Association members distributed 4,000 electronic invitations for participation and approximately 3 percent responded to the survey questions.
Other survey results indicate, for the second consecutive year, that program management is the largest skills gap in the IT workforce. Other skills gaps include project and budget planning, project control, and enterprise architecture.
In addition, 25 percent of respondents the largest plurality for the question found initiatives relating to homeland security had no change on their IT budgets. However, 23 percent said homeland security initiatives have increased it some. Only 8 percent said the budget impact of homeland security was a lot of increased funding.
When asked to choose from a list of 25 challenges that respondents consider important for chief information officers, 44 percent picked aligning IT and organizational mission goals. That task has been included each of the nine years the AFFIRM survey has been conducted, but this is the first year it has been rated the biggest CIO challenge. "Its importance has been recognized," the report states.
One item that did not score within the top ten of CIO challenges was making the business and cultural changes necessary for full e-government transformation. It scored 11th this year, "probably because challenges [to] agency culture have already taken root," states an analysis of the results.
When asked to pick from a list of critical technologies and solutions, 45 percent responded that security infrastructure is most important. Storage and storage networks came in ninth this year, up their rating as the 27th most important critical technology and solution in 2003. This climb in the list is one of the largest in the survey's nine-year history, the analysis notes. "This might be coupled with senior management recognition of the need for consolidated information technology solutions and the critical role played by storage in those solutions," the analysis continues. The report authors also note that search engine optimization ranked 27th in importance this year. "Of what use is a portal if you can't find anything?" they ask.
RELATED LINKS
- "GSA e-gov office faces budget cuts" [Federal Computer Week, December 13, 2004]
- "Congress cuts e-gov funds ... again" [Federal Computer Week, December 6, 2004]
- "OMB's rule: Pay as you go" [Federal Computer Week, September 20, 2004]
Autor: David Perera
Quelle: Federal Computer Week, 21.12.2004