Survey: CIOs See Modest Spending GrowthSurvey: CIOs See Modest Spending Growth

Corporate IT spending looks ready for a recovery after a year of shrinking budgets and belt-tightening, according to a survey of CIOs released Wednesday by Merrill Lynch & Co.

In the United States, IT budgets are expected to grow an average 2% over 2001 when budgets declined 2.8%. Growth may be stronger in Europe, where CIOs expect a 4% increase on top of last year's 2.6% rise.

Fairview Health Services CIO Gary Strong says he believes those growth estimates may be low, and reports that his colleagues are upbeat. "They're optimistic," he says, "but under far more pressure than they've seen in the past." Strong expects the health-care industry in particular to show good growth, as emerging public-health issues help buoy financial fortunes.

Concerns stemming from last year's terrorist attacks dominate budget planning for 2002, according to the survey. Respondents identified security as their top spending priority for the year, and disaster recovery as No. 3. Enterprise resource planning slips in at No. 2, and Web development and Windows 2000 upgrades round out the top five.