IT Budgets Keep Growing. Who Will Deliver All These Projects? 

Companies are spending more on technology than ever. Gartner expects worldwide IT spending to reach $6.15 trillion in 2026, up almost 11% from 2025. Software is the fastest-growing segment, at more than 13%. 

AI is pulling in a big share of that money. In September, Gartner forecast that worldwide AI spending will reach $2.7 trillion in 2026, an increase of nearly 50% in a single year. Its projections show the total climbing past $3.6 trillion in 2027. 

For hiring managers, those numbers turn into something concrete. More projects get approved, and leadership wants to see results sooner. Every migration and integration needs someone to plan the work and keep stakeholders aligned. Getting the budget approved is often the easy part. Finding people who can deliver is harder. 

Spending and value are two different things 

There’s also growing concern that some of this money won’t pay off. This month, Gartner warned that more than $3.5 trillion of AI infrastructure spending could be exposed to write-downs by the end of 2030 if AI revenue doesn’t keep pace with investment. That warning is aimed mostly at AI providers. Still, the lesson applies to any organization funding a large technology program. Money spent without clear goals and steady delivery rarely turns into results. 

This is where experienced IT project managers and business analysts earn their keep. A good BA makes sure the organization is building the right thing in the first place. A good IT Project Manager gets it built, and notices early when it’s drifting off track. Programs that lose sponsor confidence halfway through are often the ones where nobody clearly owned scope and schedule from the start. 

What this means for your 2027 hiring plans 

Demand for project talent rarely arrives in a smooth line. Several initiatives often get approved in the same quarter, followed by a quieter stretch. Teams that staff only for the steady state get caught short when three or four projects launch at once. 

Senior people also get hired first. When many companies fund big programs at the same time, they all look for the same profile: someone who has already led an ERP rollout or a major cloud migration. Those candidates usually field more than one offer, and they don’t stay on the market long. 

The mix of skills employers want is shifting as well. More hiring managers are asking for PMs who understand data and AI well enough to ask good questions of their technical teams. That combination is still hard to find. 

Plan before the projects start 

If your organization is heading into a heavy project year, map out which initiatives will need dedicated PM or BA support, and roughly when. Some roles call for a permanent hire. Others fit a contract professional brought in for a defined phase. Either way, starting the search before kickoff gives you a much better shot at the people you want. 

PMO Partners has spent more than a decade placing IT project managers and business analysts in contract and permanent roles. If you’re planning for next year’s projects, talk with our team about what we’re seeing in the market right now. 

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