CIO 100 Conference

CIO 100 Conference: ""

So this week I'm off to the CIO 100 Conference at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, CO. Celestica was selected as one of the award winners so I'm going to pick-up the hardware.

This is the second time I've been CIO or CTO of an organization that won, having received the award soon after I joined Getty Images in 2004.

I take no credit for that one. This time around, I'll take some credit. No credit is due me for dreaming up the winning application. If I can take credit for anything it is for ensuring that the great work done by my team and Celestica's Supply Chain organization, including Exec VP John Boucher received the appropriate recognition within the IT community.

Too many CIO's still don't understand the value of marketing their team's wins. Whether it's participating in or as I prefer to think of it, competing in the Information Week 500 or the CIO 100 awards, there's great value for your organization's morale and self-esteem.

Everyone inside the organization, both users and IT professionals, knows all the ways and places that things could be better. Often though, when you really benchmark, you can find many things to be proud off. Receiving an Information Week 500 ranking or winning a CIO 100 award is one way of demonstrating that your team is succeeding. Winning has a way of making everyone feel a little better about the place they work and their role in the team. Just like in sports, when you feel like you are successful and capable, you become more so. There's definitely a halo effect which can be leveraged with your team, your business partners, customers and suppliers.

I hope to see you there!