Is consumerisation the beginning, or the end, of the IT department?

The IT department is increasingly becoming a bit player in the technology buying stakes, and its waning influence could see it shrink or even disappear.  Richmond Systems explains the forces redrawing the tech landscape and how you can safeguard the future of your department.


In 2002, IT departments accounted for 80 per cent of business technology spending.  Driven by consumerisation, outsourcing and the availability of subscription-based cloud services, this dynamic is undergoing a dramatic reversal.  The shift is so profound that Gartner predicts a complete reversal by 2020, when spending by non-IT departments will reach 90 per cent of the total technology outlay.

Take a second to think about the implications of those figures.  In less than 20 years, the IT department will have gone from being the undisputed leader of technology buying to being a mere bit player.  Whether we subscribe fully to this prediction or not, the shift in technology usage and procurement which we see every day represents a profound change which no IT team can afford to ignore.

To fully digest these findings, let’s consider two scenarios which assume the Gartner predictions are reasonably accurate.

Scenario #1: the end of the IT department
If IT accounts for just 10 per cent of technology spending, then its influence and value will inexorably weaken.  IT will no longer be the dominant force driving technology adoption and usage, damaging its reputation and status within the business.  Cloud and mobile device providers will offer free web-based and social networking support for their products, reducing the need for an in-house service desk.  As IT loses influence, budgets become impossible to safeguard, and the department is reduced further.  With little need or support for the technology department, it becomes a skeleton operation, with a handful of technicians dealing with local networking issues and nursing the few proprietary systems that remain.  Suffice to say that avoiding Scenario #1 should be at the top of all IT professionals' list of priorities.

Scenario #2: the service desk becomes a valued business hub
Whereas Scenario #1 takes the pessimistic view, Scenario #2 takes the opposing view.  What the Gartner figures don’t reflect is that reliance on business technology is growing at a furious rate.  Yes, it may only account for 10 per cent of tech spending, but IT is overseeing a very different landscape compared to 2002, when IT consisted of procuring and supporting a PCs, laptops and a few laser printers.  

Regardless of where the spending occurs within the business, users with pressing jobs to do will still need an IT department to fix problems and advise on the services that will help them work effectively.  The seemingly endless expansion of IT and its potential to drive innovation, sales and profits mean that those service desks which realise they have a pivotal role in defining the value of technology will become well placed to grow rather than shrink.

The key is making sure that the service desk remains the first point of contact.  If users encounter a service desk which fails to listen, shuns customer service principals and refuses to support non-approved tech, they will seek support and guidance from elsewhere, feeding Scenario #1.

If however the service desk remains open minded, communicates with users to find out what services and level of support they require, it will remain a business asset.  This view enables us to make a positive out of the fact that 90 per cent of technology spending occurs outside of IT because it means that the business needs help more than ever.  Sourcing a service or device is easy, making it fit for business purposes can be difficult.  Making these purchases into indispensable business assets requires intelligence, broad technology knowledge and the single minded focus that only a dedicated IT department can offer.

It is likely that reality will never reach the extremes defined by the two scenarios we have presented.  It is however certain that the forces highlighted by the Gartner are shifting the balance of power away from IT and into the hands of the business.  This doesn’t automatically mean the end of the IT department, but it does force technology teams to make a choice.  Do we want to deny and block the inevitable and feed Scenario #1, or are we prepared to adapt and build IT service and support that businesses need to survive and thrive?

Learn more about how Richmond Systems can help you tackle your IT support challenges.