OREANDA-NEWS. SolarWinds, a leading provider of powerful and affordable IT management software, today announced the findings of its IT is Everywhere surveys. The results showcase how the realm of IT is expanding beyond the traditional borders of company-owned devices and on-premises technology, thereby placing greater demand on IT professionals to manage technology outside their traditional scope of control. The surveys are connected to IT Professionals Day-observed the third Tuesday of every September (September 20, 2016)-to emphasise the need for greater appreciation towards IT professionals and the critical role they play in modern business and in the lives of nearly all technology end users. 

"The importance of technology and the IT professionals who support it is a well-known fact of business success," said Joseph Kim, senior vice president and chief technology officer, SolarWinds. "So, to celebrate the second annual IT Professionals Day, we want to draw attention to the mounting responsibility being placed on IT professionals to manage an ever-expanding array of technologies-both those owned by businesses and those beyond, such as end user-owned devices and cloud applications provided by third-party vendors. Our surveys reveal that more than ever, end users are connecting more devices, including those personally-owned, to corporate networks; relying on cloud-based applications; and working outside the four walls of traditional offices. These are all trends that take direct control out of the hands of IT departments, yet as the surveys also demonstrate, the demands on IT professionals to support and ensure the performance of related technologies are just as high." 

Key Findings 

SolarWinds' IT is Everywhere surveys are a series of two studies in support of IT Professionals Day. The first focuses on end users' perspectives related to the evolving business technology landscape and IT professionals' role in it, while the second focuses on IT professionals' corresponding viewpoint. The combined key findings include: 

More end users are connecting a diverse set of electronic devices, including those personally-owned, to corporate networks.

  • 52 percent of employed end users in the UK say they connect more devices, whether company- or personally-owned, to corporate networks than they did 10 years ago, at an average of two more per user.
  • 51 percent of end users say they connect more personally-owned devices to corporate networks than they did 10 years ago, at an average of two more per user.
  • 56 percent of end users say they connect a laptop/desktop computer to corporate networks, 52 percent a smartphone and 25 percent a tablet computer.
  • 26 percent of end users say they connect a less expected form of electronic device to corporate networks, such as Bluetooth speakers, streaming media players, wearable technology and eReaders. 

The technology end users rely on is increasingly outside their employers' on-premises infrastructure, including cloud-based applications and work-related resources leveraged beyond the office.

  • 60 percent of IT professionals globally say their organisations permit/facilitate the use of cloud-based applications; 71 percent also estimate that end users at least occasionally use non-IT-sanctioned cloud-based applications.
  • 58 percent of end users say they leverage these cloud-based applications-both IT-facilitated and non-IT-sanctioned-while at work.
  • 56 percent of end users say they regularly use work-related applications outside the office, on either company-owned or personally-owned devices. 

Despite the increase in end users' reliance on technology often outside the control of their employers' IT professionals, they still hold them accountable for its performance.

  • 62 percent of IT professionals say the expectation to support end users' personally-owned devices connected to corporate networks is significantly greater than it was 10 years ago, while 62 percent of end users say they expect their employers' IT professionals to ensure the performance these devices.
  • 43 percent of IT professionals say end users expect the same time to resolution for issues with both personally- and company-owned owned devices and technology.
  • 89 percent of end users say they expect their employers' IT professionals to ensure the performance of cloud-based applications used at work, with 71 percent going so far to say it is their employers' IT professionals' fault if they do not perform as expected.
  • 64 percent of IT professionals say end users expect the same time to resolution for issues with both cloud-based applications and local applications (those managed directly by IT).
  • 73 percent of end users expect work-related applications used outside the office to perform at the same level and to receive the same level of support from their employers' IT professionals, while 83 percent of IT professionals say they at least occasionally provide such support. 

"The key findings show that end users are now more than ever pushing the boundaries of traditional IT beyond the four walls of their organisations," Kim added. "IT is truly everywhere, and as a result, IT professionals are increasingly expected to ensure always-on availability and performance for any and all devices and applications, many of which they likely do not control. Every industry has felt the impact of increased reliance on technology, but none more than the IT industry itself. So, in recognition of IT professionals everywhere, we are thrilled to be celebrating the second annual IT Professionals Day and spotlighting the hard work they do day in and day out to keep businesses running." 

Fielded in June 2016, the first of the two surveys was conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of SolarWinds and yielded responses from 481 end users in the UK who were employed, but not as IT professionals. The second survey was fielded by SolarWinds in July 2016 and yielded responses from 276 IT professionals from across the globe. Full survey results are available here. 

IT Professionals Day 

IT Professionals Day is designed to annually celebrate all IT professionals regardless of discipline. Whereas holidays such as System Administrator Appreciation Day do well at recognising one category of the profession, IT Professionals Day honours not only system administrators, but network engineers, database administrators, information security professionals, developers, IT support technicians and all other professionals serving in IT-related roles.

About SolarWinds

SolarWinds provides powerful and affordable IT management software to customers worldwide from Fortune 500® enterprises to small businesses, government agencies and educational institutions. We are committed to focusing exclusively on IT Pros, and strive to eliminate the complexity that they have been forced to accept from traditional enterprise software vendors. Regardless of where the IT asset or user sits, SolarWinds delivers products that are easy to find, buy, use, maintain, and scale while providing the power to address all key areas of the infrastructure from on premises to the Cloud. Our solutions are rooted in our deep connection to our user base, which interacts in our THWACK® online community to solve problems, share technology and best practices, and directly participate in our product development process.