Mapping IT Spending Across Industry Classifications: An Open Source Dataset

Abstract

The primary objective of this study is to compile a data set of industry level IT spending based on publicly available information and make it available as an open source. Information technology (IT) spending is one of the most significant capital expenditures for most firms but companies are not required to report the amount of their IT expenditures. The only publicly available information comes from survey results such as InformationWeek (IW500). The publicly available IW500 reports provide information about IT spending on an industry basis rather than information about spending by individual companies. A problem with the survey results is that the industries do not conform with commonly used industry classification systems such as SIC or NAICS. In this paper we develop a method to map the IT spending information provided by IW500 to the SIC, NAICS, GICS, and Fama-French industry classifications so that the spending information will be available to researchers and practitioners in a more useful format. The IT spending information sorted by IW500 industries is presented and characteristics examined. A model is developed to map the data from IW500 industries into the commonly used industry classification systems and access to a sample of these data is provided.

Keywords: IT Spending, Industry, Industry Classification

JEL Classification: L1, L16, M15, M41