Research firm Techtel Corp. periodically surveys as many as 1,000 IT shops with 250 or more employees, asking about their expected IT spending in the next six months. Over the past two quarters ended Sept. 30, those expecting IT spending increases in the succeeding four quarters climbed nearly eight percentage points, to 28 percent, while those expecting a decrease dropped nine points, to 21 percent. Top managers were more likely to predict an increase than middle managers, which Techtel CEO Michael Kelly sees as a good sign. Middle managers, he says, "have been knocked down so many times" that it's understandable they would be more cautious in their predictions.
Some executives say they can no longer wait to deploy technology that's been on hold for the past year or two. The IT budget has been "minimal" at Puget Safety Equipment Co., a Bellingham, Wash., distributor of gas detectors, hard hats and other gear, says president Becky Eastwood. But the million-dollar firm plans to upgrade its Windows NT 4 servers to Windows Server 2003 early next year, says Eastwood, citing security concerns about NT 4.
Other companies kept IT spending constant through the downturn. The two-man IT shop at Cincinnati's Gold Medal Products, a manufacturer of popcorn makers and other concession equipment, has never had a formal budget, but usually spends a minimum of $250,000. This year, the $72 million, 350-employee company invested in a barcode inventory system. In 2004, it will deploy a Web EDI system to interact electronically with more suppliers and customers, using technology from Ohm Systems.
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