Study Profiles State, Local Investment in Storage Technologies
CDW Government, Inc. (CDW-G), a provider of Information Technology (IT) solutions to governments and educators, launched the third in a series of the State & Local Government Technology Investment Curve (TIC), an assessment of State & Local government purchasing behavior since 2003. The TIC maps all potential state, county and city government customers against four years of CDW-G customer data. Encompassing all 50 states, more than 100,000 products and 1,000 manufacturers, the TIC provides the most accurate, unbiased assessment of State & Local government technology investment currently available.
The third installment of the TIC indexes purchases of storage technologies, which are used to place, keep and retrieve data. The TIC analysis includes six storage technology categories: backup software, storage software, storage area networks, network attached storage, tape backup and drive arrays. Storage technologies enable State & Local governments to maintain accurate and resilient public records, provide government services and information online, leverage technology to provide services to citizens where they live and work, and ensure continuity of operations in the event of a natural or man-made disaster.
Of all 50 states, Virginia and New York are the Lead Investors. Virginia leads the states with a storage investment profile 625 percent higher than the average, and New York follows with an investment profile 621 percent higher than the average. These Lead Investor states demonstrate significant, committed investment in storage technologies at all levels of government and over the entire four-year assessment. Virginia and New York are followed in storage technology investment by Early Investor Wisconsin, with a storage investment profile 126 percent higher than average, as well as 15 Early Majority states, led by New Jersey, North Carolina, Utah, Massachusetts and Ohio.
The CDW-G State & Local TIC for storage technologies is not an assessment of leadership in storage technology or quality of deployments. Rather, the curve is a quantitative, relative index of investment in storage technologies. Storage technology investment is a single component of the people, processes and technologies required to bring records management, continuity of operations and e-government capabilities to cities, counties and states.
“States have realized the significant benefits of comprehensive storage investment,” said Jim Grass, CDW-G senior director of state and local sales. “Storage technologies are an essential building block for State & Local government agencies delivering government information and services to citizens over the Web and in the field. Storage also allows governments to maintain critical operations in the event of a disaster or other major disruption. We hope that the State & Local Technology Investment Curve will enhance the market dialogue on the essential nature of storage technology.”
Looking specifically at the Lead and Early Investor states, CDW-G and interviewees in state, county and municipal governments identified common elements that lead to more aggressive investments in storage technologies, including:
Development of robust e-government programs delivering government services and information to citizens online
Creation of paperless systems, increasing government productivity and cross-agency information sharing
Development of backup data centers to ensure continuity of operations
The State & Local TIC for storage has a margin of error of less than 2 percent. To download the full study, click here.
CDW Government (CDW-G) is a technology advisor to federal, state and local government agencies, as well as to educational institutions at all levels.
For more information on CDW-G, click here.