitor
The CDW IT Monitor was created by CDW and research and analysis is conducted by independent polling firm Richard Day Research of Evanston, Ill. Decision makers are invited from two large national panels of IT decision makers built and maintained by E-Rewards and Survey Sampling International. Data reported in this release are based on a survey of 1,044 IT decision makers conducted between Jan. 26 and Feb. 2, 2010.
At the center of the CDW IT Monitor is an index number, which registered an initial benchmark reading of 69 in December 2007. Results are calculated on a scale of 0-100, with 100 indicating the highest level of confidence. Future readings of the CDW IT Monitor will continue to yield comparisons to previous scores, allowing for an interpretation of the direction of sentiment in the IT marketplace. The next CDW IT Monitor will be released in April 2010.
Data are weighted to ensure that CDW IT Monitor calculations closely represent the overall population of corporate and government employers in terms of size, based on the number of employees. Corporate data are weighted according to U.S. Economic Census data, and government data are weighted according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s annual survey of government employment. The margin of sampling error for a survey based on this many interviews is approximately +/-4 percentage points for the business sector, and +/-6 percentage points for government.
About CDW
CDW is a leading provider of technology solutions for business, government and education. Ranked No. 41 on Forbes' list of America's Largest Private Companies, CDW features dedicated account managers who help customers choose the right technology products and services to meet their needs. The company's technology specialists offer expertise in designing customized solutions, while its advanced technology engineers can assist customers with the implementation and long-term management of those solutions. Areas of focus include notebooks, desktops, printers, servers and storage, unified communications, security, wireless, power and cooling, networking, software licensing and mobility solutions.
CDW was founded in 1984 and as of December 31, 2009 employed approximately 6,150 coworkers. In 2008, the company generated sales of $8.1 billion. For more information, visit CDW.com.
