CASE STUDY
However , there are challenges and not every CIO is ready to make that jump to be in the visionary leadership role . Forrester research from 2023 found that the majority ( 58 %) of CIOs it polled were still in a traditional mode of leading IT .
CIO challenges
Budget is still a challenge for many CIOs ’ transformation efforts . According to IDG ’ s Foundry , 43 % of CIOs reported a lack of budget was their main obstacle to new tech adoption over the past 12 months . The CIO still needs to make a strong case for transformation efforts – and particularly in the data centre .
Beijing , Bangalore , Tokyo and Singapore – that have developed around high-quality universities that heavily invest in technology innovation programmes . This provides a continuous pipeline of new talent , where formal connections between academic research and commercial product development accelerates innovation within the tech industry .
Goal alignment
The State of the CIO Survey found that 85 % of CIOs perceive their position as evolving into that of a changemaker within the organisation , increasingly leading business and technology initiatives .
This highlights another key issue for the CIO , that of C-suite support . As the CIO becomes a strategic partner to the business , they must create strong partnerships with the other C-suite officers to ensure broad support for transformation . The 2024 Foundry ‘ State of the CIO ’ report found that two-thirds of lineof-business representatives characterised their CIO as either a strategic advisor ( 41 %) or consultant ( 25 %).
There are also risks inherent in implementing any new architectures or platform . EY maintains that successful adoption of disruptive technologies requires a balance between the pursuit of opportunities and the management of risks .
Skill shortages , or lack of availability , can hamper transformation ambitions , especially in developing economies where competition may be fierce , and supply constrained . Deloitte argues that businesses need to plan continuously to meet tech talent needs across the organisation . Lessons can be learned from so-called ‘ powerhouse ’ markets – Shanghai ,
However , that changemaking function is directed by the vision of CEOs and the C-suite leaders . CEOs , with supportive CIOs , should have sufficient levels of knowledge to communicate their visions to the people who can make it happen . It is no longer acceptable for a CEO to say ‘ I ’ m not a techie ’, they need sufficient knowledge of what is needed in a transformation initiative to communicate the value , and to foster acceptance and understanding .
That translates to all the other C-Suite officers too , ensuring that this culture of enablement carries down to every level , through each part of the business , creating understanding and support for transformation and change .
Effective collaborative effort across the C-Suite will facilitate business strategy alignment with Digital Transformation initiatives .
Total Cost of Sustainability
All of this must be done sustainably as a high-level goal across the broader organisation . I recently wrote about the concept of Total Cost of Sustainability ( full article to be published soon ), which is about taking a holistic approach to sustainability , looking at it from a complete picture of business operations , environment impact and contributing societally to the development of our teams , and local / regional communities . As data centres get bigger in centralised instances , but also more dispersed in terms of edge computing , a holistic approach is increasingly important to understand the full impact , positive and negative .
AI impact and emerging technologies
AI and machine learning ( ML ) already play a key role in areas such as power management , cooling control , and network optimisation . This allows operators to utilise data that is gathered to refine , optimise and implement measures such as preventative and
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