End-Users Driving Enterprise IT Decisions, According to CIO Connect Research

LONDON, December 8, 2011 -

Highlights Changing Role of the CIO

Two thirds (67 per cent) of CIOs believe that consumers of IT are now one of the most powerful drivers for change in enterprise organisations, according to the latest  ’Horizons’ survey from CIO Connect - the membership organisation for senior IT professionals.

The independent survey of 200 enterprise-level CIOs, also highlighted that the vast majority (92 per cent) of respondents believed that it’s not how technology is used but how it enables the use of information that is a key factor in their success.

Doing more with less is still a major driver in business IT, according to 98 per cent of respondents, and 57 per cent believe that they are regarded as taking a lead in transformation at an organisation level. The same number of respondents believes that they play an instrumental role in developing their organisation’s vision.

Nick Kirkland, CEO at CIO Connect, said: “The IT function within every organisation is continually evolving in order to support the demands of the business. This naturally means that the role of the CIO is changing with it. As we saw at our recent conference, long gone are the days when IT was a something  confined to data centres and helpdesks - it’s a core element in the success of every business and CIOs are playing an increasingly business-focussed role, helping to develop strategy and aligning IT decisions closely to business objectives.”

Notes to editors

About the ‘Horizons’ survey

CIO Connect’s Horizons research draws on the quantitative and qualitative opinions of 200 chief information officers and their c-level equivalents. The survey was completed during August and September 2011. The research is undertaken on an annual basis and provides pointers for CIO Connect members towards the future direction of technology leadership and the likely course for success.

About CIO Connect Ltd.

Founded in 1996, CIO Connect was originally established by a group of IT leaders who recognised the value of networking and wanted to build a local meeting place to share ideas. Its members now represent a significant proportion of the FTSE 350, cover both private and public sectors, and include CIOs from outside the UK. It helps members better understand how to progress as IT leaders through peer-generated insight, guidance and bespoke services (www.cio-connect.com).

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