The role of the CIO continues to be debated – operational? strategic? digital? data? innovative? keeping the lights on?  It is a mish-mash of expectations, skill sets, and desired outcomes.  These days it seems like CIOs are expected to do everything from keeping the lights on for the operations of the business to creating the next new innovation to be competitive and differentiated in the market.  This comes in part from the fact that it wasn’t very long ago that having what we now consider to be operational was actually innovative and differentiated.  The ERP systems of the 90s that companies actually told their customers about because it was SO COOL are now expected to be a part of how you run your business – they are table stakes. So CIOs who made their mark implementing those systems are now saddled with keeping them running in the face of rapid changes in technology, business expectations, customer expectations, and product support.

But one thing remains true – a C-suite level role is generally about a component of the business that is a strategic asset or a strategic differentiator. CIOs became popular in the 1980s and 1990s – prior to that, few companies had a C-level role focused on technology. Did you know that prior to 1990, the majority of companies did not have a CIO role defined?  So it is a young role, just hitting adolescence as a fixture in an organization. And we all know that’s an awkward time of life – full of strange things happening, changes, and growth.  What’s your thought on the role of the CIO in your organization? It is conflicted today?

The WSJ recently had an interesting article on the topic of the CIO, check it out for some good perspective.

Who do you think was the first CIO of a major US corporation, and when was the role assigned?  An interesting little research project.