July 2006 Survey: What’s the Value of IT? At Many Companies, It’s Just Guesswork.

Written By
Allan Alter
Allan Alter
Published: Jul 12, 2006
Updated: May 12, 2021
2 minute read

We begin rolling out the results of our July 2006 survey on business value and ROI with a basic question: are you measuring value at all? The answer, at many companies, is no. And even at companies that do measure value, only about 40 percent of the budget undergoes an ROI analysis. That means many IT executives have no way to provide the answers about business value that CEOs and CFOs want. Other results from our survey—including data on the accuracy of business value and productivity metrics, the kinds of measures companies are using, and whether investments in technologies like web services, RFID and CRM are meeting business value expectations—will be posted online throughout the month of July and early August

Research Guide:

  • Finding 1: Only six out of ten companies measure the business value of IT.
  • Finding 2: Do CIOs measure business value often enough?
  • Finding 3: Skepticism about ROI and business value metrics remains high.
  • Finding 4: IT executives exaggerate IT’s impact on productivity.
  • Finding 5: How best to measure IT’s value?
  • Finding 6: Many technologies and IT services are meeting, and even exceeding, their business value expectations.
    Read our previous surveys on ROI and business value:
  • ROI 2004: How Well Do You Work with the Business?
  • ROI 2003: Do You Have Any Faith In Your ROI Numbers?
  • ROI 2002: How Do CIOs Figure ROI?
    Related stories:
  • Roundtable: The Trouble With ROI
  • Howard Rubin: How to Measure IT Value
  • Christopher Gardner and Ray Trotta: How to Determine the Value of a Project
  • What Does Wall Street Think of Your Technology?
    Next page: Only six out of ten companies measure the business value of IT.
Allan Alter

Allan Alter

Content Writer

Executive EditorAllan Alter has been a specialist on information technology management, strategy and leadership for many years. Most recently, he was editor-in-chief and the director of new content development for the MIT Sloan Management Review. He has been a columnist and department editor at Computerworld, where he won three awards from the American Society of Business Press Editors. Previously he was a special projects editor, senior editor and senior writer for CIO magazine. Earlier, Alter was an associate editor for Mass High Tech. He has edited two books: The Squandered Computer: Evaluating the Business Alignment of Business Technologies and Redesigning the Firm.

CIO Insight Logo

CIO Insight offers thought leadership and best practices in the IT security and management industry while providing expert recommendations on software solutions for IT leaders. It is the trusted resource for security professionals who need to maintain regulatory compliance for their teams and organizations. CIO Insight is an ideal website for IT decision makers, systems integrators and administrators, and IT managers to stay informed about emerging technologies, software developments and trends in the IT security and management industry.

Property of TechnologyAdvice. © 2026 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.