McKinsey Report Highlights 5 Things CIOs Want From Their CEOs

While most CEOs recognise the value of having a tech-savvy and digitally oriented company, a McKinsey survey reveals that CIOs sometimes become frustrated with the knowledge gap between the board and their departments.

Over the past 18 months, McKinsey interviewed 120 senior IT professionals and 30 senior business leaders to learn how CEOs and senior executives can better support CIOs. Here are the five major takeaways from the discussions:

1. CIOs want CEOs to understand the true value of technology

CIOs should explain the value that technology has to offer and provide a concrete plan for how projects can produce that value. CIOs should be able to demonstrate consistent success in specific tech projects against meaningful performance indicators in order to win the board’s support.

2. CIOs want their CEOs to establish tech priorities

It can be challenging for CIOs to develop integrated solutions because IT departments often serve several managers and receive support requests from other departments. For the CIO to prioritise, boards and CEOs should develop specific strategies and timeframes for deliverables.

3. CIOs want their CEOs to make the company attractive to top tech talent

The CIO’s inclusion on the executive board emphasises the department’s significance in the business. The CIO can leverage this to help with hiring and recruiting decisions from the top down.

4. CIOs want their CEOs to understand technology limitations

The board and IT department can have different perspectives and opinions on the effectiveness of systems and whether tactics or improvements are both workable and deserving of the investment. So that the board can make informed decisions, CIOs should be transparent about the overall benefit and impact of technology systems and their operations.

5. CIOs want their CEOs to increase technical literacy

Executives who possess a decent level of technological literacy can work more effectively with CIOs and IT teams. This will result in more frequent and productive board discussions.

The Full Report

For more information and to read the full McKinsey report in detail, please follow this link here.