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Kultur Dokumente
July 2009
Midmarket companies look to IT vendors for more than just a transactional relationship.
They require expertise to become smarter and gain greater insight.
Findings from a recent study show that midsize companies are looking to
do just that. In fact, well over half of the survey respondents say they need a
technology partner who can help them work smarter, build an infrastructure
to support their growing business, and identify ways to use the information
they have to make better business decisions. A significant number are focused
on corporate social responsibility and in need of guidance around energy,
environment and sustainability issues. These are not simple projects. These
Inside the Midmarket
are significant initiatives, ones that can be game-changing for businesses with
the vision to apply new approaches and harness the power of an increasingly
smaller, flatter and smarter planet.
Strategic Focus
The study reveals distinct mindsets that are actively shaping the business
strategy and related IT priorities at midsize companies. Leaders of these
organizations are being counted on to find new growth opportunities and
deliver innovation to support the accelerating rate of change. At the same time,
they must improve efficiency and manage an effective, secure and resilient IT
infrastructure to ensure the organization’s survival and success. As might be
expected, the survey shows these parallel forces are shaping the mindset of
midsize businesses around the world.
Half of midmarket companies are in a cost-cutting mindset; other half are focused on customers,
innovation and growth.
The other half (47%) have an innovation mindset with their primary focus on
finding new sources of growth, transformation for competitive advantage, and
strengthening customer relationships.
Inside the Midmarket
perspective, these priorities are particularly high in the United States, where
close to 9 out of 10 surveyed report improving efficiency, reducing costs and
increasing employee productivity as their top business priorities.
Top ten technology solution priorities for improved business performance and efficiency
Top three most critical IT areas for midsize companies to improve business performance and efficiency
The research revealed similar IT priorities for both growth and mature
markets. Close to 90% of Chinese midsize companies indicate that information
management is vital to improving business performance, while close to 85% of
companies in Brazil and the U.S. call out IT infrastructure improvements and
reliability and availability as critical areas.
companies report that although their IT budgets have not changed, their
priorities have shifted; 37% indicate their IT budget has decreased as a result
of the recent economic changes, while 14% stated their IT budget actually
increased. The study also reveals that companies in growth market
countries are twice as likely as those in mature market countries to expect
an increase in IT budget for the upcoming year. In fact, 62% of those
interviewed in China say they expect their IT budget to increase in 2009
versus last year.
Barriers to implementation
Though midsize companies clearly want to adopt new, innovative business
Inside the Midmarket
example, 75% of those surveyed have either started or are currently planning
upgrades to their IT infrastructures for improved reliability. More than
half report that they “intend to implement or have established goals” for
Knowledge management solutions to better mine and share organizational
intelligence as a source of competitive advantage.
Top Business and IT priorities across industries; $$$ symbols indicates the degree to which IT budgets have been cut.
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