SMBs Plan to Boost Tech Spending, Study Shows

Though wary about current economic conditions, small and medium business don’t plan to slash their tech budgets. More than half (51 percent) of SMBs intend to increase their spending on IT and communications in the next 12 months; and 49 percent expect their tech spending to remain flat or to decline, according to a new survey released by the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA).

These numbers are down somewhat from last year’s study when 62 percent of SMBs said they planned to boost spending, while 38 percent said it would remain flat or decline.

"Small and mid-sized businesses have made significant investments in technology over the past dozen years," said Todd Thibodeaux, president and CEO of CompTIA. "In the past, tech spending might have been one of the first line items slashed in a tough economy. Today, SMBs are savvier because they rely on technology for an increasing amount of their core business operations. It's encouraging to see that the majority of SMBs plan to maintain, if not increase, current tech spending during this time of economic uncertainty."

New technology investments will support SMBs’ expectations of growth over the next 12 months. For example, 85 percent plan to hire new employees (on average adding eight more) over the next 12 months; 54 percent anticipate revenue growth of 10 percent or more; and 40 percent plan to add new business locations.

The Web-based survey was conducted in September 2008 and included businesses with between 10 and 999 employees across several industries, including manufacturing, finance and insurance, health care, government, wholesale, retail, professional services, agriculture, mining, transportation, utilities and construction.