CIOs play a pivotal role in the shaping of corpo­rate strategies through the creation of tactical solutions that enable business growth and ensure success of the company brand by leverag­ing technology. The ability to lever­age technology isn’t just about being more cost effective or having more efficient processes anymore. It is in­creasingly more important to leverage technology to stay connected with clients, present proposals and create solutions.

Technological Trends

Cybersecurity because of the ever-increasing amount and sophistication of cyber threats and Smart Cities be­cause of the impact they will have on our future. Cybercrime is front-page news on a daily basis. The amount of time and attention spent protect­ing our environments and our infor­mation continues to increase. Smart Cities with connected sensor that monitor and control everything from energy usages to traffic patterns are real examples of disruptive technol­ogy in the Architecture, Construction and Engineering industry.

Overcoming Challenges

Configuration Management solutions bring consistency and management of our IT environments. It allows us to apply changes in less time and with a higher probability of success. The re­sult is more reliable and secure com­pute environment that requires less resource time to maintain. This allows our IT resource to focus on more in­novative activities with a more direct impact on growing our business.

Transformation in CMS

CMS are becoming more multi-plat­form and easier to implement. As the technology matured, the supported moved beyond Windows updates. As more companies started to use CMS the playbook on installation and con­figuration is easy to understand and implement quickly. The ability to lev­erage a single CMS platform across all IT assets and streamline operational maintenance is now possible.

Moving Away from Traditional

IT Resources

Moving IT from a traditional to a ser­vices model is more about a natural evolution than a major mindset shift. As a company grows in size and lo­cations it becomes apparent that the traditional IT resource model must change. As solutions are evaluated it becomes apparent that the operating expense of services provides a benefit over the traditional capital expense approach. As you evaluate the talent and the interests of your staff, it be­comes apparent that moving some of the commodity type work to service providers actually creates opportu­nity for your employees. Finding the right resource model that allows for retention of core skills that lev­erage service providers is the key to success.

Tips for Budding CIOs

Spend time learning the business side of your company and the business side of your IT department. Business acumen is a critical advantage for a CIO. It is important to understand how your company generates rev­enue and how your company makes decisions on IT spending. Spend time reading existing vendor contracts to understand both the service of­fering and the expense. Spend time talking with business partners about how they use technology on a daily basis to understand the level of sat­isfaction with the current solutions. Surround yourself with motivated, talented individuals that are willing to provide a contrarian viewpoint. Be humble in success and be strong in difficult situations.