CIOs Have Expanded Role

Quite expected.   But it is just more work, or a truly expanded role?

CIOs Enter 2021 with Expanded Role

The Wall Street Journal,   By Angus Loten

Information technology (IT) executives surveyed by CIO Journal say the pandemic has expanded their clout in corporate boardrooms and front-office decision-making. CIO Chris Bedi of cloud software company ServiceNow said, "The pandemic has shown us that digital transformation is the number one business imperative right now, and ... the role of the CIO has never been more crucial." Bedi added that the crisis ramped up a longstanding campaign to digitally overhaul business models. Industry analysts mainly credit the adoption of cloud computing for enabling IT executives to deliver real-time data on fast-changing markets. With business decisions becoming entwined with cloud computing and software applications, technology leaders say they are increasingly graded on business results, rather than as IT system maintainers. ... " 

ERP and all That

Been looking at how ERP can utilize AI and RPA so this was of interest.  Interesting piece though   over acronymed.

Software Delivery Management: ERP for IT redux? in Forrester
by Charles Betz, Principal Analyst

" .... Software Delivery Management helps organizations streamline CI/CD processes and foster meaningful collaboration across all functions involved in software development and delivery. Its purpose is to increase software delivery velocity, quality, predictability and value which consequently results in improved customer and user satisfaction and better business results.

Seems like a reasonable set of goals. SDM as CloudBees describes it is similar to Value Stream Management (VSM) as my colleagues Chris Condo and Diego Lo Giudice have framed it. However, CloudBees really caught my attention when in (on-the-record) briefings for analysts, they compared their SDM vision to Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) vendor SAP.

SAP? This might be surprising to many in the DevOps community. However, it makes perfect sense to me.

I’ve long wondered: most of the C-suite is well served by ERP vendors like SAP and Oracle. Why not the CIOs of the world? Why are their tools so fragmented? Why does the cobbler go barefoot? It’s not a new question (I wrote a book about it), nor a new branding idea. Various IT service management (ITSM) vendors have experimented with “ERP for IT” messaging, but didn’t get much traction. Why not? And what might be different with SDM?

I think the biggest problem for the ITSM vendors is that they were starting at the end of the digital value stream, at the phase of operations and support, when the harder and more valuable aspect is upstream, in software development.

Before continuous delivery, upstream was a world of project management where (oftentimes) the build and deploy toolchains were unique to each project. Now, the industry has a solidifying vision for a continuous delivery conceptual architecture that spans projects (which are increasingly turning into steady-state products[i]). Story, commit, build, package, provision, deploy, operate – the deepening, DevOps-driven industry consensus here is is a big step forward, and might well be “what’s different this time around.”   ... "

Enterprise AI Strategy

Useful overview of what it takes.  Integrate it with real process, real goals, real results,  not just small tests.

Anatomy of an enterprise-scale AI strategy
Looking to move beyond point solutions and proofs of concept? Here’s what it takes to develop to a holistic AI strategy honed for business results.
           
 By Maria Korolov in CIO

When it comes to AI, companies typically test the waters proof of concepts or small-scale use cases, taking advantage of vendor offerings, such as new features in their existing SaaS platforms.


If things go well, they pursue another project, then another — and soon they’re relying on a sprawl of incompatible systems, competing data lakes, problems with cost overruns, duplication of efforts, and an inability to scale, not to mention privacy, compliance or ethics problems.

[ Cut through the hype with our practical guide to machine learning in business and find out the10 signs you’re ready for AI — but might not succeed. | | Get the latest insights with our CIO Daily newsletter. ]


At some point, the benefits of AI become obvious enough, and the pain of continuing on their present path so acute, that companies step back to develop a cohesive strategy for an enterprise-wide AI-powered transformation.

"The tendency to get overwhelmed in individual technologies is not only drowning organizations in technical debt but discouraging them because they don't see a path forward to sustainable and scalable AI," said Traci Gusher, partner in data, analytics and artificial intelligence practice at KPMG.

Here’s a look at how organizations can ensure the shift from pilot projects to full-scale AI fluency goes right.  .... " 

Advanced Analytics. Interviews with the C Suite

We had much experience in this area, delivering analytics to many executives.   It seems the connections have slipped in general.   It takes more than interviewing them, it takes ongoing connection and review of the goals, processes and the value propositions  involved

Advanced analytics: Nine insights from the C-suite
by Jit Kee Chin, Mikael Hagstroem, Ari Libarikian, and Khaled Rifai

Conversations with hundreds of business leaders reveal nine ways that they are—and are not—adapting to the analytics revolution.

Data and advanced analytics have arrived. The volume of available data is growing exponentially, with more added every day from billions of phones, sensors, payment systems, and cameras. Machine learning is becoming ubiquitous, but organizations are struggling to turn data into value.

The stakes are high. Those who advance furthest, fastest will have a significant competitive advantage; those who fall behind risk becoming irrelevant. Analytics cannot be the sole province of the chief information officer (CIO), as is sometimes the case. The CIO may not understand the business as a whole well enough to spot opportunities and threats, or be influential enough to ensure that the company addresses them appropriately. While the expertise the CIO brings is of course essential, business-unit leaders and CEOs must be in charge of analytics to accelerate the pace of change and to ensure intelligent investment. This is beginning to happen: McKinsey has found that more than 50 percent of CEOs consider themselves the primary leader of the analytics agenda, and that figure has been growing steadily.

With this in mind, we spoke to more than 300 top executives of major companies. Here we offer nine insights based on these conversations, and suggest actions for business leaders to take.  .... " 

Investment in the Coming Decade of AI

A view in CIO of how AI is emerging in a number of dimensions.  Investments being made.  Good generalized piece.

" ...  in a blog last year that we are at the dawn of a new age of artificial intelligence (A.I.). And 2017 certainly is the beginning of a world that is rapidly embracing A.I. The halls at CES were filled with talking devices, many powered by the same presence, Alexa, Amazon’s slowly evolving virtual assistant. There were several conversations about the impact the impending robot revolution would have on our lives, jobs and future occupations. IDC predicts that spending on A.I. will grow from $8 billion to $47 billion by 2020. This is a seismic shift. Computer chips are being redesigned to work like the human brain. The World Economic Forum at Davos had a lot to say about A.I. and its impact on humanity’s future, calling cyber-physical systems (A.I. and robots) the Fourth Industrial Revolution.   .... "

IBM CIO on Agile

The CIO Of IBM On How To Create An Agile Enterprise
Jacob Morgan  
   
What this episode is about and why you should care:
When you are leading one of the world’s largest organizations with hundreds of thousands of employees you need a unique vision to succeed. Jeff Smith, the Chief Intelligence Officer at IBM, has two major missions as CIO. First, to enable a productive work environment and second, to lead the deployment of an agile culture throughout the company. ... " 

Addressing Digital Gaps with CIO Insight

Pearl Zhu on the idea of digital gaps.  Have seen every one of these gaps.  CIO's should be about insight, process and delivery rather than just 'information'.  Please get us to the knowledge and wisdom level using the abilities of multiple people in the enterprise.

Governance in the Future of the CIO

The Board Leadership & Governance Insight of the “Future of CIO” 
Governance is like a steering wheel, to ensure the business running in the right direction! ... " 

Technology Autonomy

Had not heard the term before, but it relates to how strongly an IT department can act as a gatekeeper to software, in this new era of 'Bring Your Own' tools.    The proposal that it enhances business performance.  The implications.

" ... Since computers first emerged in the workplace, IT departments have been known as gatekeepers … and, in less positive terms, the "Department of No." But a number of factors—including cloud computing, BYOD and the consumerization of IT—are radically redefining and reshaping the technology landscape. According to a new report, "Freedom to Choose: What Technology Autonomy Means for Business," most CIOs and other senior IT leaders now believe that providing greater freedom to business units to select and acquire the devices and applications of their choice will improve business performance... " 

This piece is delivered in the infographic slide show form, which I have grown to dislike. Very hard to quickly scan information this way.  I avoid the format when I can.

Future of the Chief Data Officer

In SiliconAngle:  Don't in particular like the idea of labeling things with 'Chief', better to have a team of experts, closely connected.  Its the Information - Data - Knowledge progression.  Everyone should understand that.

Improving Retail Supply Chain Management

In  CIO.  Now as back then,  linking data transparency to analytics is key.

Retailers and their suppliers are under more pressure than ever before to deliver more goods to more destinations faster.

To stay competitive, “retailers need to know where things are at all times so they can redirect shipments, rebalance inventories and respond to new demands on the fly,” says Rich Becks, general manager, Industry Value Chains, E2open, which delivers cloud-based supply chain collaboration solutions.

And if there is a problem with their supply chain, and they can’t get products to stores and/or consumers, retailers (and their suppliers) risk losing customers.  ... " 

Clorox CIO Discusses Challenge of Big Data

Former colleague discusses Big Data value in the enterprise.    And like any analytics application, Big data or not, it is about getting to a real business process solution.  Insight needs to drive real action.   Starting with knowing what the questions are.

" ... Many big companies today do a great job of collecting big data, However, the challenge remains to get insights out of the data. Clorox CIO Manjit Singh suggests taking a more agile approach.

Big data is top of mind for the C-suite and IT executives today, particularly in the realm of marketing data and marketing analytics, says Manjit Singh, CIO of The Clorox Company. While organizations are focused on big data, many are failing to act upon their data because they simply get sidetracked.

Where the data challenge lies

"The challenge is not in collecting the data," Singh says. "We're challenged in how to get insight out of the data — what questions to ask and how to use the data to predict results in the business." ... '

(Read the whole thing .... some very useful thoughts)

Growing Influence of the CIO

CIO Mag:  But how will that influence be used?  " ... On the one hand, this change is driven by new problems, such as high visibility data breaches and regulatory demands for tightening data security. However, there is also growing recognition of how vital data use is for the financial and nonfinancial functions of the enterprise. And paradoxically, just as these demands make the world of IS more complex, CIOs are striving to simplify access to and use of technology.  ... "

P&G's Strategic CIO

In CIO Mag:

by Phil Weinzimer: 

P&G's Filippo Passerini Stands Out as Stellar Example of a Strategic CIO ...  I didn't know what to expect when Procter & Gamble CIO Filippo Passerini agreed to be interviewed for my book, The Strategic CIO: Changing the Dynamics of the Business Enterprise. Passerini rose through the ranks at P&G to become not only CIO, but also president of the company's Global Business Services division. Given that P&G is an $84.2 billion consumer products company with almost 5 billion customers in 70 countries, managing one of its four main business units is of course quite a responsibility.  ... " 

Setting your CIO Free to Innovate

In Innovation Excellence:

“The CIO’s role is changing driven by cloud and an increasing number of ‘as a Service’ solutions that progressively reduce the organisations dependency on maintaining a high number of specially skilled ICT staff. Under these new conditions organisations have two options – they can make their technology managers, architects and administrators redundant and reap the short term rewards in an uptick in profits and share price or they can retain these highly skilled staff who sit at the intersection of the business and technology and create an impressive innovation team that adds considerably more value. ”

Changing Role of the CIO

The changing role.  But consider the role too of formulating and directing technical  innovation strategy  as it applies to the needs of the company.

On a Data Analytics Champion

In CIO: Suggesting that every organization needs a data analytics champion.  I agree.   But its success  depends strongly on how you enable capabilities and reward results.  It also needs sustained funding and ongoing links to key, value driven vendors. One approach would be to start with a champion and then evolve to be a part of the CIO's role.  The CIO needs to be educated about capabilities, and the champion about needs.  With a strong connection to the CEO and Board with regard to where and when analytics can be effectively applied. I have seen this done, though not as effectively as it could be. The piece has some good thoughts.

Demise of the IT Department

In BaselineMag:   My view:  CIOs are moving from technology based solutions to services. Demand will still continue to rise, but results will be more carefully positioned and measured. I believe that this will mean that the solutions proposed will have to be more closely connected to business process.

What CIO's Need to know about Prediction

Good thoughts about the topic.  Predictions of its state in the coming decade.  Not much different between classic forecasting, analytics, or the use of Big Data. Caution and careful testing in comparison to current approaches in a given business model is always needed.

CIO vs an IT Services Supermarket

Don Tapscott on the continued need for a CIO in industry. Interesting thoughts, but by the same reasoning why do we need any executive leaders?  A CIO should be a leader, both for current needs, and for forecasting future information technology needs.   Also for communicating to other executives about the power of technologies. We worked with a number of models in an executive information technology research organization to make this happen.   In Linkedin.