CIO Lessons From The Year That Was

The year 2011 was a year of uncertainty, erratic economic conditions, and highs and lows. It taught us many things. We learned to be always prepared, to deal with unexpected challenges and to do more with less.

So what is the learning from 2011 that technology stalwarts are taking with them as they enter the New Year? CIOs share their key take-away from last year that will help them sail smoothly in 2012.

CIO’s Multi-Faceted Role: Get Used To It

“The most important learning was the importance of having a business perspective as an IT decision-maker. When faced with a challenge, it’s the leadership quality of the CIO that needs to emerge to turn things around,” says Sanjeev Kumar, Group CIO and Group President - Business Excellence, Adhunik Group of Industries.

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He further says that he has learned that no system or change that one tries to bring in is complete without buy-in from all stakeholders. It’s the responsibility of the CIO to convince, influence decision, handle uncertainties and take the best decision in the interest of the company.

Anoop Handa, EVP and CIO, Fullerton India has a similar opinion. He says that the role of the CIO is fast changing. The top management now expects the CIO to lead from the front. It has become imperative to innovate but at the same time be extremely cost effective. It will be a tough job but CIOs will have to manage both in 2012.

Lessons From Economic Uncertainty

The last year demonstrated that tumultuous economic conditions can create havoc for companies. The CIO is at the right position to help his/her company beat the downturn, and can be instrumental in help cutting costs and optimising investments. It is imperative for IT leaders to be always on top of things to respond to market changes.

“Uncertainty is certain. The last year showed that CIOs can’t sit and say I have done enough. The strategic and tactical role has to be balanced. If you loose focus of the strategy then you are lost. At the same time you have to ensure that tactically you are able to survive,” said Arun Gupta, Group CTO, Shoppers Stop.

The need of doing more with less has never been more critical. Though this theme is not a new learning, it has been even more pronounced in the recent years, especially 2011.

“Increasingly customers are demanding more and better services, year-on-year, at same or lesser prices. This means the need for continuous process improvement, waste elimination and cost reduction, especially if the margins are to include salary increments and inflation related adjustments,” explains Ashish Mathur, CIO, WNS Global Services.

Commoditisation: The Game Changer

Another aspect, a game-changer in the field of business technology, was the trend of commoditisation of IT. With IT fast becoming a commodity it will be available ready-made and in a much flexible as well as affordable manner. And, this has a big lesson in store for the CIOs. The days of taking months and years for IT project are getting over, and one will be expected to deliver faster – a lesson that CIOs need to gear up to apply with greater effort in 2012.

“CIOs will be expected to use ready-made components wherever possible but make the IT solution available within no time. It will have significant impact on the career of IT professional going forward,” says Satish Pendse, CEO, Highbar Technologies.

“The skill-sets required for in-house IT guys are undergoing a transformation. The differentiators will now be changing. The winning abilities may be 40 percent technical but 60 percent non-technical, with relationship management being key,” he adds.

Keep It Simple

And lastly, the IT community shares that it learnt the importance of going back to the basics and keeping things simple.

“One big lesson was that simplicity is king. The days of complex architecture and layers are over. It is time to design lean and simple IT environments with the help of virtualisation,” concludes Handa.

With inputs from Abhishek Raval.