What I Learned by Spending Three Days with 20 High-Powered CIOs

Featured article by Drew Cather, Vice President of Innovation, Trace3

I recently spent three days in a closed room with 20 CIOs discussing the tech industry landscape and the growing importance of technology in improving business strategies and unleashing competitive advantages.

Everyone in attendance agreed on the value of this subject, but people’s viewpoints varied widely about the best ways of getting there. What everyone agreed on is that what got us here won’t get us there.

All of the gathered tech leaders were members of Trace3’s Client Advisory Board, which meets annually to share some mutual problems and discuss a range of suggested solutions.

A common theme amongst all attendees was IT security. Other top concerns included how to complete a successful cloud migration; how to effectively manage Millennial workers; and how to deliver truly valuable business insights through analytics. The lively discussion also covered other thorny topics such as how to mentor the next generation of CIOs, and how to prepare for the big data avalanche that’s expected from the Internet of Things (IoT).

During these meetings, it became clear that many IT leaders still feel overwhelmed by the digital forces of change, be it in the constant push for IT innovation to drive business success, or in fighting the ongoing war for talent to gain an edge. The group’s consensus was that there are no easy answers to such complex challenges.

Some of the best advice to emerge from our conversations was that what got you here won’t get you there. This saying became shorthand for our need to rethink the role of the CIO, who is no longer merely responsible for keeping the lights on. Technology now underpins literally all business operations, so it’s important for IT leaders to think of themselves more like line of business owners, or even as CFOs who see every decision in terms of its effect on bottom-line profitability. We chose to describe this shifting role as “IT ascension,” as part of a larger “digital business transformation.”

One of the top concerns for everyone was how to successfully make the journey into the cloud, for which there is not a single answer. Each attendee described differing circumstances and unique business objectives based on their own business and technology drivers, financial strategies, ROI requirements, cultural considerations, and skill-sets. It became clear that moving into the cloud requires some real soul-searching.

Here are the toughest questions that bubbled up from our sessions:

– Why are you really moving workloads to the cloud – because your board or CEO mandated it? You need more agility to compete? Pure cost savings? All of the above?

– Where should your data reside, and how can you avoid vendor lock-in?

– What is your security posture, and where are your worst vulnerabilities?

– Who is going to be your “Sherpa” for your climb into the cloud? No doubt it will take longer than expected, so how much time are you giving yourself?

– Where is the inflection point for your company when it doesn’t make sense to be in the cloud for certain workloads or business functions?

– What are the positive or negative impacts on your culture and the appetite/enthusiasm of your team?

– If you don’t articulate a clear cloud strategy, will all of your best talent go somewhere else? If so, can you still recruit the needed talent to accomplish your goals?

I have spent the past 15 years working with IT leaders at some of the world’s most recognizable brands, including Gap, Sony, Virgin America, and Starbucks. Time and again, these CIOs and others have set an industry example by recognizing that the worst lies are the ones we tell ourselves. As successful IT leaders, they have reminded us that it’s time to take a closer look at ourselves in the mirror.

In that spirit, the key messages to emerge from our recent CIO meetings were:

– SaaS and the public cloud make a lot of sense for certain business functions and needs (e.g., high performance compute, HR applications, CRM, etc.), but not for all.

– Cloud doesn’t necessarily equal cost-effective, so it requires a new way of thinking about IT cost structures and strategies.

– An improved security posture can come with cloud deployments (security is of the upmost importance to everyone’s business model), but that doesn’t absolve companies from responsibility. Regardless of where your applications live, security needs to be a focus.

– Do not underestimate the people component, because culture and skill-sets are vitally important.

– Last but not least, set the right expectations from the start with the team and the board, and celebrate your wins with everyone along the way.

These are uncertain times for our field, as whole industries are being massively disrupted by technology. Look at what Uber has done to transportation, Airbnb to accommodations, and Amazon to retailing – and to just about everything else, including TV programming and cloud hosting!

A digital business transformation must integrate the latest emerging technologies along with sound business strategies to remain on the cutting edge. Companies need to drive down costs while providing new business opportunities and services, and technology is the most strategic way to do that.

IT ascension also requires making improvements to organizational health by unwinding tangled bureaucracies and eliminating harmful practices that lurk beneath the surface of an organization. To get there, IT leaders must be willing to constantly change and grow the business through evolving technologies that will drive business value and bottom-line results.

Brief author bio:

Drew Cather is the Vice President of Innovation at Trace3 where he focuses on turning technology innovation into business value. Drew is a value creator who leverages 15 years of technology and strategy consulting experience to help clients develop competitive advantages. Drew has successfully partnered with clients ranging from the Fortune 5 to the Fortune 5,000 and the world’s most accomplished technology companies and venture capitalist firms. Drew holds an Economics degree from UC-Berkeley and lives in Orange County, California, with his wife and young son.