Survey: large enterprises spend 28% of software budgets on upgrades and licensing changes IT leaders often do not want

A survey commissioned by Origina found that enterprises with at least 10,000 employees spend an average of 28% of software budgets on unwanted upgrades, migrations, and licensing changes. The survey covered 2,018 CIOs and senior IT decision-makers at companies with at least $1B in annual revenue in the US and UK, but Origina sells independent software maintenance, which may bias the framing.

For enterprise IT leaders, the reported 28% spend suggests a practical case for reviewing whether vendor-driven upgrades or license changes align with operational needs before renewing contracts. The trade-off is that alternatives such as third-party maintenance may reduce budget pressure but could affect vendor support relationships; the article does not provide outcome data showing whether companies that avoid these changes perform better.