National Monitor
VERNON HILLS, Ill. — April 29, 2009 – After more than a year of confidence decline, the first tentative signs of IT growth are appearing. According to the latest CDW IT Monitor, an increasing number of IT decision makers from small and medium-size business sectors anticipate investment in the next six months.
According to the latest survey, 29 percent of small business IT decision makers expect budget increases in the next six months, an increase of seven percentage points from February. Additionally, 18 percent of medium-size business IT decision makers anticipate hiring in the next six months, an increase of six percentage points since February.
Despite these emerging signs of spring, confidence among IT decision makers on the whole remains relatively low with an overall IT Monitor score of 69. However, for the first time in eight months, this reading remained flat with the previous IT Monitor, indicating that sentiment may have stabilized.
“The challenging economic times everyone has experienced are by no means over,” said CDW Vice President Mark Gambill, the company’s executive responsible for market insights. “But for the first time in more than a year, we are seeing green shoots that indicate returning confidence in the IT industry. The fact that an increasing number of IT decision makers are anticipating any amount of future growth at this time is reason to believe the first signs of spring may have arrived in what has been a gloomy economic climate.”
The CDW IT Monitor is based on an online survey of at least 1,000 IT decision makers from businesses of all sizes and all sectors of government. The overall IT Monitor score is composed of two sub-indices – the IT Growth Monitor, which measures future IT expectations, and the IT Value Monitor, which measures the value of IT in achieving organizational objectives. For more information about the mindset of IT decision makers please visit www.cdwitmonitor.com.
Additional findings from the April CDW IT Monitor:
| Expect better performance in reaching corporate goals in the next six months: | Feb 09 | Apr 09 |
| Small Businesses (1-99 Employees) |
47% | 48% |
| Medium-Size Businesses (100-999 Employees) |
47% | 53% |
| Large Businesses (1000+ Employees) |
43% | 50% |
About the CDW IT Monitor
The CDW IT Monitor was created by CDW Corporation, and research and analysis is conducted by independent polling firm Richard Day Research of Evanston, Ill. Decision makers are invited from two large national panels of IT decision makers built and maintained by E-Rewards and Survey Sampling International. Data reported in this release are based on a survey of 1,044 IT decision makers conducted between March 12 and March 19, 2009.
At the center of the CDW IT Monitor is an index number, which registered an initial benchmark reading of 69 in December 2007. Results are calculated on a scale of 0-100, with 100 indicating the highest level of confidence. Future readings of the CDW IT Monitor will continue to yield comparisons to previous scores, allowing for an interpretation of the direction of sentiment in the IT marketplace. The next CDW IT Monitor will be released in June 2009.
Data are weighted to ensure that CDW IT Monitor calculations closely represent the overall population of corporate and government employers in terms of size, based on the number of employees. Corporate data are weighted according to U.S. Economic Census data, and government data are weighted according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s annual survey of government employment. The margin of sampling error for a survey based on this many interviews is approximately +/-4 percentage points for the business sector, and +/-6 percentage points for government.
About CDW
CDW is a leading provider of technology solutions for business, government and education. Ranked No. 34 on Forbes’ list of America’s Largest Private Companies, CDW features dedicated account managers who help customers choose the right technology products and services to meet their needs. The company’s technology specialists offer expertise in designing customized solutions, while its advanced technology engineers can assist customers with the implementation and long-term management of those solutions. Areas of focus include notebooks, desktops, printers, servers and storage, unified communications, security, wireless, power and cooling, networking, software licensing and mobility solutions.
CDW was founded in 1984 and as of March 31, 2009 employed approximately 6,400 coworkers. In 2008, the company generated sales of $8.1 billion. For more information, visit CDW.com.
