IT departments could be reduced in size by an average of 50 per cent over the next decade and some companies may be left with a only one tenth of their current in-house IT staff, according to research by Fujitsu Siemens Computers.

There will be big changes in corporate IT organisations as companies seek more efficient arrangements, said Dave Prichard, chief technologist at Fujitsu Siemens Computers.

“IT departments of big corporates are set for a big shake-up, triggered by increasingly sophisticated allocation of resources with automated management," he said.

"Resources can now be managed more cost-effectively by external suppliers with specialist operations, support and maintenance staff."

Results will vary depending on specific concerns in the sector, said Prichard.

“Some sectors will see quite dramatic cuts in their IT departments, and it’s not unreasonable for companies in the utilities sector to see their in-house teams reduced to a tenth of their current size," he said.

"Banks will follow, although will probably be the slowest sector to reduce as they still have continued concerns about data security.”

Workers connecting devices and systems will be hit first and will leave the sector as fewer systems are consolidated.

Jobs running systems will be the next to go and the staff will begin defining policies to allow management to be completely automatic.

And within 10 years, IT departments may have become management teams that focus on communicating with suppliers and business managers, and ensuring that the organisation's needs are being met.