Next month
Are you moving to an Infrastructure as a Service IT model?
As a CIOs do you need to own the IT estate of your organisation? The current economy and increasing business competition is calling for a new approach to infrastructure decisions, CIOs today find themselves at a junction with regard to how they deploy resources. As organisations change their approach to markets, so CIOs may need to consider re-evaluating their infrastructure directions. Turning towards cloud computing and applications delivered as a service could well be the answer, come and join our CIO debate
Or, if you are involved in the email sector and would like to write an article on the future of email, send your thoughts to Mark Chillingworth, editor of CIO.co.uk at mark_chillingworth@idg.co.uk.
In a recent post, former IT boss-turned-recruiter Alan Mumby listed six key attributes that employers are looking for when they hire a new CIO. Interestingly, he says employers are after IT leads that aren't overly interested in IT. They need to focus on the business need instead.
Some readers have responded, saying that they agreed with Mumby in principle. But, they pretty much all maintain that a good knowledge of IT will help IT bosses from being managed by their team or by vendors.
Director of Centro Denise Plumpton said: "I don't believe it's necessary for IT leaders to have a deep background in IT. It's more important to be able to identify the skills and resources needed to build a team that can deliver the IT that supports and advances their company, and have the ability to lead and motivate that team.
"That said, I do think it is vital to understand what's involved in IT. How else will you be able to ask the right questions of your staff and your suppliers to assure yourself that you're getting the best solution, delivered in the most efficient way and for best value?
"Unscrupulous suppliers, and some staff, alike, have historically been cute in assessing the IT Director's level of technical knowledge and experience and would use any weakness or gaps in understanding for their own benefit.
Brian Murray | Published: 16:10 GMT, 18 July 2011
I think reflects a common mistake we make (and the question itself is a good example). IT is not about technology, it is about information (and using technology in order to manipulate and deliver this information). So fundamentally an IT Director or CIO must have an IT background. They do NOT need ot have a technology background as long as they have one or two critical direct reports who do. The DO need to understand how an organisation is (and should be) utilising IT however.
Michael Tonkiss | Published: 15:00 GMT, 08 July 2011
At the risk of alienating the other contributors to this piece I think an IT background is still essential otherwise you run the risk of being at the mercy of the vendors. Why is it that CIO are always trying to distance ourselves from the area that we are supposed to be in charge of! In contrast most CFO's are by nature accountants and there are more of them on Executive boards than CIO's makes you think perhaps.