Regardless of what industry your company does business in, having a reliable IT solution is imperative. That’s why proper planning and budgeting is essential when designing your IT strategy for the coming year. ZDNet has recently published the findings of their US IT Priorities report and the data seems to suggest that most companies are focused on investing in mobility, web apps, and security; and that price is usually the deciding factor.
The 45 page white paper, to which I’ve placed a link above, is an in-depth look at the answers retrieved from IT professionals across the US about their budgets and strategies in relation to their IT solutions. They serve as decision makers from small to large businesses that utilize everything from small office networks to entire server rooms.
While the dense report touches on numerous interesting findings, we’ll focus on a few key points. Let’s face it; if you have the time to read through a long-winded analysis then you probably would just read the whole report instead.
The most common theme among survey responders was the importance of network security. While focusing on core infrastructure was the second most identified networking strategy, security concerns like intrusion and antivirus/spyware/malware take up 3 of the top 4 spots. This, the survey points out, is due to security threats multiplying and no longer being theoretical.
The other evident trend highlighted by the survey is that most companies are looking to invest in IT solutions that involve mobility and web applications. Currently businesses are focusing on projects to develop web applications that allow for a more adaptable workforce. In the long term companies are focused of phasing in technology that allows their employees to access applications and data remotely using mobile devices such as tablets and notebooks.
It’s also interesting to note that just behind the 31.1% of businesses prioritizing web apps and mobility, IT Training/Services and Backup/Recovery/Archiving come in at 30.9% and 30.6% respectively. This is a reflection of the importance of having IT support and data backups available should a failure occur, harkening back to the emphasis on network security and reliability.
Regardless of which emphasis a business prefers to focus on, the underlying factor in the planning process was cost effectiveness. Just over 61.3% of businesses responded that their spending for IT would be the same or less as in 2011 and only 38.7% budgeted more for 2012. This means that business will be looking for the best possible deals, often pitting multiple vendors against each other in order to get the best pricing.
At IronOrbit we understand the grueling process of planning costs for your business. That’s why we offer fully managed hosting services for flat fees, eliminating the guess work in IT budgets. Our solutions offer 24x7x365 support and security services that will keep your IT data and applications safe. We offer a full suite of services for all of your hosting needs. With solutions like these, it’s no wonder so many businesses choose IronOrbit to be their cloud provider.