HOW CIO ROLE IS EVOLVING

The pandemic has left an immense impact on the world, and more so on the business side. The roles and responsibilities of different people in an organization have also evolved. The role of the CIO has morphed dramatically over the past three years, where companies are looking for different sets of skills. A CIO is expected to be a complete and equal business partner with any other part of the business. In this post, we shall discuss how the role of the CIO has changed, how it will continue to evolve, and what CIOs will do to prepare for the future. 

CIO or a Chief Information Officer, also known as Chief Digital Information Officer, is the most senior-level executive in an organization. This CIO is responsible for overseeing IT, strategy, and implementation in the enterprise. In time, the role of the CIO has grown in importance as most businesses are becoming increasingly dependent on technology. 

Digital innovation and technology-driven transformation have transformed the global economy, as most are aware. Digital technology now powers the economy as well as enterprises. Business growth, competitive shifts, business model changes, and more have been powered by disruptive transformation. The CIO is in charge of deploying, managing, and maintaining IT systems throughout the company. 

Changes like these have pushed IT to the forefront of corporate strategy. For example, To succeed in today's digital economy: Organisations must integrate their digital initiatives into their overall business plans. Businesses must have the necessary digital skills to carry out their business plans. Employees must be digitally savvy and well-trained. Business strategy must include innovation as a core tenet. Because IT is becoming more critical in today's business, CIOs' jobs are also changing. To take on these additional tasks, they must be adaptable and flexible. 

How will the role of CIO change with Digital Transformation? 

CIO is expected to change drastically in the future. Here are a few trends that will impact the position of the CIO in the future. CIOs will be expected to use developing technologies to improve business results. CIOs have always had to stay on top of new technology and trends. In the future, this will be much more critical. New and emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), and blockchain, will profoundly alter the world.

On the other hand, CIOs will be expected to do more than merely keep up with these trends; they will be expected to invest in them and leverage them to improve business performance. When it comes to developing a digital-first business culture, CIOs will play an increasingly important role now and in the future. The CIO's position will increasingly migrate away from IT management and leadership. After all, digital technology will play an increasingly vital role in the economic and corporate sectors. Many companies have already begun to appoint new IT chiefs to take on digital strategy duties.

CIOs who have demonstrated early success with digital transformation projects (and the associated change management abilities) will continue to be in high demand. The winning recipe for CIOs right now has four aspects. 

A CIO with a Plan: 

Creates a vision for what digital transformation will entail in collaboration with the C-suite and executive committee.

Builds digital discipline throughout the organization, not just in IT 

Delivers operational efficiencies with tenacity 

Prioritize Customer engagement. According to MIT-CISR research, IT teams who master this technique have a 24 percent better profitability than their competitors.

For more information on the issues that matter, read our other blogs. You could start with the nature of hybrid working, adopting a blue ocean strategy, and the challenges in making technology more sustainable on the Cogent Infotech website.