I hear fairly often that consulting firms and systems integrators are more likely to use open source tools that IT because it allows them to be more competitive. They gain an edge by saving customers money on software licenses, or by having more customizable tools for projects, thus pricing themselves under competitors or providing a better fit with client needs. The other hope is that by freeing project budget from the software licenses, this could translate into more money spent on work with the consultants.

While these points are all valid, the survey data on adoption seems to disprove the belief. An interesting pattern in the data is that consultants are generally less likely than IT professionals to use open source tools in this space (10% for consultants versus 36% for IT). The usage by respondent role is shown in the chart.

It is notable that 49% of the consultants and systems integrators are evaluating open source software today, signaling a possible shift. What this also says is that, far from leading the technology market, SIs and consultants seem to trail it, following the money rather than leading their customers in the market.

Even with the sudden rise in evaluation, consultants and SIs significantly trail IT departments. If you are in an IT organization that relies heavily on consultants for project work then using open source tools will require that you find qualified consultants ahead of time. Given these statistics, they are likely to be rarer than you expect.

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