2009 IT Spending Will Vary by Industry

IT spending across verticals will vary in 2009, according to new research from Compass Intelligence.

The research firm polled 2,200 U.S. IT decision-makers in November 2008 about their budgets for 2009 compared to 2008. Most respondents (45 percent) said they would “stay the same.” Less than one-third of respondents indicated that budgets would increase, while the remaining (27 percent) expected them to decrease.

Looking across verticals, however, the picture changes. Retail and construction/field service industries, for example, may feel the greatest IT budget decreases. A third (33 percent) of respondents from both sectors reported their IT budgets will decrease.

In contrast, government (primarily federal) and education had the highest percentage of respondents (36 and 35 percent, respectively) reporting IT budget increases.