SIM Releases 40th Anniversary of the SIM IT Trends Study; Highlights the Achievements and Concerns of Senior IT Leaders During COVID 19 Pandemic

MOUNT LAUREL, N.J., Feb. 9, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In a year of challenges for organizations of all sizes, SIM's 40^th anniversary IT Trends Study confirms that organizations fared quite well in 2020.  Based on a survey of over 1,000 IT leaders spanning hundreds of companies, SIM members claim they fared "Very Well" through the COVID 19 pandemic in 2020, but also noted that cybersecurity concerns remain high and investment in Cloud Computing continues to grow.

The Society for Information Management (SIM), a professional association with thousands of members in North America, announced today the release of the 40^th anniversary SIM IT Trends Study Comprehensive Report.  The report, compiled by a team of academic researchers and SIM members, including five SIM Research Fellows, stems from a survey of IT leaders in management roles around the world.  Organizations of all sizes participated in the study, with average revenues of around $5.4 billion.  "The results of the study are encouraging," stated Professor Leon Kappelman, primary investigator of the research team, and the results offer insight into organizational and IT actions that provide a guide for all." 

Since 1980, SIM has surveyed its members to determine the issues of greatest concern to them and their organizations, and to document evolving usage patterns of information technologies entrusted to their care. "We had about 350 CIOs participate and around 600 organizations provide feedback to questions," stated Mark Taylor, CEO of SIM, "and were fortunate to gather great insights related to things like the most-used IT performance metrics and measures.  We analyzed IT budgets, staffing, salaries, cybersecurity, and cloud computing efforts, and we asked what keeps them up at night.  The Study also examined readiness and response to the COVID-19 pandemic."

When asked about preparedness to handle a disruption to operations; respondents reported effects of the pandemic on facilities, infrastructure, networks, and resources required for a shift to remote work and virtual operations.  Despite these challenges, 51.1% indicated the speed of their response was "extremely fast," and 36.2% responded "somewhat fast."  

"This speed was arguably out of necessity," said Kappelman, "yet a great deal of their response was limited to repurposing and increasing existing capacity.  A difficult and costly endeavor, but one with which most IT leaders are very adept and experienced."  It is also clear that these changes were not easy for organizations with only 10.1% indicating that it was "extremely easy."  Moreover, "nearly two-thirds of IT leaders believe that these changes are likely to remain in place after the pandemic is over," Kappelman added.

The study also confirmed the evolving importance of the CIO role.  "47% of CIOs surveyed report to CEOs, representing a shift in importance in recent years," added Taylor, "the value CIOs bring to organizations – to long-range strategy and vision, and to broader integrations, is invaluable."

The 40^th anniversary SIM IT Trends report, which contains an in-depth look at these and many other IT issues, is available at no charge for SIM members by visiting https://trends.simnet.org/home.  Copies are available for purchase (non-members) for $995 USD. Press can contact [email protected] for a free copy.

About SIM:

Since 1969, SIM has inspired the minds of senior IT leaders.  Highly regarded as the premier network for IT leadership, SIM is a community of thought leaders who share experiences and rich intellectual capital, and who explore future IT direction.  To learn more about SIM, visit www.simnet.org or call 800-387-9746.

Contact:
Lydia Rudy Sullivan, CAE
VP of Operations, SIM
[email protected] | 800.387.9746

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SOURCE SIM - Society for Information Management