Understanding the role of IT through the eyes of organizational stakeholders is an effective technique for determining how IT may need to change. For the longest time, IT was viewed as a cost center, with a primary emphasis on performance and cost. Over the past 10 years, IT’s role has been elevated in many organizations. IDG’s 2020 State of the CIO survey personifies this trend: 75% of surveyed CIOs identified themselves as business strategists or transformation agents, and 67% claim revenue generation among their job responsibilities.
However, in the era of digital transformation, CIOs need to work harder (and smarter) to secure or maintain the right to be viewed (and funded) as a differentiator. Enter artificial intelligence. AI is changing the definition of “doing the basic things right,” blurring organizational boundaries, and changing the pace at which CIOs can achieve an enviable position on their leadership teams.
