The 2019 C-Suite Software Sentiment Study by the Business Software Education Center was conducted in May of 2019 with the goal of providing a mid-year check regarding what executives are thinking, planning and prioritizing on the increasingly mission-critical subject of software and technology. Over 500 executives participated across all company types, sizes, and geographies. Hence, the study is statistically “projectionable” and valid for the United States market. As a benchmark, future studies can identify changes in sentiment that will be powerful insights. Interested in learning more? Download the full report: https://businesssoftwareeducationcenter.org/resources/c-suite-software-sentiment-study-2019/

1. Cloud Adoption
and Migration
Mobile Solutions
Digital Transformation
Analytics/Dashboards/
Advanced Reporting
Process Automation
Data Management
and Security
Business Continuity
Other
0% 10% 20%
21%
20%
13%
13%
12%
11%
7.3%
6.3%
In 2019, do you plan to increase or decrease your
investment in software and related technology?
Please rate the importance of the following
software/technologies to your business.
Increase
Investment
55%
28%
15%
2%
Other
Decrease
Investment
Same
Investment
FINDINGS
A majority (55%) plan to increase investment in
software and related technology in 2019; only 15%
plan to decrease investment; while 28% plan to
maintain the same investment.
FINDINGS
Businesses consider practical, business-facing
software applications like financial management
and billing to be Most Important due to the broad
and frequent use. Cloud management and storage
seem to gain traction due to their attractive economics.
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FINDINGS
Information technology (IT) leads all other roles in
determining software and technology requirements
with 30%; Finance/Accounting (18%), Operations
(17%), and the C-Suite (16%) follow with near equal
influence; Board or Investors have a role, albeit lesser;
while Procurement/Purchasing has a very minor role
in software and technology.
What role(s) or department(s) are primarily
responsible for determining software and
related technology requirements?
2019 C-Suite
Software Sentiment Study
In 2019, what technology and strategic initiatives are you planning or implementing?
FINDINGS
Top Technology and Strategic initiatives for 2019
include Cloud Migration and Adoption (21%),
and Mobile Solutions (20%); followed by Digital
Transformation (13%), and Analytics/Dashboards
(13%); Business Continuity ranked last with only
7.3% implementation.
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Pacific
South Atlantic
Middle Atlantic
East North Central
West South Central
Mountain
West North Central
East South Central
New England
0% 10% 20%
4%
16%
13%
13%
11%
9%
8%
6%
20%
Respondent
Classifications
Information
Technology (IT)
30%
17%
Other
Finance/
Accounting
18%
16%
10%
3%
6%
Operations
C-Suite
Board/
Investors
Procurement/
Purchasing
Accounting/Financial
Management software
Invoicing/Billing
software
Cloud Management/
Storage
Customer Relationship
Management (CRM)
software
Database Management
software
Collaboration
software
Other
Marketing Automation
(MA) software
Enterprise Resource
Planning (ERP) software
Business Intelligence
(BI) software
Human Resources
(HR) software
3.5
3.5
3.2
3.1
3
2.9
2.9
2.9
2.9
3
3.4
3.5
3.5
3.4
Less than 25 employees
26 - 100 employees
101 - 250 employees
251 - 500 employees
501 - 1,000 employees
More than 1,000 employees
Other
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
48%
14%
14%
14%
7%
7%
1%
Services/Professional Services
Retail
Healthcare
Manufacturing/Distribution
Other
Non-Profit/Not For Profit
Construction
Education
Government
0% 10% 20% 30%
27%
19%
18%
16%
10%
9%
9%
6%
6%
1%
Technology