One in four govt CIOs expect budget cuts in '14

Federal government CIOs worldwide remain under pressure to reduce IT costs, with more than one in four anticipating a budget decrease in 2014, Gartner said.

Public sector IT leaders are feeling the pinch more than their private sector counterparts - according to Gartner’s 2014 survey of 2339 CIOs, only 17% expect a budget cut this year.

Government CIOs are also losing control over IT budgets - this subset of respondents to the survey estimates that 33% of IT expenditures are being made by business units, outside of their authority.

Gartner Research Director Rick Howard said this is an issue that government CIOs must act to address.

“Regardless of how much IT spending happens outside of the IT organisation, CIOs must address the presence of shadow IT by affirming their position as the designated and recognised point of IT management responsibility,” he said.

“This doesn’t mean CIOs should attempt to restrict business-managed IT acquisitions and services. However, accountability for the information assets of a government agency cannot be distributed, and governance will ensure a corporate officer, the CIO, is at the table whenever or wherever an IT investment is being considered.”

According to the survey, nearly 5% of government organisations have appointed a chief digital officer to address the disruptive potential of new digital technologies and trends.

Over 75% of government CIOs polled also expect to change their technology and sourcing approach within the next three years. Gartner predicts that this trend will further drive the need for the role of IT broker.

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