India’s IT spending is projected to total $93 billion in 2021, an increase of 7.3 per cent from 2020, according to the latest forecast by Gartner, Inc.

The growth in India is estimated to be lower than the global average, as worldwide IT spending is projected to total $4.1 trillion in 2021, an increase of 8.4 per cent from 2020, as per the report.

Also read: Global devices installed base to reach 6.2 billion units in 2021: Gartner

“The source of funds for new digital business initiatives will more frequently come from business departments outside IT and charged as a cost of revenue or cost of goods sold (COGS),” the report said.

“IT no longer just supports corporate operations as it traditionally has, but is fully participating in business value delivery,” said John-David Lovelock, distinguished research vice president at Gartner.

“Not only does this shift IT from a back-office role to the front of business, but it also changes the source of funding from an overhead expense that is maintained, monitored and sometimes cut, to the thing that drives revenue,” added Lovelock.

All IT spending segments — Data Centre Systems, Enterprise Software, Devices, IT Services and Communications Services — are forecast to have positive growth through 2022. IT spending is forecast to grow 5.5 per cent globally in 2022 and 6 per cent in India.

In 2021, the highest growth will come from devices (14 per cent) and enterprise software (10.8 per cent) globally “as organisations shift their focus to providing a more comfortable, innovative and productive environment for their workforce.”

In India, the highest growth is estimated for enterprise software (13.3 per cent) and IT services (8.9 per cent).

Also read: Social software and collaboration market expected to grow 17% to $4.5 billion in 2021: Gartner

Though cost-saving efforts will remain in place, Chief Information Officers (CIOs) are likely to focus on the business digital initiatives “aimed at enhancing, extending and transforming the company’s value proposition.”

“Last year, IT spending took the form of a ‘knee jerk’ reaction to enable a remote workforce in a matter of weeks. As hybrid work takes hold, CIOs will focus on spending that enables innovation, not just task completion,” said Lovelock.

Published on April 9, 2021