The Evolving Role of the CIO

By Lauren Barack

IT continues to gain prominence among organizations, but with it may come a shift in oversight from CIOs to other C-level executives, according to new study from technology research group Gartner, Inc. CIOs should expect to find their autonomy threatened and take measures now to solidify their status -- or risk losing their jobs altogether.

A third of all CIO roles will change or even disappear by 2007, according to Gartner, Inc. If CIOs are to maintain, and enjoy, their current status in an organization, they will need to take certain steps to evolve. Research firm Meta Group advises that CIOs continue to execute top-level performances for their organization, as well as envision their roles as more of a steward than manager.

"If you are not able to adapt as an executive officer, you will be moved out," said Jonathan Poe, senior vice president of the Meta Group's Executive Directions team. "You should be working on your adaptability and agility."

Although the role of IT will continue to gain prominence within an enterprise, according to Gartner, that doesn't necessarily mean an automatic move upward for CIOs. Instead, the rising profile of IT could have an adverse effect on the CIO's position, transforming it in ways that could take away bottom-line responsibilities, redistributing them to other C-level executives where the IT function serves that executives' group's objectives. CIOs will need to retool their roles and think of themselves as "business change agents" in the organization, suggests the study "How to Tell if Your CIO Has Executive Committee Potential." The study suggests that IT as it exists now will be split into two functions. "The trend is for commodity IT to be treated as part of the wider business process it supports, and for strategic IT to be recognized as a competitive tool that needs to be embedded with executive committee-level thinking," according to the report. CIOs need to be aware of this split in order to better manage the changes to come in their own careers.

The good news is that IT is gaining a higher profile among enterprises. Good IT contributes to business continuity, protects the organization from attacks, supports regulatory requirements and maintains a generally secure and available information environment.  CIOs should take the following steps now to prepare for a shift in enterprise thinking toward IT:

1. Become an IT booster. Focus on the three ways IT steers an enterprise: think of the IT necessary to run the business; consider research and development opportunities for IT that can grow the business; and evaluate IT assets that can help transform the business. Then, look for situations in which to present IT as a solution. For example, if one department goal is to hire additional human resources personnel, consider proposing the creation of an HR portal.
   
   
2. Look for synergy. CIOs have an opportunity to develop a wider perspective needed in identifying synergies between organization units, according to Gartner. CIOs should be able to demonstrate how IT can change an organization for the benefit of the company -- an imperative step for the success in any enterprise, as well as for the CIO who wants to evolve.
   
   
3. Always be strategic and forward-looking. As more companies start to see IT as a strategic asset, they appropriately assign it a larger budget allocation when creating their fiscal blueprint. The CIO needs to start visualizing his or her role as more of an executive one in order to have more say in that budget. While every member of an executive team will need to have some knowledge of IT, the CIO has the foresight of how IT can mature and cultivate a business. "From an IT point of view that would mean processing the unknown, making the vision real," said Meta Group's Poe.

CIOs likely won't be surprised by this evolving trend in IT. Once perceived as cost-cutters and managers, the CIO's role may extend beyond these organizational duties. "They're being asked for higher role functions," said the Meta Group's Poe. "This is a change in stewardship."

Lauren Barack's work has been published in Business 2.0 and Wired.