2012 Role & Influence of the Technology Decision-Maker - Network World

2012 Role & Influence of the Technology Decision-Maker Conducted across the IDG Enterprise brands: CIO, Computerworld, InfoWorld, ITworld & Network World

• METHODOLOGY • DEMOGRAPHICS • RESULTS • CONCLUSION

Purpose and Methodology

1

Survey Sample

Field Work Mar. 7, 2012 –

Mar. 28, 2012

Total Respondents 1,140

Margin of Error +/- 2.9%

Audience Base CIO, Computerworld,

InfoWorld, ITworld, and

Network World sites and

email

Survey Method

Survey Goal

To provide in-depth information about the evolving

role and influence of IT decision-makers in today’s

corporations:

- Role of technology decision-makers in the IT

purchasing process.

- Primary influences and information sources in

the IT purchasing process.

Collection Online Questionnaire

Number of

Questions

19 (incl. demographics)

Source: IDG Enterprise Role & influence of the Technology Decision-Maker Study, March 2012


2

Respondent Profile

Job Title Breakdown

IT Leadership

Total Respondents Organization Size

Top Represented Industries

All survey respondents are involved in the

purchase of IT products and services at their

organization.

7%

8%

9%

10%

10%

13%

16%

Retail, Wholesale and Distribution

Healthcare (providers andpharmaceuticals)

Services (legal, consulting, realestate)

Education

Government

Financial Services (banking,insurance, brokerage)

High Tech Telecom & Utilities

Average Company Size 11,324 employees

Average Annual Revenue $4.35 billion 1,140

Executive IT 53%

Mid-Level IT 19%

IT Professional 17%

Business Management 7%

Other (Non-Manager) 4%


ROLE OF IT IN THE IT PURCHASE PROCESS


4

Different IT Mgmt. Lead at Each Stage of Purchase Process

78%

68%

68%

72%

47%

71%

76%

85%

85%

82%

37%

43%

57%

78%

80%

59%

17%

13%

Determine the business need

Determine technical requirements

Evaluate products/services

Recommend or select vendors for purchase

Sell internally (e.g. to outside of IT team)

Authorize or approve the purchase of productsand services

Executive IT Mid-Level IT IT Professionals

Q. In which of the following ways are you involved in the purchase process for IT products and services?



5

LOB Supports IT at Key Stages

78%

68%

68%

72%

47%

71%

76%

85%

85%

82%

37%

43%

57%

78%

80%

59%

17%

13%

71%

57%

72%

60%

23%

60%

37%

28%

35%

28%

10%

38%







Executive IT Mid-Level IT IT Professionals IDG Enterprise Business Management GMI Business Panel


LOB most

involved



6

Not All LOB Executives Equal

71%

57%

72%

60%

23%

60%

37%

24%

35%

28%

10%

38%







IDG Enterprise Business Management GMI Business Panel




7

IT Influence Extends to Business Side 88%

85%

82%

78%

72%

59%

52%

80%

76%

62%

61%

52%

38%

31%

55%

53%

32%

29%

28%

22%

16%

56%

48%

50%

57%

61%

68%

68%

20%

23%

25%

35%

37%

40%

48%

Setting IT standards and policies

Setting IT project goals

IT department budget responsibility

Vendor contract negotiations

Participate in business project steeringcommittee(s)

Setting business standards and policies

Setting business project goals

Executive IT Mid-Level IT IT Professionals IDG Enterprise Business Management GMI Business Panel

Q. Are you involved in any of the following activities at your organization?



8

Leadership Shifts with Purchasing Stage

Q. Including yourself, which of the following groups are involved in each stage of IT purchase process at your organization?

Determine the

Business Need

Determine

Technical

Requirements

Evaluate

Recommend/

Select Vendors

Sell internally

(outside IT team)

Authorize/

Approve

Line of Business Mgmt. 49% 18% 30% 21% 25% 14%

CIO or Top IT Executive 45% 35% 34% 42% 53% 61%

CEO 42% 10% 11% 11% 16% 50%

IT Steering Committee 36% 27% 31% 30% 28% 17%

IT/Networking Mgmt. 36% 48% 47% 48% 42% 31%

IT/Networking Staff 35% 64% 66% 49% 23% 10%

CFO 24% 5% 6% 8% 14% 54%

CTO/IT Architect 24% 35% 33% 32% 27% 19%

COO 23% 6% 9% 7% 15% 26%

IT Vendors 16% 34% 27% 19% 13% 3%

1

2

1 1 1

1 1

2 2 2 2

2

Boxes indicate top 2 responses.



9

IT Has Strong Presence on Steering Committee

71%

47%

43%

43%

39%

32%

28%

25%

5%

CIO or Top IT Executive

IT Staff

Line of Business Mgmt.

Other Corporate Mgmt.

CTO/IT Architect

CFO

CEO

COO

Other

Q. Who sits on your organization’s IT steering committee?



10

Enterprise Decision-Making Less Segmented

75%

76%

79%

73%

33%

54%

65%

69%

76%

66%

31%

35%







<1000 employees 1000+ employees




11

# of Influencers in Enterprises Increasing

Q. Please estimate the total number of people, on average, involved in influencing major enterprise technology purchases within your organization.

Major Tech Purchases

5 6

11.5

17

2011 2012




12

Majority IT Execs Approve All IT Expenditures

54%

12%

15%

6%

4%

19%

17%

15%

1%

2%

7%

12%

6%

2%

4%

Sign-off required on all IT expenditures

Less than $10,000

$10,001 - $99,999

$100,001 - $200,000

More than $200,000

Executive IT Mid-Level IT IT Professionals

Q. Please indicate the minimum dollar amount that requires your signature for IT expenditures.


VENDOR ATTRIBUTES


14

Many Vendors, Few Strategic Partners

6%

18%

1%

2%

44%

67%

5%

23%

30%

12%

16%

38%

16%

2%

39%

30%

4%

40%

7%

1000+

<1000

1000+

<1000

None 1-4 5-9 10-24 25+

Q. Considering all elements of your IT operations and infrastructure (including all applications), approximately how many vendors do you currently do business with?

AND Q. Among those vendors with whom you currently do business, how many would you consider valued strategic partners (i.e. a strategically important vendor

that has gone beyond effective delivery of systems and services to become a consistently responsive, agile, and trusted collaborator in creating value for your

organization)?

Number of Vendors

Number of Strategic Partners

Avg: 35

Avg: 12

Avg: 7

Avg: 3



15

Service Most Critical Partner Attribute

Q. Which of the following attributes are critical for vendors trying to become your valued strategic partner?

Attributes of a Valued

Strategic Partner

Avg. All

Respondents Executive IT Mid-Level IT

IT

Professional <1000 1000+

Customer service/response time 76% 75% 82% 78% 79% 74%

Ability to understand my goals and

objectives 73% 72% 76% 73% 73% 75%

Knowledge of their product portfolio 66% 67% 68% 65% 69% 61%

Post-sales support and service 64% 63% 69% 65% 64% 66%

Insight & expertise on technology

trends and directions 62% 62% 68% 57% 62% 63%

Knowledge of my vertical industry 47% 48% 52% 40% 43% 53%

Acts as my advocate within their

company 46% 49% 48% 36% 45% 48%

Knowledge of their

competitors/competitive offerings 44% 44% 42% 48% 44% 46%

Advanced notice on product/service

changes 42% 41% 45% 41% 41% 45%

Peer references 36% 38% 39% 28% 38% 33%


1

2

1 1 1 1

2 2 2 2

2

1

3 3

3

3

3

3

3 4 4

4

4 4

4

4 5 5

5

5

5

5

Enterprises place a lower value on product portfolio knowledge and a higher value on vertical industry knowledge than SMBs.


16

Minimal Time Spent with Vendors

7%

8%

3%

10%

9%

8%

22%

19%

15%

3%

3%

1%

6%

3%

3%

12%

33%

36%

More than 10

8-10

6-7

5

4

3

2

1

0

Vendors Not Doing Business With Current Vendors

Q. In a typical work week, how many hours do you spend meeting with: Current technology vendors (vendors who’s products/services you currently use/employ) AND

Technology vendors that you’re not doing business with currently?



17

Familiarity Cuts Purchase Cycle in Half

Q. Considering major enterprise IT purchases, what is the average purchase cycle for a vendor with whom you are already familiar or have experience compared to the

purchase cycle for an unfamiliar vendor?



18

Sales Cycle Longer for Enterprises

Q. Considering major enterprise IT purchases, what is the average purchase cycle for a vendor with whom you are already familiar or have experience compared to the

purchase cycle for an unfamiliar vendor?




19

Cycle Nearly Doubles for Major IT Purchases

Q. Considering all enterprise IT purchases, what is the average purchase cycle for a major enterprise IT purchase compared to the purchase cycle for minor/smaller IT

purchases?


PRIMARY INFLUENCES AND INFORMATION SOURCES IN THE IT PURCHASE PROCESS


21

Tech Content Sites Take Over as #1 Source

Q. Which of the following information sources do you use to keep up-to-date with new technologies and to enhance the knowledge you need to be effective in your role?

Sources Used to Keep Up-to-Date with New Technologies 2010 2011 2012

Technology content sites (e.g., CNET.com, CIO.com…) 69% 74% 73%

Peers 68% 69% 72%

Search engines (e.g. Google, Bing) -- -- 66%

Technology publications (e.g., CIO, Network World, InformationWeek) 70% 75% 62%

Technology vendors (via vendor websites) 55% 56% 54%

Webcasts/webinars/web video 57% 60% 56%

Newsletters 47% 48% 53%

Technology vendors (via phone, email, in-person) -- -- 47%

Business print publications (e.g., Business Week, Forbes, Fortune) 55% 49% 40%

Trade shows 39% 41% 42%

Executive conferences or events 40% 41% 34%

Online communities/discussion forums, Wikis 39% 46% 43%

User groups -- 39% 35%

Analyst firms (e.g. IDC, Gartner, Forrester) 40% 50% 35%

Virtual conferences 28% 32% 30%

Blogs 35% 34% 31%

Technology vendors (via social/business networking sites like LinkedIn, Twitter,

Facebook) -- -- 23%

Video clips (typically 5 minutes or less in length) 30% 32% 24%

Podcasts 30% 32% 15%

Mobile feeds/updates -- 16% 14%

Combined in 2010/2011

1

2

3

4

5

1

2

3

4

5

1

2

3

4

5

5



22

Heads of IT Do Visit Vendor Websites


Sources Used to Keep Up-to-Date with New Technologies Heads of IT Non-Heads of IT

Technology content sites (e.g., CNET.com, CIO.com…) 75% 72%

Peers 72% 73%

Search engines (e.g. Google, Bing) 66% 66%

Technology publications (e.g., CIO, Network World, InformationWeek) 63% 61%

Technology vendors (via vendor websites) 54% 54%

Webcasts/webinars 53% 58%

Newsletters 52% 55%

Business print publications (e.g., Business Week, Forbes, Fortune) 45% 35%

Trade shows 44% 40%

Executive conferences or events 43% 25%

Online communities/discussion forums, Wikis 41% 44%

User groups 35% 34%

Analyst firms (e.g. IDC, Gartner, Forrester) 34% 36%

Virtual conferences 30% 29%

Blogs 29% 33%

Technology vendors (via social/business networking sites like LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook) 26% 20%

Video clips (typically 5 minutes or less in length) 24% 25%

Podcasts 16% 14%

Mobile feeds/updates 15% 13%

Heads of IT are far more likely to attend executive events.

1

1 2

2

3

4

3

4

5

5



23

Source Rankings Change with IT Level


Sources Used to Keep Up-to-Date with New Technologies Executive IT Mid-Level IT IT Professionals

Technology content sites (e.g., CNET.com, CIO.com…) 74% 77% 73%

Peers 72% 78% 71%

Search engines (e.g. Google, Bing) 67% 70% 65%

Technology publications (e.g., CIO, Network World, InformationWeek) 63% 67% 59%

Technology vendors (via vendor websites) 54% 59% 54%

Webcasts/webinars 54% 59% 63%

Newsletters 51% 53% 59%

Technology vendors (via phone, email, in-person) 49% 50% 45%

Business print publications (e.g., Business Week, Forbes, Fortune) 44% 38% 26%

Trade shows 44% 47% 33%

Executive conferences or events 44% 32% 12%

Online communities/discussion forums, Wikis 40% 47% 47%

User groups 35% 41% 30%

Analyst firms (e.g. IDC, Gartner, Forrester) 36% 46% 21%

Virtual conferences 30% 32% 30%

Blogs 30% 33% 30%

Technology vendors (via social/business networking sites like LinkedIn, Twitter,

Facebook) 26% 20% 18%

Video clips (typically 5 minutes or less in length) 23% 24% 25%

Podcasts 16% 14% 14%

Mobile feeds/updates 14% 14% 14%

1 2

3

4 5

1

1 2 2

3 3

4

4

5 5

5 5

5



24

…and with Company Size


Sources Used to Keep Up-to-Date with New Technologies <1000 1000+

Technology content sites (e.g., CNET.com, CIO.com…) 77% 69%

Peers 74% 72%

Search engines (e.g. Google, Bing) 69% 64%

Technology publications (e.g., CIO, Network World, InformationWeek) 64% 60%

Technology vendors (via vendor websites) 56% 53%

Webcasts/webinars 58% 54%

Newsletters 56% 51%

Technology vendors (via phone, email, in-person) 48% 46%

Business print publications (e.g., Business Week, Forbes, Fortune) 43% 38%

Trade shows 41% 45%

Executive conferences or events 33% 37%

Online communities/discussion forums, Wikis 43% 43%

User groups 33% 38%

Analyst firms (e.g. IDC, Gartner, Forrester) 30% 44%

Virtual conferences 29% 32%

Blogs 32% 31%

Technology vendors (via social/business networking sites like LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook) 24% 22%

Video clips (typically 5 minutes or less in length) 26% 22%

Podcasts 15% 15%

Mobile feeds/updates 13% 15%

1

2

3

4

5

1

2

3

4

5



25

Peers Rank #1 in Each Stage for Major IT Purchases


AND Q. Considering major IT purchases, which of the following information sources are used at each stage of the purchase process in which you are involved?

Sources Used at Each Stage of the

Purchase Process

Sources to

Keep Up-to-Date

w/Technology

Determine

the Business

Need

Determine

Technical

Requirements

Evaluate

Products/

Services

Recommend

& Select

Vendors

Sell

Internally

Authorize/

Approve

Technology content sites 1 3 4 2 5 5 4

Peers 2 1 1 1 1 1 1

Search Engines 3 3 2 3 4 5

Technology print publications 4 2 4 4

Webcasts/webinars 5

Technology vendor (websites) 6 3 4 3 3

Newsletters 7 4

Technology vendors (phone, email, in-person) 8 5 5 2 3 2

Online communities/discussion forums, Wikis 9

Trade shows 10 5

Business print publications 11 3

Analyst firms 12 2 3

User groups 12

Executive conferences or events 13 5 5

Blogs 14

Virtual conferences 15

Video clips 16

Technology vendors (via social/business

networking) 17

Podcasts 18

Mobile feeds/updates 19

1

2

3

4

5

1 1 1 1 1 1

2

2

2

2

2

2

3

3 3

3 3

3

3

3

3

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

5

5 5

5

5

5

5

5



26

IT management involvement varies at each stage of the purchase process, but IT

leads at all stages.

IT partners with LOB executives in the decision-making process and are involved

in decisions outside of IT purchases.

Number of IT influencers within enterprises continues to grow rapidly.

Brand recognition and relationship-building accelerate the sales cycle.

IT works with many vendors within typical enterprises but only a handful

considered strategic.

Customer service/understanding business goals are key to strategic alliances.

Number of information channels continues to increase but top access points

remain stable.

Technology content sites rank #1 for IT heads to keep up-to-date on technology.

Conclusion


DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION


28

Job Titles

Executive IT (NET) 53%

CIO, CTO

IT/Network Architect

VP

Executive VP, Senior VP

Supervisor

Business Management (NET) 7%

CEO, COO, Chairman, President

Director, Manager

Executive VP, Senior VP, VP, GM

Other Corporate Business Manager

Consultant (Non-Technical)

CFO, Controller, Treasurer

Q. What is your primary job title? AND Q. Are you the top IT executive in your company or business unit/location?

IT Professional (NET) 17%

Application/Software Developer

Systems Integrator

Other IT/Networking Staff

Other (NET) 4%

Other (Non-Manager)

Head of IT (NET) 50%

Top IT Executive in Company

Top IT Executive at Business Unit/Location

Mid-Level IT (NET) 19%

Director

Manager

Supervisor

Technical Consultant



29

Industry

High Tech, Telecom & Utilities 16%

Financial Services (banking, insurance, brokerage) 13%

Manufacturing (including automotive, aerospace & defense, construction, engineering, chemical, metals and mining) 12%

Government 10%

Education 10%

Services (legal, consulting, real estate) 9%

Healthcare 8%

Retail, Wholesale and Distribution 7%

Advertising/Marketing/PR/Media (publishing, broadcast, online) 4%

Transportation (airlines, trucking, railroads, shipping and logistics) 2%

Travel and Leisure (cruise lines, hotels, theme parks, casinos) 1%

Q. Which of the following best describes your organization’s industry or function?



30

Annual Gross Sales and Company Size

Company Gross Sales/Revenue

$40 billion + 4%

$15 billion - $39.9 billion 3%



$500 million - $999.9 million 6%

$100 million - $499.9 million 11%

$50 million – $99.9 million 9%

<$50 million 28%

Not Applicable (e.g., nonprofit,

government, union) 14%

Not Sure 11%

Q. Please select the dollar amount that best represents the annual gross sales or revenues for your organization or enterprise

AND Q. Approximately how many people are employed in your entire organization or enterprise? (including all plants, divisions, branches, parents, and subsidiaries

worldwide)

Average Revenue: $4.35 billion

Company Size

100,000 or more 5%

10,000 – 99,999 14%

5,000 – 9,999 5%

2,500 – 4,999 7%

1,000 – 2,499 9%

500 – 999 8%

Less than 500 49%

Not Sure 3%

Average Company Size: 11,324 employees


Appendix


32

Enterprises Have Higher Sign-off Minimums

47%

13%

10%

3%

2%

19%

14%

16%

6%

6%

Sign-off required on all IT expenditures

Less than $10,000

$10,001 - $99,999

$100,001 - $200,000

More than $200,000

<1000 1000+

Q. Please indicate the minimum dollar amount that requires your signature for IT expenditures.


Average minimum sign-off is significantly higher at

Enterprise Organizations, but both SMB and Enterprise

numbers are decreasing:

Year <1,000 1,000+

2011 $44,250 $74,024

2012 $43,016 $72,447

Documents

2012 Role & Influence of the Technology Decision-Maker - Network World