UK CEOs fear poor IT supply contracts may block business development, yet few see supplier management skills as a priority, according to research released today (11 January 2011) by Xantus Consulting.

More than half (56 per cent) of CEOs from the UK’s £250m - £1bn turnover companies believe being locked into poor quality or high-risk IT suppliers is the most significant obstacle in enabling business growth. In stark contrast, only a fifth of CIOs share their bosses’ concerns - with double the number of CIOs to CEOs citing the age, complexity and cost of existing IT systems as a greater threat to future development.

The concern regarding supplier relationships is, however, great enough for the majority of CEOs (84 per cent) and CIOs (81 per cent) to agree that their IT departments need to raise in-house skills to manage relationships with their key suppliers.

Yet, according to the research from Independent IT consultancy Xantus, a surprisingly low number of CEOs (12 per cent) and CIOs (20 per cent) view procurement and vendor management skills as important enough to take priority over the next 12 months - stating that recruitment and development of IT strategy and business analysis skills are the major focus.

According to Steve Watmough, CEO of Xantus, supplier and vendor management is at a critical time, with contract re-shaping being a key element for both the public and private sectors as they re-position themselves post-recession. He comments: "It is neither surprising that CEOs are concerned about the real or perceived dangers of being locked into existing supplier relationships, nor that CIOs want to upgrade and rationalise IT systems. What does surprise me is the apparent lack of importance being attached to procurement and vendor management skills, which are critical in helping to overcome these issues.