CIO - Chief Information Officer

What is a CIO?

The Information Systems Director or IT Manager, Chief Information Officer (CIO), Information Technology Director (ITD), defines and implements IT policy in line with the company's overall strategy. He or she is responsible for the design, execution, evolution, reliability and security of information systems within the organization, in line with strategic objectives.

What are the missions of a CIO?

At the head of the Information Systems Department, the Information Systems Director (ISD) is responsible for managing a team of IT technicians. His role is to study needs and implement an information system in line with the strategy defined in collaboration with General Management, with the aim of making it accessible to all employees. He is also responsible for organizing the maintenance of existing programs.

In this context, the Information Systems Manager has a variety of missions:

Develop the company's IS strategy and policy

IT strategy and policy development involves working with senior management and the Executive Committee to define strategic orientations for IT and telecommunications.

It also involves defining the IT security policy, working with senior management to identify sensitive information and risks, and proposing the measures to be taken.

The CIO gathers and studies the needs expressed by the company's various business departments, and evaluates and recommends the corresponding IT investments, taking into account their effectiveness and risk control.

He/she also keeps a technological and legal watch on developments in the company's information systems sector, anticipating changes and guiding general management's choices in terms of information technologies, notably by designing an optimal organization of the company's information flows and ensuring the match between customer needs, company strategy and IT tools.

Implement IT policy and IS governance

The CIO is responsible for guaranteeing the continuity of the IT and telecoms service provided to users.

lead the company's information systems development plan, in line with budgets and technological changes decided by general management.

He/she ensures consistency between information systems, liaises with other company departments, supervises the design and implementation of the information system, and oversees its maintenance in operational conditions.

The CIO is also responsible for supervising the drafting of specifications in line with the company's needs and choices, and for coordinating IT projects in collaboration with project managers and the company's business departments.

Steering the organization of the Information Systems Department

The CIO plays a key role in proposing new uses that can give the company's businesses a competitive edge, whether in customer relations or supply chain management. He or she communicates with senior management and users to keep them informed of technological changes to business information systems.

The CIO also integrates legal and environmental standards into the management of IT projects, ensuring compliance. He assesses the return on investment of projects undertaken and reports to senior management, to demonstrate the effectiveness and added value of the technological initiatives implemented.

Organizing and managing the Information Systems Department

The CIO's role is to supervise and coordinate the work of all IT departments.

He coordinates internal and external teams to ensure effective collaboration.

The CIO organizes the IT department optimally, establishing different levels of management and coordinating the design and support/operations functions.

He ensures that IT teams are appropriately sized, by carrying out appropriate training and recruitment operations for employees and contractors.

The CIO also assesses the individual and collective performance of IT teams, to ensure that they are effective and achieve their objectives.

Manage Information Systems Department budgets

The IT Director is responsible for defining the IT Department's budget, monitoring it and adjusting it according to desired technologies and possible solutions.

Drawing up an IT outsourcing policy

The CIO is also involved in drawing up the company's IT outsourcing policy, analyzing subcontracting offers, monitoring relations with service providers and checking the effectiveness of their work and services.

The responsibilities of a CIO naturally vary according to the size of the company.

What skills does a CIO need?

A CIO needs a wide range of skills and qualities, both technical and professional.

Technical skills :

• Extensive knowledge of information systems and their evolution.
• Mastery of applications, technologies used in the company, main computer languages and operating systems.
• Expertise in safety standards and a good understanding of global safety risks.
• Solid knowledge of the subcontracting market, software publishers, IT services companies and consulting firms, as well as the ability to manage relationships with subcontractors.
• An excellent understanding of the company's businesses and organization, as well as the needs of all other departments.
• A good business culture, particularly in the company's sector of activity.
• A grounding in finance and management control, enabling you to manage your IT budget and facilitate dialogue with the finance department.
• Solid command of multiple project management methodologies.
• Fluency in technical English.

Professional skills :

• A sense of anticipation to implement innovative solutions in line with the company's strategy.
• Organization, rigor and autonomy, because being a manager can sometimes be a lonely job, and it's essential for the CIO to be able to move forward with confidence.
• Adaptability, because the IT sector is constantly evolving, and technology watch is crucial to keeping the information system in good working order and optimizing it.
• Excellent interpersonal and listening skills for functional and hierarchical relations.
• A flair for negotiating with internal staff to define objectives and participate in the recruitment process, as well as with service providers to obtain products or services offering the best value for money for the company.
• Good drafting skills for formalizing contractual clauses and presenting necessary changes to senior management.
• Pedagogy, because the CIO has to explain some of his decisions and demonstrate their validity to non-experts such as the CEO or CFO. Before doing so, he or she must explain the changes and progress expected.
• The position of CIO requires a high level of commitment to the job, as managing activities is time-consuming, and the incumbent needs to set aside time for reflection to adapt IT policy to user needs.

If you're interested in training to become a CIO, discover France's first CIO training course. This CIO training course was created by the Communauté des DSI de Transition Infortive with CentraleSupélec Exed. It is aimed at young or future CIOs.

The evolution of the CIO profession

The position of Chief Information Officer (CIO) has grown considerably in recent years. He or she is now a fully-fledged member of the management team, and plays a key role in driving change. His role is evolving from the simple technological and IT dimension to a strategic one, including strategy development and business transformation.

The IT Department is no longer perceived as a mere technical department at the service of other departments, but as a business player in its own right. Its initiatives make an effective and visible contribution to the company's value creation. In this way, the CIO's role is not limited to managing information systems, but also encompasses the governance of the company's business processes and customer relations.

The CIO's job is influenced by recent technological developments, which tend to make information systems and their management more complex. Mobile technologies, cloud computing, etc., introduce new issues to be taken into account in IT policy, such as information security, web security, national and international legal standards, as well as ecological standards.

The CIO needs to be responsive and able to respond to ever-increasing and constantly evolving demand, with an increasing number of short projects requiring faster returns on investment.

Faced with these heightened expectations on the part of both management and users, the CIO occupies a critical position. It's not uncommon for changes to take place within the company when large-scale projects are implemented.

Why call on a CIO for interim management?

Unlike the consultant, the interim manager is an expert and leader who is immediately operational.

The experience of an IT Transition Manager is a fast and effective response to your IT needs. His knowledge and experience are indisputable assets when it comes to meeting a one-off need, as he is quickly up and running.

Thanks to his IT expertise and management experience, an interim CIO can quickly understand the challenges facing an information systems department and help it achieve its objectives.

Infortive Transition, a specialist in IT interim management, has the experience and network of interim managers to meet your CIO needs.