The 2008 "State of the CIO" study shows that financial services companies spend big on IT as a percentage of revenue, and have the lowest IT staffer-to-user ratio. Who has the highest ratio? Non-profits. At 10.5 percent, banks and financial services companies, by far, spend the biggest chunk of revenue on technology, but the government and education sectors also spend significantly. The question is, which industry is most efficient? MORE ON “State of the CIO” Salaries, Influence Rising, 2008 Data Show SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe 2007 State of the CIO coverage 2006 State of the CIO coverage Judging by one measure—the number of users supported by each IT staffer—education rules, with 48.3. Schools and colleges have all those iPod-wearing, wireless network-demanding students running around. Wholesale and retail IT pros are a close second on that scale, with 47.5—supporting, as they do, lots of full- and part-time store clerks and salespeople. But are IT staff in education and retail that much more efficient, or just overworked? What are your thoughts? Comment below or e-mail me at knash@cio.com.Spending on IT, By IndustryThe 2008 State of the CIO asked IT leaders about their budgets, and how many users they have per IT employee. Industry IT Budget as a Percent of Revenue Users per IT Staffer Financial Services 10.5 15.7 Government 7.8 37.8 Education/nonprofit 6.2 48.3 Health Care 5.0 25.4 Wholesale and Retail 3.9 47.5 Manufacturing 3.4 40.9 Overall Sample 6.7 35.1 SOURCE: 2008 “State of the CIO” survey of 558 heads of IT. NOTE: Survey respondents in financial services, government, health care and wholesale/retail industries said they expect to be hiring IT staff in the next 12 months. Related content opinion CIOs worry about Gen AI – for all the right reasons Generative AI is poised to be the most consequential information technology of the decade. Plenty of promise. But expect novel new challenges to your enterprise data platform. By Mike Feibus Sep 20, 2023 7 mins CIO Generative AI Artificial Intelligence brandpost How Zero Trust can help align the CIO and CISO By Jaye Tillson, Field CTO at HPE Aruba Networking Sep 20, 2023 4 mins Zero Trust brandpost So, you’re ready to invest in Universal ZTNA. Here’s what you should know With careful evaluation and planning, implementing Universal ZTNA for all users offers a simple, effective way to enhance security across your entire network. By Peter Newton Sep 20, 2023 6 mins Zero Trust news ServiceNow boasts industry-first gen AI general availability with Vancouver release of Now Most major software vendors say they will incorporate generative AI in their applications; ServiceNow claims it will be the first to deliver the code. By Peter Sayer Sep 20, 2023 6 mins CIO Software Providers Zero Trust Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe