FedEx seems to be one of those few “large enterprises” who has successfully managed business-IT alignment. I was following the discussions between FedEx CEO, Frederick Smith and FedEx CIO, Robert Carter. (Change Artist/ HP webcast)
Interviewer: You deal with a lot of CIOs, What do you see that causes CIOs to struggle in their relation with the CEO?
Rob (CIO): There are some great CIOs out there that I have an opportunity to meet with so many don’t struggle.
There are two primary things I think I see – One is sort of an inability to speak the language of the business. There are still too many CIOs that don’t place enough emphasis on understanding the business being able to articulate how technology can drive the business without just been a geek about it. And not many CEOs really wanted to just sit down and talk tech in very deep terms, but they are all interested in how technology can further the strategic strategies of the business and move the business forwardFrederick (CEO):Ya I think Rob summed it up pretty well… One of the things that we have also done that I think that’s relatively innovative is- We are one of the few companies that actually has an IT oversight committee at the board level…
Looking at the CEO-CIO relationship from Gartner’s viewpoint:
“Most CEOs view their CIOs as effective operational leaders. Yet only a few view them as full business leaders. There’s an opportunity for CIOs to build their relationship with their CEO and other stakeholders-to increase their influence and to enhance the contribution of IS.”
While CIOs in the past have been mostly viewed as strong technically leaders, future CIOs (as described by CIO Magazine) will be more business centered. Rather than just worrying about effective utilization of IT funds by cost cutting, CIOs will be expected to think in terms of business value and business efficiency whose primary goal will be business-IT alignment.
