12 May 2008
IT departments are now twice as involved with strategic business issues as they were five years ago, new research from the Service Desk Institute (HDI) has revealed.
The organisation, which provides training for service desk and IT support specialists, conducted the research on behalf of Hornbill Systems, a supplier of enterprise service management (ESM) software.
It found that the increased role of IT is reflected in the fact that IT service management is being raised up the corporate agenda, with 65 per cent of surveyed firms now having IT representation at board level, compared to 58 per cent in 2003.
Patrick Bolger, chief marketing officer of Hornbill Systems, said: "In the last five years we have seen IT change from being an outside function to one that is core to the business. Users throughout organisations are dependent on IT to work, which in turn has increased visibility of systems, problems and the IT teams."
The research also indicated that there has been a significant rise in IT involvement in strategic planning, with 56 per cent of IT departments now involved in the business process, up from just 31 per cent five years ago.
According to previous research by the HDI and Hornbill Systems, nearly 85 per cent of all projects to consolidate service desks are completed in budget and one time, with the centralised service desks reporting increased productivity, reduced costs and higher customer satisfaction.
With the current prevailing economic uncertainty, technology leaders feel that they are required by .....
Optical networking market 'growing'
Although it dipped by 12 per cent in the fourth quarter last year, the .....
Browser security virtualisation software released
A security software firm has released a new internet browser virtualisation product that attempts .....
Businesses warned of surge in brute-force SSH attacks
IT organisations have been urged to ensure that their servers are fully secured, after .....
802.11 Bluetooth 'will not harm UWB'
Members of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) have announced the development of Bluetooth .....
Global telecoms market set for change
The next five years will see the telecom market change dramatically as a result .....
Social networks 'still pose business security threat'
Despite efforts to make social networks more secure for consumers, enterprises are still faced .....
CIOs 'should lead by example' on software
The Business Software Alliance, an anti-piracy body in the UK, has called on enterprise .....
Mobile operators to 'spend big on fixed-mobile convergence'
With the growing use of mobile broadband services by handsets, laptops and mobile internet .....
ICT industry 'to become borderless by 2015'
The information and communications technology (ICT) industry will become a 'borderless state' by 2015, .....
Most corporate virtual world projects 'failing'
Nine out of ten enterprises venturing into virtual worlds will fail within 18 months, .....
Global services 'close to trillion-dollar market'
Companies will spend more than $746 billion (£384 billion) on external services in 2008, .....
VoIP solutions 'pose ID fraud risk'
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services are now being targetted by hackers, who are .....
Customers 'paying too much for their broadband'
A number of small businesses and consumers could be paying too much for their .....
Online criminals 'repackaging malware'
Internet criminals are more and more choosing to use malware packers to attack business .....
UK firms 'struggling to comply with regulations'
IT professionals working at UK companies are finding it difficult to meet regulatory compliance .....
Most organisations get significant value from IT
A new survey of nearly 800 enterprise executives from companies around the world has .....
Leading firms delivering 'self-service BI capabilities'
Top enterprises are using a mixture of capabilities to achieve improved business intelligence (BI) .....
Retailers 'lacking cross-channel systems integration'
Nearly two thirds of all retail enterprises do not have a cross-channel initiative for .....
Global IT services revenue up 11% in 2007
Worldwide revenue generated by the provision of IT services climbed to $748 billion (£385 .....
Bespoke broadband service to be released
An IT services provider has launched a new broadband platform that allows customers to .....
New communications application launched for SMEs
A new mobile and internet communications application ideal for the needs of small and .....
BPO success 'reliant on advanced metrics'
New research by analyst NelsonHall has suggested that enterprises are changing how they measure .....
Businesses 'must measure mobile working initiatives'
Enterprises are deploying technologies that facilitate mobile working, but they are failing to measure .....
3G spectrum refarming 'could cut operator costs'
In the last four years, WCDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access) – a high .....
Top IT organisations have formal budgeting processes
With the current business climate characterised by change, distributed environments, and tight margins, IT .....
Businesses benefit from master data management investment
Companies deploying master data management (MDM) initiatives are able to improve their customer services .....
UC 'a strategic tool for business growth'
Unified Communications (UC) solutions provide a way for enterprises to improve their business process .....
SMBs must 'use technology to improve flexibility'
Telecoms systems manufacturer Avaya has claimed that small and medium sized businesses (SMBs) lose .....
Euro ICT market to grow 'confidently' in 2008
The European market for IT, telecommunications and digital consumer electronics (ICT) will increase by .....
IT permeating corporate boards
IT departments are now twice as involved with strategic business issues as they were .....
Both business and consumer serving online customers are increasingly adopting environmentally friendly business practices, .....
Soft skills 'most sought after' in ICT industry
The ability to manage change, plan strategically and communicate effectively are the skills most .....
IT services vendors 'turning to midmarket'
The market for medium sized enterprise services is growing at twice the rate of .....
Global EMS industry saw 'double digit growth' in 2007
The global electronic manufacturing services (EMS) industry grew by 17 per cent in 2007, .....
VoIP on Wi-Fi devices 'to become more popular'
Although the technology is still in development, it is likely that voice over internet .....