Survey: Few CIOs Concerned with Career Risks Around IT Outsourcing

More than 75% of IT executives in the U.S. corporate world believe that their company’s decision to outsource IT infrastructure services will have no impact on their careers.

This was one of the findings of a recent survey of 1,014 IT executives in U.S. businesses by Information Week.

Only 3% of executives fear that outsourcing would lead to their dismissal, while a similar number of executives feel worried that they could be relocated as a result of such a decision. On the contrary, 19% of executives believe that their responsibilities will be expanded as a result of outsourcing.

Across North America, according to another survey from Information Week, businesses have continued to struggle to implement information technology, largely due to a lack of human skills and budget.

“CIOs pay top dollar for namebrand technology and believe it’s generally worth it because they do have limited staff and that staff has specific but limited expertise,” the report said.

Many CIOs surveyed for the report expressed concern that IT leadership would slip out of their hands because the decision for IT procurement typically comes from business units.

The swiftly advancing technology world has offered businesses with several alternatives to their in-house IT infrastructure: Software-as-a-Service, Infrastructure-as-a-Service, and other Cloud-based offerings.

“The bottom line, though, is that IT leaders need to change their outlook and tactics, and embrace today as a time of golden opportunity. They need to borrow tactics and strategies from digital-native businesses, and adapt them to their needs, to create an infrastructure that’s as responsive as the company demands,” the report noted.

With businesses increasingly aware of the need to adapt technology to stay one step ahead of their competitors, IT budgets are ballooning more than ever, with the majority of CIOs surveyed talking of increasing their IT budgets.