CIOs are becoming more like COOs due to digital transformation, say IT leaders

CIOs must become more like business leaders, say CIOs at Computing's IT Leaders' Club

CIOs are increasingly becoming more like chief operating officers (COOs) due to the effect of digital transformation initiatives flushing through major organisations, and heightened expectations of what IT leaders are expected to deliver.

At the same time, the so-called chief digital officer role is rapidly becoming marginalised as CIOs become the centre of organisations' digitalisation strategies.

That is just two of the key messages from this week's Computing IT Leaders' Club, held at the Duck & Waffle at 110 Bishopsgate, the highest restaurant in London, in an event sponsored by IT services giant Fujitsu.

Because IT Leaders' Club events are held under Chatham House rules, the attendees cannot be directly quoted.

In many respects, the CIOs agreed, the term ‘digital transformation' really means ‘business transformation', but without some of the negative connotations of the latter. "We label it in our business as business transformation. But culturally it's about how we deliver services to customers," said one CIO in financial services.

As a result, he continued, the way in which he is judged in his role has changed. In the old days, it used to be about delivering IT systems and software on time and (more or less) within budget, and achieving acceptable operational metrics, such as uptime.

Now, though, how people use the systems and tools provided by IT is becoming more important - and CIOs are increasingly expected to become more like COOs.

"My boss is making me accountable for the effective operation of the new ways of working. It's gone from delivery to embedding technology, making us more like business leaders… Are we getting the optimum business and customer benefit from the new technology? That's a massive change in mindset. Twenty years ago, if the technology was delivering and worked, that was what the role was about," he said.

He added: "I believe I'm judge by the performance of the business and have become more accountable now for business output."

As a result, the CIO role is increasingly encroaching on the COO role - with the CIO enjoying the edge due to the IT background, which has to be married to a business understanding.

The outlook for chief digital officers is more mixed. On the one hand, insurer RSA has recently moved to appoint a group CDO, as well as a CDO for every region. Likewise, London's new mayor Sadiq Khan also appointed a new CDO for the capital shortly after his election.

At the same time, however, in a recent CIO interview with Computing, News UK CTO Christina Scott emphatically rejected the concept. And a number of CIOs have told Computing that the days of the CDO are already numbered.

The next Computing IT Leaders' Club will be next on Tuesday 31 January at City Social at Tower 42, with similar events planned in February and March. Membership is free to all qualifying IT leaders (CIOs, IT managers, IT directors and equivalent).