This is where we start to see some mixed reports.
Symantec's study, for instance, paints a rosy picture of green IT budgetary projections, with 73% of respondents saying they expect to spend more in the next 12 months, and 19% saying they expecting increases of more than 10%.
But research firm Gartner Inc. is more cautious. Overall, the results of Gartner's December 2008 survey on the impact of the recession on green IT suggest that tough economic times are not expected to change the priority of green IT projects, especially in Europe and Asia/Pacific.
However, one-third of U.S. organizations said they anticipated reducing the priority of such projects in 2009. This could very well lead to a slowdown in hiring for green IT projects until the economy picks up.
The one thing we can conclude is that green IT is not just a fad: it's here to stay, and it's on most organizations' radars.
While there may be some question as to how much money companies will be willing to fork out for green IT strategies as they weather this economic storm, there are indications that most businesses are moving in the general direction of environmental friendliness, driven by cost-cutting requirements. It will only be a matter of time before green IT becomes "business as usual."
Below are a number of skills you can focus on acquiring if you want an edge in an increasingly eco-conscious IT job market:
- Green procurement: ability to select the right energy-efficient equipment for your company
- Knowledge of carbon reporting and offsetting
- Server virtualization knowledge and experience
- Server consolidation know-how
- Knowledge of and experience with videoconferencing
- Familiarity with software-as-a-service
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