What can budget-strapped CIOs do to prepare their companies for the inevitable economic recovery? Try planning. It's a good, low-cost place to start, says JGI Consulting's Jay Weiss.

While organizations wait for a budget cycle to come along with funding for major IT projects, they can look at areas like enterprise reporting. Developing a strategy isn't expensive, notes Weiss, who leads the Lawson Software practice at JGI, a software integration consultancy based in Rochelle Park, N.J.