Enterprise tech projects increasingly funded by business, not IT

According to a new IDC survey of 1,200 line of business executives, 61% of enterprise technology projects are now funded by the business rather than the IT department, and IT spending driven by the functional business areas will continue to outpace IT spending by the IT organization in the future.

“Technology has long been central to improving business processes, enabling greater speed, efficiency, and reliability,” said Whalen. “As businesses embrace the 3rd Platform, built on cloud services, big data analytics, mobile computing, and social networking technologies, they are taking the critical first steps toward business process transformation and, in some cases, business model transformation. With such high stakes, the business is increasingly taking a front seat in technology initiatives.”

As today’s business executives are more tech savvy, have easier access to technology through the Cloud, and are under pressure to implement new technology initiatives more quickly, it’s not surprising that line of business executives are spearheading more IT projects. In fact, today’s line of business employees are looking more and more like an extension of the IT department as, on average, 8% are technical personnel.

The survey also found that IT continues to be a strong partner to its business colleagues. According to respondents, 85% suggest that “compared to three years ago, IT is becoming a more valuable partner to my functional area.”

“The link between technology and business results has never been greater and is shifting the buying center away from IT and towards the business. Navigating these waters requires a change in your go-to-market approach, focusing now on understanding the unique pain points and investment priorities across the various business functions,” said Eileen Smith, Program Manager of IDC’s Global Technology and Industry Research Organization.