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T E C H N O L O G Y
We’re talking nerdy with you Zweig Group’s 2015 Information Technology Survey showcases firms’ 2015 IT spending on staff, software, and more; provides leaders’ insights. P U B L I C AT I O N S
The 2015 IT Survey , released today, has been updat- ed with input from IT directors at leading A/E/P firms. The information in the report is broken down by firm type, staff size, region of the firm’s headquar- ter office, firm growth rate, client base, and – new this year – firm profit, so you can make compari- sons between your firm its peers. Topics covered include: ❚ ❚ IT spending. In addition to total IT spending data, the Survey provides a detailed breakdown of physi- cal plant expenses, hardware expenses, software ex- penses, data telecommunication costs and Internet access, consulting/support expenses, IT staff costs, and training costs. Use the breakdowns and trend data to find out how your firm’s IT investments match up to other firms and the projections firm leaders are making for IT spending next year. ❚ ❚ IT staff. At what point do firms hire an IT man- ager? In addition to providing IT support for their own firms, do IT staff ever provide consulting ser- vices to other firms? If so, what types of services do they provide, and how much revenue did they generate in 2014? ❚ ❚ Project websites. Are project websites still popular? Whether your firm has jumped on the project-website bandwagon or not, you can find out everything from how much firms charge for project websites to which types of project website systems are most common. ❚ ❚ Systems and platforms. Find out what other firms require for storage, RAM, network cards, processor speeds, and monitors, and make sure your employ- ees aren’t saddled with old equipment that could hurt their productivity and the firm’s profits. This brief list barely scratches the surface. In addi- tion to these topics, the 2015 IT Survey contains data on networking, technical and CADD applications, office productivity and communications applica- tions, and IT management and training. Before your firm makes its next IT investment, use this report to find out what other firms’ experiences have been.
By ANDREA BENNETT Managing Editor
P erhaps no other A/E business imperative holds as much promise or generates as much concern and discussion as technology. On the one hand, A/E/P and environmental con- sulting firms’ investments in technology are driv- en by customers who demand design and delivery technology – e.g., building information modeling and integrated project design) as part of contrac- tual negotiations. On the other hand, many firms realize that tech- nology is necessary to address business needs such as knowledge capture, dissemination, and man- agement; project information management; and document archiving and retrieval. Additionally, financial, operational, HR manage- ment, and customer relationship management systems need to be integrated so that information flows with minimal “friction” between software solutions and among employees. As a result of such factors, technology investment has quickly become a cost of entry into the A/E marketplace, rather than a competitive advantage. The challenge is to define the core work flow pro- cesses, and to integrate the technology to support those processes. Unfortunately, early tomid-stage software capabil- ity development, combined with fragmented tech- nology solution offerings, leaves many A/E/P and environmental firm leaders confused and unsure about where to make technology investments. Finally, the pace of assimilation of technology, such as BIM, by more senior technical experts must accelerate. Future A/E practitioners are cur- rently in school, learning their craft using technol- ogy, and they expect their employers to provide similar tools. Some of those currently in positions of leadership in A/E/P and environmental firms struggle with fully embracing technology. This dis- sonance must be resolved quickly. A/E/P and environmental firm leaders need in- formation about technology solutions; that’s why Zweig Group publishes its Information Technology Survey .
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SURVEY
THE ZWEIG LETTER JULY 27, 2015, ISSUE 1113
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