State of the CIO

Today we have Kim Weins joining us. Kim is the Vice President of Cloud Strategy at Flexera. She has spent her career focusing on cloud computing and spend optimization in IT and knows how this evolving software will impact businesses as it advances.

Today we have Sammy Basu joining us. Sammy is the founder of Careful Security, which is one of the top cybersecurity companies in Los Angeles. Sammy is passionate about cybersecurity.

Today we have Scott Howitt joining us. Scott is the SVP and CIO at McAfee Organization. He has an impressive background and brings a lot of expertise and experience to our conversation. He also works for an organization that is at the front and center of the current needs of the environment of having everyone work from home and the overwhelming demand for cybersecurity in the workplace right now.

Today we have Patrick McClory joining us. Patrick is the founder and CEO of IntrospectData. He brings a great deal of experience and expertise across multiple industries. He has focused a lot on artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Today we have Tom Hasker joining us. Tom Hasker is the CEO of Keross. He has over 24 years of management and development experience in industries ranging from architecture to engineering to construction across all Asia Pacific and the Middle East. He is currently based in Australia.

On our kick-off episode for season two we have a wonderful guest with us today, Ralph Loura. Ralph is the SVP and CIO at Lumentum.  He has over 25 years of experience as an IT leader.

An IT strategy is crucial for businesses to provide an overall direction and plan for the business. In this episode, Jim Maholic talks about how to create an IT strategy and the importance of evaluating your current state and planning for a high-performing future state. Jim is a really insightful and fascinating guy. We had a great conversation. He shares practical strategies a company or enterprise can take to get started with IT strategy.

Using big data effectively can be game-changing for a business. In this episode, Bill Schmarzo talks about how to leverage big data to add value to your business. Data is an asset to be exploited and help drive organization and business initiatives.

State of the CIO, hosted by Dan Kelly of The Negotiator Guru, was created as a philanthropic exercise that shares knowledge from high-level CIOs. Intentionally informal and unscripted, Kelly and guests discuss key topics that are most pressing in their minds. Topics can range from the more operational side of the business, what projects guests are working on and the importance of soft skills. Kelly is a fan of mentorships, advisors, continuously learning and challenging himself. The majority of the leaders he speaks to share that same vision.

Key Takeaways:

- The State of the CIO is a philanthropic, knowledge-sharing platform for high-level CIOs to speak informally and on key topics that are most pressing in their minds

- The podcast allows knowledge sharing horizontally and vertically across different organizations globally

- Listeners can request speaking topics and specific guests by sending an email to [email protected]

It’s no secret that the role of the CIO has changed over the past few years, but understanding leadership transitions is what separates average CIOs from the greats. Tony Gerth, author, clinical professor and principal of ABG Executive Advisors, conducted a study on how CIOs transition into new appointments and how long it takes for them to gain mastery of the job. Gerth learned that regardless of the transition style, CIOs will experience taking charge of a new role over the course of three distinct, overlapping phases: the entry, stabilization and renewal phase.

It’s important to manage the transition period of a CIO properly in order to be a great leader. Gerth shares what CIOs should accomplish during each phase of transition, how to be a great CIO instead of just average and the top three reasons why CIOs are unsuccessful in this week’s episode.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

- Gerth constructed research on how CIOs transition into a new appointment and how long it takes them to gain mastery of the job in that organization

- Regardless of the transition context or whether the person is an insider or outsider, they experience taking charge of new appointments over the course of three distinct, but overlapping phases

- The CIO role is very ambiguous; even after 40 years of evolution, the role is still evolving

- Tony Gerth’s book, Taking the Reins as CIO: A Blueprint for Leadership Transitions, can be found on Amazon in hardcover and Kindle versions.