Key findings
AI and security are the most protected lines in technology budgets.
Moderate confidenceMaintaining legacy systems remains the largest hidden cost.
Moderate confidenceFinance teams increasingly favour outcome-based contracts with vendors.
Emerging evidence
Context
Budget planning for 2027 is under way in most organisations. This outlook summarises what technology and finance leaders told us about their priorities, and where they expect to find savings.
What we recommend
- Quantify the full cost of legacy maintenance before the budget round.
- Protect security and data foundations when funding AI growth.
- Pilot outcome-based terms with one or two strategic vendors.
How we reached these conclusions
This outlook draws on 96 sources, including structured interviews with practitioners, client inquiry data, vendor briefings checked against reference customers, and public disclosures. Vendor claims are never counted as evidence on their own. Each finding is graded in the Krynthnode confidence ledger, described on our methodology page, and the whole outlook is due for review by 21 October 2026.