Whether a CIO is just hired on to a business or is simply looking to revamp a technology structure, he or she has a significant job as we approach 2014. The transmission of information in our society is more rampant than ever before, and it’s vital for the data to be transmitted, organized and understood in the right way. A business can’t be successful in the modern economy unless progress in made in this area. CIOS and other related IT leaders need to lead the charge.
When a job title becomes multifaceted and wide-ranging, sometimes it helps to simply take a step back and look at everything from a more broad perspective. This way, the business goals can be better incorporated into the everyday technological processes. Below I list ways that CIOs can increase their impact right now, for a better chance at keeping up with competition.
Establish and develop the role
CIOs are the liaison between technology and the service or product that the business offers. It should be noted that the role of CIO can be both different and nonexistent in various businesses. It depends on the structure of the company and the needs of that particular system. However, when present, they are usually in charge of making sure that technological components of the company match internal strategy of business operations. Information is the fuel that keeps a business afloat, and CIOs maintain this sector and the people who operate it. Because of the increasingly high demands of both customers and the economy, this job can be hard to define.
Top advice:
Finding out what the business wants from you on a daily basis is a good start. Make sure to communicate with your superiors regarding the exact expectations of your job and the technology that it involves. Late 2013 commerce is based around diverse processing of information, and without a clear-cut job role, you will never feel satisfied with your achievements.
Set simple and straight forward goals and work with realistic expectations. Your performance is based on the results of the teams and operations you are managing, rather than individual metrics. Once you figure out what youâre working with, you can begin to revolutionize in unison with the resources around you.
Distribute and structure resources effectively
As modern business evolves, the role of IT departments is becoming less and less traditional. In the past, a standard model could be utilized to hire and shape an IT department. With the varying demands of business nowadays, this is no longer possible or financially viable. The number of Software Engineers or System Administrators should not be determined by anyone outside of the business. A CIO needs to mold his or her staff around the current business model for maximum financial and operational efficiency. The days of one team operating the hardware and another operating the software are long gone. Multifaceted demands require multidisciplinary leadership.
Top advice:
It’s priority to hire and organize for what you as a CIO need. Your job is dependent upon the success of the processes beneath you, and that success is directly related to how an IT department is organized. If you’re a CIO who is coming in to oversee an existing team, this advice does not directly suggest downsizing or firing.
When looked at from a positive angle, it can mean reorganizing certain employees to be more effective with regards to business goals. For instance, maybe an existing department has one too many employees working specifically on batch processing. You as a CIO can decide where this extra employee can be used to better support overall technology utilization. Your job is to make use of resources in order to keep the information flowing to, from and through the business. A properly organized department can help you reach what you’ll be striving for. This is where the revolution starts.
CIOs can both maintain and transform business in 2013. Information is the backbone of the economy and a CIO is tasked with maintaining the system that communicates all of the data. It’s an important job that sometimes requires those with the title to step back and analyze ideas on their own terms. Traditional ways are still important to reference, but today is a new era of CIO leadership.
