C-CHANGE 2017: Rethinking technology from organizational perspective

Prabhu Ram

Technology is evolving by the day. The continuous cycle of innovation is leading to multiple changes, where costs of 3D printing, drones, and other technologies have come down drastically over the past decade. It is in these transitional times that we need to rethink how we use technology. We are going to witness tremendous changes in our organisations and how do we do business due to these technological disruptions.

CIO- Driving technology in the right direction

The CIO plays a key role in facing up to these challenges and changes facing an enterprise. The external changes include changes in value creation models and how business and the ecosystem is changing. The CIO has to step-up and support the CEO in these changing times. New equations, new customer experiences, and partnerships are in the offing. Look at Netflix partnering with BBC. Or, GE looking at software services, working with partners. The question is whether to innovate alone or work in partnership with others. In such an evolving world, the CIO has to play a much bigger role.

The internal changes include CIOs going beyond responding to technologies and rather facing up to integrating customer experiences. To make digital happen, the CIO also has to go beyond evangelising digital and addressing talent pool. The CIO has to build capacities within the organisation, using technology to train people online, offline, internally and externally.

Digital haves and have nots within the enterprise also have to be bridged. The CIO has to ensure the talent pool within the enterprise is in sync when it comes to technology. As Peter Drucker said, Culture will eat strategy for lunch. When we say Technology Culture, we mean the culture of being agile, innovative, fast.

In a nutshell, the CIO will have to go beyond just being a technology champion, but rather facing up to all enterprise challenges. And that will decide the difference between winner and loser in the Digital Age.