Today, every business is a technology business. You can't run any organizational function – from manufacturing to HR, to marketing, to finance – without digital technology. Therefore, digital acumen is critically important – not just for all businesses, but all business leaders. All C-level executives – CEO, CIO, CMO, CDO, CFO – are successful when the organization is successful; and we all have a stake in how our company responds and adapts to an increasingly digital future.
So, as CIO, when another executive within the organization has a technology challenge, I have a dual role to play. On one hand, I must be the tactical expert and bring the know-how needed to execute projects, run the infrastructure, and carry the innovation forward. That's a given. But the other, perhaps more important side of the coin, is to become an advisor who can sit down and effectively communicate with different departments and C-level executives on solutions to their digital technology challenges. Much like a service provider, this involves giving guidance on the right technology for the problem at hand and educating teams on how that technology can help them achieve their goal.
The way I see it, moving forward, CIOs will have less ownership over deciding which digital technologies to use and defining the rules for their implementation. Rather, they will partner with other business leaders and collaborate on the solutions that they jointly agree upon to move the business forward.
Let's say, for example, the CMO needs to evaluate digital technology options related to click analysis and attribution to better understand where customers are coming from. If the IT team simply takes the assignment and runs with it, there is no opportunity for digital learning to take place. Instead, the CIO and CMO must embark on a solution together, sharing not only the leadership of the project but also responsibility and accountability for the results. It is this shared vision that will enable the business at large to truly move the needle in digital leadership.
This requires somewhat of a mindset adjustment. Business leaders across the board need to first trust the CIO before they can view them as a partner in innovation. This is what I call the CIO X-factor. If a CIO can brand him or herself as a business strategist, someone who is actively engaged in bigger picture thinking, not sequestered in the realm of IT, other executives will more readily see them as a business leader and collaborator. The resulting trust and respect for the CIO will open up the rest of the C-Suite to the invaluable digital learning that IT leaders can provide.
