Confidence in Canada’s information technology sector is on an upswing among IT workers, a new study indicates.
The recent survey of 2,823 IT professionals by the Centre for Innovative Management at Athabasca University indicates many believe the Canadian industry is keeping pace with its U.S. counterpart and will continue to be an important part of the e-business sector.
“Confidence in the IT sector is growing, spending on IT is increasing and Canadian IT companies are becoming more competitive,” said centre director Dr. Peter Carr. “The survey shows we are on the verge of a second technology expansion.”
The university found that 37 per cent of respondents, most in senior or management roles, think their companies are “keeping up with the U.S. in implementing e-business,” compared to 27 per cent in 2000.
Forty-two per cent believe their company’s IT budget will remain stable in 2002, while 34 per cent expect the budget will grow. Fifty-eight per cent of those surveyed say their firm’s IT investment has made a measurable improvement to its organizational performance.
On the down side, security concerns are growing among IT workers, and so is stress. Ten per cent of respondents say that “employee acts of verbal aggression, sabotage and extreme hostility related to IT” – dubbed ‘IT rage’ – was on the rise.
The potential for system security breaches is also causing stress, with 31 per cent of respondents saying employees often bypass the company’s security system because it is cumbersome.
Errors include leaving computers on or writing down passwords.
Twenty per cent of those surveyed have observed at least one “serious breach” of internal system security, and 19 per cent have seen at least one serious breach of external security. About two-thirds of the incidents were not reported.
“The survey provides a compelling snapshot of Canada’s increasing investment and success in IT, but it also sounds warning bells about the security breaches that may threaten our competitive position in the world,” said Carr.
As well, only one-third of respondents agreed that their managers display a good grasp of IT processes. and 13 per cent suggested their managers secretly read their e-mail messages.
The survey also found that 31 per cent of respondents say they were not happy with the amount of staff training offered by their companies.
Thirty-one per cent of the respondents in the survey, conducted in November, were IT professionals and 16 per cent were managers.
