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CDW Straw Poll Results: IT Spending to Remain the Same or Grow Next Year(Wireless News Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) CDW, a provider of technology products and services to business, government and education, announced the results of its annual IT Industry Straw Poll. The survey of 273 IT leaders, conducted at CDW's annual Partner Summit, revealed that 60 percent of respondents predict that overall IT spending within their customer base will remain the same or perhaps grow next year. That said, CDW noted, it is apparent that IT companies are not immune to the U.S. economic downturn. Defining the top three business challenges of 2008, 78 percent cite the weak economy as their companies' biggest obstacle throughout the year. Thirty-three percent of respondents cite organizational changes and 30 percent point the finger at escalating internal operational costs as significant inhibitors. The latter points to increasing raw material costs during the first half of the year - a significant driver for the overall economic downturn despite the recent decline of oil prices - and the former points to corporate reorganizations - an unfortunate, yet inevitable outcome of 2008's economic turmoil. Studying the IT market by vertical segments reveals some areas for optimism. Fifty-nine percent of respondents see the healthcare and energy industries as strong growth segments for next year. These figures align with the stated national objective to prescribe IT as a cure for skyrocketing healthcare costs and reflect IT's important role in our nation's search for alternative energy sources. Forty percent cite government as secondary IT growth market. Predictably, respondents anticipate hard times ahead in the financial services and retail segments. Examining the IT market by technology area reveals strong confidence in specific product categories. Ranking IT categories by strongest growth potential, 34 percent anticipate marked growth in budgets for virtualization. Thirty-two percent and 31 percent, respectively, expect increased budgets for security and storage. Respondents also predict growth in wireless, business continuity and unified communications in the 20 percent range. "The word from our customers and partners is clear - it's tough out there," said Mark Gambill, the company's executive responsible for market insights. "We and our partners know that our customers need to deploy technology to improve their bottom lines. We will continue to work with our partners - the top names in technology - to bring the best the industry has to offer to our customers." The straw poll results align with the findings of the most recent CDW IT Monitor, which highlights customers' focus on cost-cutting technologies as the top priority for 2009. According to the IT Monitor, which is a separate, bimonthly survey measuring the direction, momentum and mindset of the technology industry, 41 percent of IT decisions makers cite cost management as their biggest 2009 priority. Thirty-five percent of IT decision makers report that growing their market share is the top priority, followed by employee retention at 20 percent. ((Comments on this story may be sent to [email protected])) ((Distributed on behalf of 10Meters via M2 Communications Ltd - http://www.m2.com)) ((10Meters - http://www.10meters.com)) Copyright ? 2008 Wireless News |