It finds that spending on contracted services, including service sharing. has increased, and that IT staff numbers are down by 5,000 - the largest reduction in 25 years, according to Socitm.
IT management appears to be wielding greater influence in local public services as local authorities and others turn to technology to help them cope with dramatically reduced budgets.
IT Trends 2011/12 reports growing emphasis on strategic, rather than utility use of IT. Web-delivered services and information governance are other leading preoccupations within IT management's areas of responsibility.
Mobile computing and home working, together with virtualisation, have joined GIS, content management and e-forms as the top five technologies seen as delivering efficiency in participating organisations, while business process re-engineering (BPR), channel switching (losing first place to BPR this year), and joint procurement remain the top three strategies for efficiency. The top two organisational efficiency programmes being pursued are shared services and self-service. Other key initiatives include remote working, virtualisation and document management.
Commenting on the findings of IT Trends 2011/12 Socitm President Glyn Evans said: "The influence of ICT continues to rise as more services are directly delivered through lower cost ICT-assisted channels. Technology is also helping reduce accommodation costs as the workforce becomes more mobile. However, with greater dependence on ICT, organisations must ensure processes and procedures are kept up to date, and greater attention is paid to accuracy, provenance and security of information. These are key areas in which Socitm can offer guidance and advice."
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