Strategic Importance of RFID - The CIO Perspective An Empirical Analysis in Germany

RFID is currently considered a hot topic in the IT arena. It is described as major enabling technology for automated contactless wireless data collection, and as an enabler for the real-time enterprise, a future vision of enterprise information systems. But little is known about the perceived strategic importance of RFID among IT decision makers, current RFID usage and areas of application, or companies' intentions to invest in RFID. In this paper we intend to fill this gap. We convey a quantitative survey among CIOs in Germany across various industries. We present empirical insights on CIOs’ perceptions of RFID regarding its strategic importance, the relevance of RFID compared to other IT topics, and their RFID visions for the future of their company.