"The CIO is well positioned to interpret how their organisation best addresses the complexities of an economic downturn, the avoidance of disruption in any resulting organisational restructuring, the challenge of globalisation, and the sustained business and social changes that are being forecast for the coming years."

But CIOs face some tough times ahead, and seven in 10 say improving the value from IT is a priority next year. Switching off legacy systems and standardising IT platforms were the main areas of focus, CIOs said.

Four in 10 say their budgets will not change, and the rest are split evenly between expecting an increase and a decrease. Most manage a budget of between £10 million and £50 million.