Dive Brief:
- Route Fifty and the Government Business Council surveyed 928 public sector officials, with more than half in executive positions, to identify the top challenges in running state and local government. IT and technology management was the third greatest area of concern for respondents.
- With worry over “human capital” in every department, less than half of respondents said their organizations could recruit for “skilled IT expertise,” with many reporting difficulties competing with the private sector.
- Only 43% of respondents had confidence that their budgets were large enough to sufficiently invest in IT modernization.
Dive Insight:
The public sector has continued to grapple with limited budgets and an ever-shifting political landscape, especially when trying to facilitate local IT modernization efforts. Tech salaries are rising across the board, and local government officials may struggle to pay the market rate for IT professionals.
Without the proper personnel, officials in state and local governments could find their agency's technology subject to security compromises, creating headaches and increased costs in the future.
A recent survey from the National Association of State CIOs found that security and risk management was the primary concern for state CIOs. This year, the group plans to lobby members of Congress for federal resources to help protect states’ data storage and critical infrastructure.
