Four tips for CIOs

CIOs have had something of a rollercoaster life in the last two decades. As IT came to be inextricably tied up in the fabric of business and the fulfilment and delivery of its processes, so CIOs built up their own empires.

These empires tended to reside outside of the mainstream of business, have their own, arcane language, and were impenetrable to outsiders.

Then came the double disillusionment of the dotcom bubble bursting and the Y2K non-event, and it dawned on executives that IT had been a black hole into which billions had been poured, but with payback inordinately hard to quantify.

As economies globally dipped, so the outcome for CIOs and their teams was harsh: they had their wings clipped, their budgets trimmed, and from 1999 to 2004, it was a bleak time to be a CIO.

Decision-making authority was restricted, in certain instances board-level representation removed, hiring put on hold, and before long, some CIOs found their world a pale imitation of its former self.

The wheel is slowly turning, and CIOs are again regaining some of the power and influence they held formerly.

Here are four of the timeless truths regarding CIOs in the past, today and in the future:

The best CIOs are those who could step up and assume the CEO role, because they are steeped in the strategy of the organisation. CIOs should have a good knowledge of general management, show enthusiasm for business matters and have insight into their industry sector.

They should be able to converse in business language rather than technology. Their primary focus should be on growing revenue, business effectiveness and cost-efficiency.

The best CIOs are always those who are able to craft a compelling vision for where their organisation should be going; draft a roadmap for how to get there; and then take the team with them.

They should be original thinkers and be able to inspire and impassion not just their people, but the board too. Great CIOs do not get bogged down in the detail of how to create the impossible: they identify the right way, and work out how to get there.

The best CIOs are those who could step up and assume the CEO role.

Bryan Hattingh is CEO of Cycan.

CIOs are only as good as their team, and the quality of the supporting team must be world-class. Such a quality team is most likely to be assembled if the CIO sells the vision passionately and unyieldingly.

Skills needed as a top CIO are the ability to identify, attract, acquire, retain and develop the best people. A good CIO needs to be able empathise with his people; hire to offset shortcomings and complement strengths; remove all white-anters; place the right people in the right roles; and be prepared to build his people, all the while ensuring their career aspirations are taken care of. Get this list right, and the CIO will be well on his way to creating the team that will make the CIO and the business look good.

No leader ever got far in life without understanding the nature of risk, identifying it and embracing it. So it must be with CIOs. Very often it needs entrepreneurial-type risk-taking to make a breakthrough in thinking and delivery to the business. In a world where standard IT tends to confer short-term advantage and then no more than parity, thinking out-of-the-box will always involve risk, but it will typically be what advances your business, as you strive for competitive gain.

Good examples of CIOs taking risk are Ken Jarvis committing SARS to SAP on Linux; Vic Lumby driving virtualisation at Old Mutual; and Dow`s remaining on SAP`s R/2 application suite, rather than moving to R/3, as almost every other company in the world has done.

Despite the downturn in fortunes, CIOs and aspirants can and do still have an opportunity to craft a great career for themselves. Setting a vision, leading with passion and selflessness, and evincing a life of custodianship, along with the tips noted above, will help you get there.

* Bryan Hattingh is CEO of Cycan.