Enterprise CIOs Ready To Buy Software

A recent survey of 870 North American IT decision-makers conducted by Forrester Research indicates CIOs are increasingly optimistic about their business climates. The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based firm forecasts that this optimism will translate into a 2.4% spending increase in 2004, up from its 1.7% projection in late 2003 for the same period.

The survey revealed that year-over-year spending increases should be approximately 4% for companies providing business services, such as consulting, transportation, construction, finance and insurance. Much of this money will be spent on basic hardware and software, including upgrades in core technologies such as personal computers, security controls and mobile networking. Here are some other highlights from the study.