This stunned me. More CIO's than I can remember in some time are saying that they are struggling to be seen as "strategic", "on a par with line of business execs" and "unable to get/keep a seat at the table". If you think that the CEO or any other peer exec needs to "stay out of tech" then you've got a problem.
I want CxO's to be engaged in understanding what technology can do for and to them. An informed consumer is a better partner in delivering the benefits of technology. Telling the CEO to stay out of technology is 20 plus year old thinking and that's just not going to cut it. An informed CEO/CFO/CMO will willingly spend more on technology, understand better that risky IT doesn't always works as planned, and expect that it's not just information technology it's business technology that matters.
If you want to be seen as a business partner and strategic ally in your business, check your attitude- it may be showing.
George F. Colony's Blog: The Counterintuitive CEO: CIOs to CEOs: "Stay out of tech.": "
JUNE 05, 2009
CIOs to CEOs: 'Stay out of tech.'
Quickly: Some CIOs are still ambivalent about having the CEO involved in tech.
Content: At the Forrester IT Forum in Las Vegas two weeks ago, I held a private dinner for 15 Chief Information Officers. We worked on the question: 'How do you raise the tech IQ of your CEO?'
I've always thought a CEO who knew tech would be welcomed by the CIO. But most of the CIOs at my dinner didn't agree. Here are some comments:
1) 'The CEO should trust IT to get it right.'
2) 'CEOs are about making the company successful -- not on the minutiae of tech.'
3) 'The CEO is about results, not tech.'
Now I had a great time at the dinner, but I must respectfully disagree with my guests. The CEO doesn't have to program, but he/she cannot be ignorant when it comes to IT/business technology. I'm a big believer that the CEO must connect the outside w"
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