Computerworld Forecast Survey Highlights Tech and Staff Priorities as Organizations Look to Improve Customer Experience and Drive Revenue

/EINPresswire.com/ -- FRAMINGHAM, MA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/11/16 -- IDG Enterprise's Computerworld -- the leading IT media brand dedicated to being the voice of business technology -- highlights the 2016 tech priorities for organizations in its annual Forecast Survey (click to tweet). As technology continues to be a business differentiator and provide competitive advantage, tech budgets are increasing for almost half of organizations (46%). Tech leaders are focusing on business priorities that will help their organizations contain costs, optimize and automate business processes, and accelerate business processes and agility.

Spending Priorities: Security & Cloud
Two major themes within enterprise technology are the need for additional security and how cloud computing will continue to reshape enterprise IT. It is not surprising that in 2016 organizations will increase spending on security (50%), cloud computing (48%), business analytics (41%), mobile apps (36%), and virtualization (35%). As business-critical applications and infrastructure move to the cloud, on-premise software, data center modernization and modernizing/replacing legacy systems are receiving fewer dollars.

Computerworld Forecast 2016

IT is moving beyond traditional core tech responsibilities as organizations look to drive digital business. Tech leaders shared that cloud computing, security, and legacy system updates/replacements rank as the single most important tech project they are working on in 2016. However, for tech leaders at enterprise organizations (1,000+ employees) the primary goals behind their most important projects have them stepping outside traditional IT with a focus on improving customer satisfaction and experience, generating new or increase existing revenue streams, and maintaining and improving service levels.

"Digital transformation continues to grow as strategic priority. Technology leaders are positioned to drive this change through strategic investments that boost organizational efficiency and a deeper focus on customer solutions and experience," said Brian Glynn, chief revenue officer, IDG Enterprise. "We look forward to addressing the opportunities and challenges organizations face in becoming a digital business, from determining what solutions will help advance their goals and then finding the right talent to effectively carry out those initiatives, at the AGENDA16 conference next month."

Exploring & Adopting New Technologies
As building a digital enterprise continues to grow in importance, tech leaders are exploring new technologies. Nearly one-third of organizations (29%) are planning to spend money on Internet of Things (IoT) initiatives, followed by high-performance computing (HPC - 18%), and energy-saving and carbon reducing technologies (16%). Exploring new tech solutions and strategies does not stop there, the majority of enterprise organizations are adopting strategies around agile development and DevOps. This focus has grown from 48% in 2015 to 61% in 2016.

Finding the Right Person for the Job
As technology trends advance, the promise of efficiencies is appealing; however having the right skillsets in place is vital for solutions to be fully utilized. While 37% of organizations are planning to increase headcount this year, finding employees with the necessary skillsets is proving difficult. Organizations are challenged to find employees with security, BI and analytics, cloud/SaaS, and programming/App Dev experience. These skillsets closely align with the areas receiving additional spending. Additionally, 42% are looking for employees with both a technology and business background to articulate IT's value, showcasing that IT continues to embrace its new role as an organizational agent of change. Within organizations planning to increase head count, the most in-demand positions are IT architecture, programming/application development, project management and big data.

Continue the Conversation at AGENDA16
Join technology and business decision-makers as they discuss driving business through digital transformation at the AGENDA16 conference. To learn more about attending or sponsoring the March 21 - 23, 2016 conference visit agendaconference.com.

About the Computerworld Forecast Survey 2016
Computerworld conducted its Forecast Survey 2016 to determine IT priorities for 2016 in areas such as spending, technologies and staffing. Survey results are based on 181 respondents who are IT decision-makers across multiple industries.

Learn more about tech trends discussed in this study by downloading the 2016 Computerworld Forecast Study executive summary.

About Computerworld
Computerworld is the leading IT media brand helping senior IT, business decision-makers and key influencers navigate change with effective business strategy. As the voice of business technology, Computerworld enables the IT value chain with unique editorial coverage from setting strategies to deriving value. Computerworld's award-winning website (www.computerworld.com), focused conference series, strategic marketing solutions and research forms the hub of the world's largest (40+ edition) global IT media network and provides opportunities for IT vendors to engage this audience. Computerworld leads the industry with an online audience of over 7.5 million monthly page views (Omniture, July 2015 - December 2015 average) and was recognized in BtoB's 2013 Media Power 50 list; recognition Computerworld has received for more than 5 consecutive years. Computerworld is published by IDG Enterprise, a subsidiary of International Data Group (IDG), the world's leading media, events and research company. Company information is available at www.idgenterprise.com.

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