Bullish Business Outlook Spurs SMB Tech Investment Plans, CompTIA Study Reveals.

Storage, IP telephony, server virtualization, and Wi-Fi among purchase priorities

OAKBROOK TERRACE, Ill. -- Small and medium-sized business (SMBs) are optimistic about the business outlook for the next 12 months, and that optimism is shaping their technology investment intentions, new research commissioned by the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) reveals.

The survey of 724 businesses with fewer than 1,000 employees found that almost half (45 percent) expect their business to grow by more than 10 percent over the next 12 months; and 21 percent expect growth of better than 20 percent in that time frame.

Anticipated business growth is also sparking expansion plans, the CompTIA survey indicates. Nine out of ten SMBs plan to add new full-time employees in the next 12 months; and 33 percent plan to add at least one new business location.

Asked to identify which technologies they plan to invest in over the next 12 months, 29 percent of SMBs said secured data backup, storage and disaster recovery; 24 percent, IP telephony; 19 percent, server virtualization and consolidation; 18 percent, Wi-Fi, and 13 percent, storage area networks.

"These are all solutions that allow an organization to get the most out of its technology infrastructure investment," said John Venator, president and chief executive officer, CompTIA. "This is an important shift. Historically, SMBs tended to replace technology reactively when something went wrong. Now they are proactively looking for solutions that enable them to leverage their networks and boost productivity and efficiency."

The study on IT spending by SMBs was presented this week at the CompTIA SMB Summit in Bonita Springs, Fla.

SMBs in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada participated in the web-based survey, which was conducted in October.

CompTIA commissioned AMI-Partners, which specializes in IT, Internet, telecommunications and business services strategy, venture capital, and actionable market intelligence focusing on global SMB enterprises, to study the current business climate and future plans for IT spending among business with 10 to 999 employees. For more information on the study please visit: http://www.comptia.org/sections/research.aspx.

About CompTIA

In 2007, CompTIA is celebrating its 25th anniversary. Just as the information technology (IT) industry it serves has grown, CompTIA has also enjoyed remarkable growth over the past 25 years. The organization was founded by representatives of five micro-computer dealerships working together to find better ways to do business. Today, CompTIA has more than 22,000 member companies in over 100 countries around the world; and serves as the voice of the world's $1 trillion-plus IT industry. CompTIA is committed to advancing the long-term success and growth of the IT industry by helping organizations maximize the benefits they receive from their investments in technology; and by helping individuals to obtain the skills and credentials they need for productive careers in IT. For more information, please visit: www.comptia.org.