Information technology (IT) companies are expressing tempered optimism, but expect to see moderate growth in the space this year, according to CompTIA’s newly released IT Industry Outlook 2012.

What’s that mean for integrators? Those who think creatively, and can help their clients do the same, will likely have the greatest success, whether that’s selling them on new technology or helping them understand how systems can work together.

Based on its survey of 500 IT executives, CompTIA projects a worldwide IT industry growth rate of 4.5 percent in 2012, with upside potential of 7.6 percent. The forecast for the U.S. market is slightly lower. Executives are most optimistic about IT services and software sales.

“There’s so much volatility in the market right now,” says Tim Herbert, vice president of research for CompTIA. “IT executives are expressing a reluctance to get ahead of themselves as far as a full recovery right now. We may see modest improvement in 2012, but it likely won’t be drastically different from 2011. IT is doing reasonably well, but no one would characterize it as ‘great.’”

Photos: CompTIA’s IT Industry Outlook 2012

Concerns about weak consumer and corporate demand; downward pressure on margins; access to capital; and government regulation continue to weigh on business confidence, Herbert says.

“IT doesn’t have much pricing power, so it’s important to not pitch the cost part of the equation immediately,” Herbert says. Talking to customers who have tight budgets about shifting some legacy systems to the cloud is an intermediate step between doing nothing and full-scale IT overhauls, he says.

“There certainly is an opportunity to help educate these end users about how different systems can work together,” he says.

Trends to Watch

In its 2012 outlook, CompTIA identified 12 trends to watch for 2012, including automation, cloud computing, ongoing economic stresses and shifts in customer buying patterns.

Related: Integrators Have $180 Billion Opportunity as Businesses Shift to Cloud

Additionally, market forces have induced greater and deeper specialization across verticals, such as the healthcare market, and technology solutions bundles, such as unified communications.

Herbert sees telemedicine as “on the radar” right now, but expects it won’t become a widespread trend until at least 2013.

The increased consumerization of IT means decisions are not solely made by chief information officers or IT staffs anymore, Herbert says. Having more decision-makers in the room can help to allay fears about security breaches by focusing more on ways to engage customers and build the business.

Herbert won’t be surprised to see a major security breach on mobile devices or displays in the coming year, saying he’s surprised it hasn’t happened yet. He also sees “increasing competition for end points” between A/V and IT integrators as more components move to the cloud. Firms must decide if they want to be a jack of all trades or specialize on one part of the integration, he says.

The complete 2012 Industry Outlook is available at no cost to CompTIA members, who can access the file at http://www.CompTIA.org or by contacting .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

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D. Craig MacCormack

Craig MacCormack is a veteran journalist with more than 15 years experience covering local and national news and sports as well as architecture and engineering. He joined Commercial Integrator in January 2011. Follow him on Twitter: @CraigMacCormack.

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