CIO Job Description
posted by Anna Mar, June 12, 2011Chief Information Officer is arguably the most challenging executive position. IT is increasingly important to modern organizations — driving revenue, automating operations and supporting decision making.
IT organizations are often a mess — a big ball of legacy systems that support business processes only with the help of end user tools such as Microsoft Excel. IT projects are fraught with risk and often fail. New information security laws and corporate governance initiatives are driving tougher internal and external audits for IT.
CIO's are expected to deliver:
Strategy and Architecture
IT PlanImplement a plan (usually 5 years) for IT.
Revenue Opportunities
Develop IT driven revenue opportunities.
Research and Development (R&D)
Oversight of IT R&D initiatives.
Business - IT Alignment
Business alignment is a key concern for CIOs (IT is often perceived as unresponsive to business change).
Enterprise Architecture
The Chief Enterprise Architect often reports to the CIO. EA provides views of IT for executive decision makers and supports business - IT alignment.
IT Health Check
Ensure the health of IT infrastructure and applications.
Standards
Manage technology standards and ensure compliance.
Corporate Strategy
CIOs often play a key role in defining corporate goals and strategy.
Service Management
Service Level ManagementIT organizations offer service level agreements (SLA) for services and applications. The CIO is ultimately responsible for violations of IT SLAs.
Capacity Management
Ensuring that current and future IT capacity meets business needs.
Change Management
Efficient and prompt handling of change requests.
Help Desk
Single point of contact for IT service support.
Release Management
A controlled process for roll-out of IT services.
Configuration Management
A controlled process for changes to infrastructure and software.
Continual Service Improvement
Continual service improvement and realignment with ever changing business needs.
Service Metrics
IT service metrics often gain the attention of the executive team. In many cases, ITSM metric improvements are a component of a CIO's performance targets.
Governance
Corporate GovernanceCorporate governance committees and initiatives.
IT Governance
IT Governance is an important component of corporate governance . Governance is visible to customers, shareholders, the board of directors and regulators — it is an important consideration for CIO compensation.
IT Standards Compliance
Customers, partners and corporate governance bodies are increasingly interested in IT standards compliance. Standards controls and audits are key CIO responsibilities.
Risk Management
Identify and monitor risks. Balance risk mitigation activities with productivity and cost concerns.
Projects and Delivery
Project ManagementIt is not unusual for the Project Management Office to report to the CIO.
Strategic Projects
CIOs sponsor critical IT projects such as ERP implementations.
Consultancy
IT organizations often have centers of excellence that offer consulting services to the organization.
Project Development
IT organizations often have development teams.
Sourcing
IT StaffingRecruiting IT talent.
IT Outsourcing
Outsourcing in order to lower costs and increase focus on core competencies.
IT Vendor Management
Manage vendor relationships, contracts, service levels, costs and risks.
IT Procurement
The CIO must ensure that IT has a highly competitive and fair procurement process.
Security
Information SecurityIn many organizations the CIO has primary responsibility for information security.
Audit and Compliance
Internal security audits, certifications and legal compliance.
Security Governance
Security is a key part of corporate, IT and enterprise architecture governance.
Security Incident Management
When a information security incident occurs the CIO is called to account. The CIO is usually directly involved in managing significant security incidents.
General
People LeadershipCIOs have many reports including IT directors, line managers and the chief architect.
IT Evangelist
CIOs are responsible for selling IT strategy and securing funding for important initiatives.
Relationships
CIOs must build relationships with business, customers, partners and regulators.
Reputation and Trust
CIOs are responsible for building trust between IT and business and enhancing IT's reputation for delivery excellence.
Legal
Intellectual Property (IP)Developing and protecting IP assets.
Regulatory Compliance
Information Technology is often used to monitor business and operations for compliance to the law. There are also increasingly rigorous regulations governing IT itself. CIOs must work closely with Chief Compliance Officers (CCOs) to ensure regulatory compliance and provide reports for regulators.
IT Financial Management
Budget PlanningPlan IT expenditure and secure funding for projects and baseline support.
Managing Budgets
Manage IT maintenance, operations and project spending.
Metrics
Regular reporting of IT financial metrics and KPIs.
Portfolio Management
Manage the IT application portfolio.
IT Investment Scorecard
Implement a standard process to evaluate the performance of IT investments.
ROI for IT
Maximize return on investment for IT.
Survey
|
A back-to-basics reality check: should you hire this project manager? |
|
The day you decide it is time to go — 12 important steps. |
|
Humans aren't logic processing robots. That's a good thing. Employers are starting to wake up to the importance of Emotional Intelligence |
|
How do you feel about the universe? |
Recently on Simplicable
| 3 Questions Interviewers Want You To Askposted by Anna MarThe simplest (and often most effective) interview strategy of all is to ask the interviewer exactly what she's hoping you'll ask. |
| 106 Marketing Interview Questionsposted by Anna MarEmployers look for marketing professionals who have proven they can connect with customers, sell products and build brand value. |
| Resume Objectives in 5 Easy Stepsposted by Anna MarObjectives are both the easiest and most important part of your resume. They are your short pitch to your perspective employer. |
| 1000 Skills for Your Resume (List)posted by Anna MarIf you're looking for a big list of skills broken down by profession and skill for your resume, you've come to the right place. |
