Growth in Retail IT Spending Leaps to Nine Percent

AMR Research findings came from a joint study held with The National Retail Federation (NRF), the largest retail trade association in the world. The joint study is the first collaborative survey published by AMR Research and the NRF as part of the strategic partnership that was formed in 2003 between the two organizations. Drawn from a survey of 27 NRF CIO Council members representing over $180 billion in annual sales, the research provides the first comprehensive, line-item level IT budget analysis seen in the U.S. retail industry. Additional Survey Findings The average budget increased from $219 million in 2003 to $239 million in 2004, nearly doubling the increase in total spending growth reported in previous retail IT spending surveys for 2003 and 2004. 2004 capital expenditures among study participants are projected to be more than 27 percent higher than 2003. This significant rise includes more than a 57 percent increase in capital spending on store-based technology hardware, validating the importance retailers see in improving the consumers shopping experience. Study participants are increasing spending in network communication technology more than 20 percent, indicating increased store bandwidth to support better responsiveness and more centralized application deployments. Retailers are budgeting an average 16 percent increase in training for IT personnel, reflecting the need to gain faster understanding of new application technologies and business processes affected by accelerating IT investments.