Career Talk JDR

CIO Perspective:  Business Transformation, and the Role of Strategic CIO Leadership

The spectrum of influence that a CIO has on business is evolving. Many CIOs today are “mostly operational” – functioning as top-level managers of day-to-day, cost-centered IT assets as well as overseeing the technical staff that keeps a business running. By contrast, more progressive executive teams recognize opportunities to leverage IT investments as an “enabler of business transformation,” which requires a higher level of influence on business change – a unique role that can only be served by a visionary, “strategic” CIO leader.

CIOs are increasingly being asked to participate in over-the-horizon strategic business transformations, while concurrently managing the IT organization and systems that support ongoing business operations. Certainly, a CIO who is exclusively preoccupied with operational platforms and process improvements might not foresee business-changing opportunities inspired by strategic technology innovations. As the evolving CIO role becomes more strategic, with innovation and transformation taking center stage, we see a new generation of technology executives at the helm.

Part Two of this blog post to follow…

If you’d like to read the full article, you can also find it at

http://cioleadershipcenter.com/images/Alcatel-Lucent_CIO_Business-Transformation.pdf