CIOs must adapt their approach to business operations in order to drive change within their organisation. Darren Fields, Vice President, UK & Ireland, Citrix, discusses a CIO’s responsibilities as Digital Transformation evolves, and offers his best practice advice as their role becomes increasingly critical.
Not so many years ago, IT’s role was primarily to supply IT infrastructure and enable efficiency through new systems. IT departments were often viewed as an unavoidable cost centre, quietly responding to the bidding of boardrooms and leadership teams to deliver better processes and improved margins. In 2019, technology is now understood as the great enabler of change, competitiveness, modernisation and better customer service.
Now, every customer and employee expects a seamless digital experience where the technology just ‘works’ – and behind the scenes it is the responsibility of the CIO to deliver this. New technologies such as cloud and the IoT have evolved at a lightning pace, providing CIOs with the opportunity to bring value and enhanced productivity to their business – moving away from simply operating IT to orchestrating it. Yet in most organisations, there remains a huge gap between the rhetoric of Digital Transformation and the reality of what is possible.
IT has always grappled with a tension that lies at the heart of deploying technology into organisations. How do you ensure an organisation is optimised and functioning from day-to-day, yet keep a watchful eye on the opportunities of emerging technologies – and then invest at the right moment, in just the right way, to maximise IT potential and to stay ahead of rivals? CIOs face innumerable conflicting and daunting challenges, needing to bring about transformation, innovation and growth, while carefully balancing this with tight budgets and internal politics.
So, how can CIOs navigate their way through these complexities with the odds stacked sharply against them?
UK CIO struggles
Wanting to understand the challenges facing CIOs more deeply, Citrix recently polled CIOs across the United Kingdom on factors which influence their performance, the longevity of their role and the state of digital maturity in their organisations. The findings exposed a notable lack of confidence and optimism for the role, with just 42% of responding CIOs saying they felt they were able to ‘fulfil their visions’ for Digital Transformation in their last job role, which in large part was due to the ageing IT infrastructure they inherited.
While CIOs are expected to spearhead Digital Transformation, the survey findings suggest that organisations continue to view IT as a cost centre, creating a dilemma for those who need business backing in order to drive transformation as quickly and safely as possible. In addition to this, the CIO role has become more political than ever, meaning that ideas or ways of working which are seemingly immune to criticism, are the biggest obstacles holding them back from achieving their objectives. How the CIO role is perceived and supported internally is another problem, with IT leaders facing tight budgetary restraints and the expectation from the C-suite to deliver an immediate return on investment from projects.
As a result, the CIO role has a relatively short life expectancy, with half of IT leaders spending less than five years in their last job and expected to follow a similar timeframe in their current post. This ‘CIO cycle’ presents a significant challenge to Digital Transformation, since organisations need continuity to see through such large-scale projects to manage the cultural and behaviour shifts that are needed alongside the technical piece.
Driving digital change
For things to change it comes down to the state of mind of those in the boardroom, the culture of the business and the appetite for risk. Moving forward, business leaders should approach conversations involving ROI in terms of what more can be done, not how much can be saved. In addition to this, the board will need to foster a bigger appetite for risk, as CIOs need patience, backing and autonomy so that they feel motivated to remain in their role for longer.
Our research suggests that many CIOs have confidence in their own abilities but express frustration at the capabilities and digital maturity of the organisations they are supporting. To bridge that gap, ambitious CIOs must find a way to make an impact – requiring them to navigate all the complexities with fluency to get things done, while balancing competing agendas and priorities across the business. To achieve this, CIOs should consider these three steps to drive digital change within their organisation:
1. Identify potential board advocates
Every CIO has a feel for the agenda of a company and its board in relation to technology investment and Digital Transformation. Whether or not a fresh approach to digital is needed now, take the time to identify and work with those on the board who embrace and understand what is at stake.
2. Find a mentor
Transformation is never easy and most CIOs will benefit from having others to turn to for advice, insight and moral support. If a mentor or two is missing, take the time and trouble to seek them out. Pick the right person and you’ll see immediate benefit from the relationship.
3. Communicate your vision
Digital Transformation needs a vision that others can believe in. The CIO is uniquely qualified to drive change, but it needs to be communicated well for others to understand and embrace it – so make excellent communication a priority.
Looking ahead
The role of the CIO is changing dramatically and what was once central to the job has made way for the pursuit of Digital Transformation. Providing a personalised, configurable and convenient business model that can be accessed by customers anytime, anywhere is now seen as a requirement.
We expect that same ease and simplicity when using technology at work, as we do in our personal lives – and the CIO is largely responsible for making this happen. Yet, many CIOs feel hamstrung by the infrastructure they inherited and report being denied the time and organisational structure to put it right, resulting in them leaving their roles without having achieved what they had set out to do. This results in a ‘CIO cycle’ which can leave businesses uncertain on their digital strategy, holding back productivity, restraining growth and putting businesses under increasing threat from competitors.
Given the importance of technology and IT in Digital Transformation, the CIO role will become ever more critical in the year ahead and it is important we understand and support them properly. Moving forward, CIOs will need business backing in order to feel inspired to turn their digital aspirations into a reality. Patience, support and autonomy from the board will be critical to tackle the vicious cycle that is the ‘CIO cycle’ once and for all.
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