Less Money, More Innovation

Information technology budgets may be going down in the next few years, and chief information officers will be asked to do more with less. However, strained resources could promote innovation and efficiency, according to state IT professionals.

A recent survey from industry association TechAmerica, consulting firm Grant Thornton and the National Association of State Chief Information Officers found that limited funding could mean more innovative IT solutions for state governments. Respondents, including 40 state and territory CIOs, said they expect to employ more creative strategies and emerging technologies in the next few fiscal years to balance budget cuts.

For example, CIOs reported renegotiating contracts, improving procurement processes and sharing applications across agencies to save money. They also are exploring areas like cloud computing, social media and green technology, though some of these projects are slower to catch on. While more than half of all federal agencies are actively working on shifting to the cloud, just 20 percent of state CIOs are doing so.

Results show that nearly two-thirds of state agencies use social media like YouTube, Twitter and Facebook, but only a quarter have statewide policies for these tools. And 10 percent of those surveyed said that their states ban social media altogether.