IT spending in SMB

Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are increasingly recognizing the importance of technology for their operations and competitiveness. According to various reports, SMBs are expected to increase their IT spending in the coming years. The exact figures will depend on various factors such as the size of the business, industry, and market conditions.

IT spending by small and medium-sized businesses will grow at a CAGR of 7.2% during the period between 2022 and 2027, Says MB Technology Forecaster, Analysys Mason.

As per Gartner, the IT spending will remain strong, even as many countries are projected to have near-flat gross domestic product growth and high inflation in 2023. Prioritisation will be critical as CIOs look to optimise spend while using digital technology to transform the company’s value proposition, revenue and client interactions.

The key highlights of the survey say:

· SMBs will be cautiously optimistic throughout 2023

· Critical shifts in key category priorities

· Partner ecosystem transformations

· Bounce back spending is expected from 2024

The latest forecast includes the impact of current macroeconomic headwinds and tailwinds, which have led to a more conservative IT spend growth forecast for 2023.

In India, IT spending is projected to total $108.5 billion in 2023, which is slightly higher than last quarter’s update. For the remainder of the year, Indian CIOs will remain cautious, targeting the spend on IT modernisation and growth initiatives. Growth initiatives, which typically involve business-led investments in applications and software-as-a-service (SaaS), will drive software spending growth in 2023.

The trend says, many Indian CIOs are embarking on cost optimization and efficiency programs which are resulting in a decline in data centre systems spending. The acceleration in cloud migration, coupled with the IT skills shortage, is projected to fuel IT services spending in India, which is on pace to reach 21.9 billion in 2023.

S Mohini Ratna, Editor, VARINDIA