Written by Robert Liley. He is a Principal in The Signal Group, a Vancouver-based management consulting firm. Over the years, he has counseled several successful CIOs, as well as having been one himself. For more on this subject, or to purchase a copy of his guide ‘The CIO’s Executive Handbook’ please visit his web site at www.theciohandbook.com.
The role of the CIO is rapidly changing. Are you ready to meet the increasing demands of this new role? Before you answer this question, we need to first understand the nature of this evolution and the factors that are driving it. In my view, it’s being driven by a significant change in expectations on the part of the CEO and the rest of the Executive Team with respect to the CIO. This has been stimulated by the role that information technology is now beginning to play in enabling fundamental business operations and creating competitive advantage, something that has only recently begun to appear on the radar screens of many executives. And this, in turn, is being fueled by the continuing rapid advances in information technology which make possible so many of the changes that are impacting the way that societies and organizations work, essentially across the world. Just ask the Tunisians or the Egyptians about the impact these new technologies can have. The problem, of course, is that many CIOs are not yet prepared to meet the emerging expectations, even if they understood them. Why is this? Continue reading
