Steps to setting up a digital enterprise 1 Set up the right architectures for growth 4 Understand strategic alignment with the rest of the business CIOs taking the lead on digital need to enable the rapid assembly Digital technologies have a huge potential to change the underlying of new ideas and business initiatives. “You can’t put up the operating model and business processes of the company. Therefore, CIOs regular hurdles you normally do for any sort of new functionality, must have a close understanding of these aspects. so you need a foundational architecture — for mobile, cloud, data, applications, and so on. If you don’t, you wind up connecting one dot to the next, and you get a spaghetti mess,” argues David al agendaNichols, Americas IT Transformation Leader at EY. 2 Get control of your data 5 Take a fast, multidisciplinary approach to managing new projects For the past two decades, CIOs have been largely focused on As a wave of new digital ideas emerges, CIOs will have to ensure that a application and infrastructure delivery, ahead of data. But a shift lot of different internal functions and third parties can interconnect. “This echnicinto the cloud reduces the emphasis on the application front, and demands rapid-assembly teams that represent views from across the makes data far more important again. business, including marketing, finance and IT,” says Dave Ryerkerk, Global IT Advisory Leader at EY. our t3 Set out the relevant standards 6 Plan the sequencing and pace of change Y Digital transformation requires to radically simplify the business CIOs need to balance any new digital opportunities against their associated and to change the mindset around product development. New risks. While it may make a lot of sense to move email and CRM systems products and services should not be introduced unless the quickly to the cloud, it’s a much more involved decision to know when to underlying technology is available to efficiently support these. do the same for a company’s core financial systems, such as their general CIOs will have to provide some foundational standards to guide ledgers. Getting the timing right will be vital. technology selection. These will need to cover performance requirements, along with legal, security and other aspects. Tasks at a personal level Digital technologies hold It is human nature to be Embracing new technology Many leading CIOs rarely Consider other ways to the promise to make IT a swept up by a compelling involves a leap of faith. But, spend their entire careers develop a more wide- genuine source of growth. storyline and the too often, CIOs get caught in one place, but hop ranging background to Getting this right, however, possibilities it contains. up in the downside to new around to gain exposure to showcase your skills in will require you to build The best CIOs are able to developments, worrying different experiences and another light. Many leading tight relationships across provide a narrative about IT about the small chance approaches, developing CIOs take non-executive the front office — starting that the rest of the business of failure, rather than the expertise along the way. Be directorships at other firms, with the CMO and extending can buy into — and then use potential to transform the open to these possibilities, or have joined external to the end customers. it to extend their influence business. Have courage. including ones that take you committees or think across the organization. into wholly new sectors. tanks. Others do MBAs to widen their educational backgrounds. All these help to develop a more powerful contact book. Build close Be a compelling Be willing to take Be willing to move Widen your resume relationships with storyteller risks around, across the front of the both functions and business companies Born to be digital | 37