As business dynamics continue to change, so does the role of the CIO. To better understand the challenges and goals of today’s CIOs, IBM met with of over 2500 of them, in what is the largest known face-to-face sample survey of these executives. Between January and April 2009, IBM interviewed these CIOs, who represent different sizes of organizations in 78 countries and 19 industries and organisations of every size.  In addition to the detailed personal feedback, IBM also incorporated financial metrics and detailed statistical analysis into the findings. The Global CIO Study 2009---The New Voice of the CIO--is part of the IBM C-Suite Study Series. Published by the IBM Institute for Business Value, the C-Suite Study Series publishes in-depth studies for Chief Executive Officers, Chief Finance Officers, Chief Human Resource Officers and most recently, Chief Supply Chain Officers.

IBM is driving cost-cutting measures among its client organisations, among other key initiatives that involve the global technology company’s smarter solutions for industries including financial services, telecommunications, government and public sectors. Indeed, cost cutting is one of the key messages that came out of the CIO study. The study reveals that leveraging analytics to gain a competitive advantage and improve business decision-making is now the top priority for CIOs.  More than four out of five (83 percent) survey respondents identified business intelligence and analytics – the ability to see patterns in vast amounts of data and extract actionable insights – as the way they will enhance their organisations’ competitiveness.

“CIOs are investing in business analytics capabilities to help them improve decision-making at all levels,” said Tony Mwai, Regional General Manager, IBM East Africa.

 “In addition, in this challenging economy, CIOs understand that analytics can be key to new growth markets, whether it’s new ways to manage a utility grid or smarter healthcare systems.  Managing and leveraging new intelligence through analytics is something that today’s CIO is pursuing to gain competitive advantage in these new markets.”

As the role of the CIO itself transforms so do the types of projects they lead across their enterprises, which will allow CIOs to focus less time and resources on running internal infrastructure, and more time on transformation to help their companies grow revenue. CIOs are transforming their infrastructure to focus more on innovation and business value, rather than simply running IT.

The study reinforces the increasingly strategic role that CIOs are playing as visionary leaders and as drivers of innovation and financial growth. The report also highlights a number of recommendations ranging from strategic business actions and use of key technologies that IBM has identified that CIOs can implement, based on CIO feedback from the study.

With an increased focus on data analytics, the survey also revealed that data reliability and security have emerged as increasingly urgent concerns, with 71 percent of CIOs planning to make additional investments in risk management and compliance.

Other key findings of the study include the fact that  CIOs are also continuing on the path to dramatically lower energy costs, with 76 percent undergoing or planning virtualisation projects. Notably, 76 percent of CIOs anticipate building a strongly centralised infrastructure in the next five years. Furthermore, more than half of CIOs are expecting to implement completely standardised, low-cost business processes. Even as they build these standardised low-cost infrastructures, CIOs are able to focus 55 percent of their time on activities that drive innovation and growth, whereas traditional IT tasks like infrastructure and operations management now consume only 45 percent of their time.

“Clearly the role of the CIO is changing dramatically,” said Mwai.  “On the one hand they are trying to standardise routine processes and simplify their existing IT infrastructure to reduce costs, hence their growing interest in technologies such as cloud computing.  On the other hand, given the central role that today’s CIO performs in driving new business models, whether it’s a Smart Grid system, an Intelligent Transport system, or a transparent food supply chain, it’s not surprising that the amount of time they are now spending on driving new kinds of growth for their companies is growing considerably.”

For a detailed analysis of the report, buy a copy of the February issue of the CIO East Africa (print edition).