Role of the Chief information officer (CIO) in Indian context

Abstract

This project aims to identify an appropriate CIO classification and evolution model and apply the same to the Indian context. The overarching goal of this project is to find out how the business needs/requirements, organizational mindset / environment as well as individual leadership characteristics of CIOs themselves impact and typify their role in various organizations in India. Based on an elaborate secondary research, the CIO classification and evolution framework of Edwards, Lambert, Peppard [Cranfield School of Management, 2009] was chosen. This framework classified CIOs at five levels IT Head (Mark 1), Evangelist CIO, Innovator CIO, Facilitator CIO and IT Head (Mark 2). More than 150 responses to an online survey questionnaire and interviews with India s 11 CIOs (Auto and Banking, Financial Services, Insurance (BFSI) sectors) helped in collating both quantitative and qualitative data points. While the overall analysis is done across multiple sectors, in-depth analysis is restricted to Automotive and BFSI sectors. Scores, calculated using a simple weighted technique, across four dimensions Leadership, Business Alignment, Collaborative Environment and Performance Metrics were used to classify the CIOs in one of the five levels. Both the Automotive and BFSI sector CIOs are clustered close to Innovator level. The Auto CIOs have graduated from IT Head (Mark 1) in the early stages of their career as far back as two decades to an Evangelist CIO where they strived hard to impress upon their business peers on how technology can help differentiate their business to an Innovator CIO position they are at now. In the case of BFSI CIOs, since the business perceived the criticality of IT to be fairly high, there were no instances where any of the CIOs started as IT Head (Mark 1). However, a few of them did play the role of an Evangelist CIO to help progress their function from a support organization to being accepted as a business partner. Today, a few of them are making tremendous strides towards being a Facilitator CIO in the future, while at the same time taking up more functional responsibilities. This seems to be the most logical and appropriate evolution for the BFSI CIOs. One important trait in the future CIOs that would separate the great one from the ordinary was unanimously agreed upon by various CIOs to be ?collaborative leadership?. The CIOs exhibiting collaborative leadership would be able to make a difference to the way the business is run through not just IT intervention, but also appropriate process changes and broader influencing of people to orient them towards organization s vision. Every research / study has its limitations, and this one is no exception. In the hindsight, it would have been prudent if we had got responses from the business peers of CIOs (function heads / Line of Business (LoB) heads) as well so as to have a 360 degree view of the topic. It probably would have presented some contrarian views which would have helped in a more in-depth study.