Flexera has released its annual survey findings which suggests that artificial intelligence (AI) is redefining IT leaders’ priorities, with nearly half saying that AI could create the biggest impact for their companies.
The Flexera 2025 IT Priorities Report asked IT leaders around the world about how decision makers’ priorities have evolved over the past 12 months.
Leaders from the United States, UK, Germany and Australia were also asked to outline their focus for next year.
When pressed about their “top tech vendors,” OpenAI ranked fourth (tied with Oracle) in its first year on the list, demonstrating the influence of AI on IT leaders.
Additional survey findings showed that fears of overspending weigh heavily on IT: the estimated average amount of overspending across cloud, software, SaaS and hardware is around 20-25 percent, with some IT leaders – around 31 percent - said they believed they were overspending on security tools.
FinOps also came into focus. Despite increasing overspend concerns and a shift toward expensive AI investments, only 13 percent of IT leaders reported that FinOps was a priority in the last 12 months. These findings indicate a significant need for FinOps in the months ahead.
IT is still optimistic about innovation, and 91 percent of IT leaders believe innovation is a top strategic priority. 93 percent say their business is more innovative with their IT and technology resources.
Conal Gallagher, CIO at Flexera, said: “AI is not only disrupting and transforming IT but planting the seeds to change the way we all work.
“It’s no surprise that IT is at the forefront of recognising and ushering in this disruption, helping to be a guiding force for their organisations.”
