Widescreen 16:9 Ratio Slide · Online sales, personal banking, CRM… CFO The CFO’s Focus. The CIO and the CFO • Golden rule – keep the CFO on side! What the CFO wants from

www.nevinconsulting.com

Peter Nevin Principal

Building executive level relationships

for the CIO


About Me

Senior

Consultant National Rail

CIO

Global CIO

Senior Partner

EGM Business

Processes

Director

Technology

and Systems

FSH Project Chairman,

Board of Advisors

Strategic

Advisor

Principal


Session Content

• Why successful CIOs value executive relationships

• The nature of business relationships

• How to engage executive stakeholders that matter

• Seven best practice techniques to engage executives

• Remedial techniques to correct relationship problems


The Future State CIO


Transformational CIO Business Strategist CIO Functional Head CIO

CIO Focus



Basic hygiene

PCs, printers, phones, access…

Desk top systems

Email, office, Skype, calendars …

Back Office systems

Payroll, HR, Accounts, Content mgnt…

Production systems

Manufacturing, Banking, Inventory, Sales…

Customer facing systems

Online sales, personal banking, CRM…

Busin

ess v

alu

e

Good operations and

Technical change projects

Reduced IT Costs

Improved Reliability

Good operations and

Transformational change projects

Reduced Business Costs

Improved Reliability

Good operations and

Business Strategic change

projects

Increased profit

Business transformation

What is IT’s Role?


Session Content







Business Relationships

• Trust, integrity and communication

• Authenticity

• Understanding goals and needs

• Providing positive solutions/responses.

stop


Session Content







CIO

CEO CFO

Board

COO

Product Executives

Customer Executive

Marketing/Sales Executive

Functional Executives

CTO / Technical Executive

Who are the most important executives for the CIO?


CIO

CEO CFO

Board

COO

Product Executives

Customer Executive




The CIO and the CEO


The CIO and the CEO • Know what is important to a CEO

How to improve the CEO-CIO relationship:

• Confirming objectives, and updates on progress

• CEO information needs

• Organisational barriers or cultural challenges

• CEO feedback on IT

stop Share achievements Use Executive Dashboard


Basic hygiene


Desk top systems


Back Office systems


Production systems




Busin

ess v

alu

e

CEO

The CEO’s Focus


CIO

CEO CFO

Board

COO

Product Executives

Customer Executive




The CIO and the CFO


Basic hygiene


Desk top systems


Back Office systems


Production systems




Busin

ess v

alu

e

CFO

The CFO’s Focus


The CIO and the CFO

• Golden rule – keep the CFO on side!

What the CFO wants from the CIO:

• Stay within budget

• No surprises

• Confidence in KPIs and financial numbers

• Good IT controls and audit follow up

• External Benchmarks

Cost model aligned to

service catalogue


CIO

CEO CFO

Board

COO

Product Executives

Customer Executive




The CIO and other Executives


Basic hygiene


Desk top systems


Back Office systems


Production systems




Busin

ess v

alu

e

Other Executive's Focus

?


The CIO and the other executives Chief Operations Officers / Shared Business executives

• Shared view of end to end business processes

• Partner to increase cross department effectiveness

• Company wide KPIs and metrics.

Sales and Marketing executives

• Understand business cycles and behavioural impacts

• Be a customer

• Understand how IT contributes to the experience.

stop


The CIO and the other executives

Products and Lines of Business executives

• Keep in the loop for shaping of ideas

• Monitor how IT effects production/delivery.

Functional executives

• Understand behavioural differences

• Share war stories

• Listen carefully to system performance feedback.

stop



CTO / Technical executive

• Build an understanding of each others roles

• Work out when to partner and when to lead

• Establish a method for conflict resolution (in-house)

• Beware that CEO may seek technical advice from the CTO.

stop



Generally

• Aim for transparency in costing, prioritisation and trade offs

• Implement business driven mechanism for prioritisation

• Ensure that project valuation methodology is understood

by all.

stop


CIO

CEO CFO

Board

COO

Product Executives

Customer Executive




The CIO and the Board


The CIO and the Board • Varies between companies and over time

• Take guidance from the CEO

• Expect contact to increase with IT projects or strategy

• IT issues at Board level are bad news

• Typical discussion include -

• IT strategy – where are you leading IT

• Status of IT projects

• Justification of high cost initiatives

• Risk exposure – compliance, operations and publicity.

stop


Techniques for dealing with the Board

A CIO must be confident and capable of interacting with a Board

• Look the part

• Prepare a message and stick to it

• Be brief, be accurate, and don’t assume any technical literacy

• Be ready to discuss external advice

• Do not surprise your CEO in front of the Board!

stop


Session Content







If you think you're too small to have an impact, try going to bed with a mosquito in the room.

Dame Anita Roddick, 1942-2007,

Founder of The Body Shop


Steps to

improve

stakeholder

relationships


1. Executive level

relationship map

Maintain a Relationship Tracker covering each executive

CEO

CFO

Key Influencer

CMO Director Sales Head of

Customer

Key Influencer

Key Influencer

Heads of Product

etc

CEO PA

Agreed meeting frequency

Date of last meeting

Top 3 priorities

Current status of IT value delivery and corrective actions if relevant


Organisation Goals and KPIs

• Grow revenue by xxxxx • Reduce cost s by xxxx • Launch product xyz

Executive Goals and KPIs s

• Complete Project xxx

• Retain customers • Achieve savings of $ • xxxxxxx • xxxxxxxx

CIO Goals and KPIs

• Complete Project yyy • Reduce IT operations costs for department Z • xxxxxxxxxx • xxxxxxxxxx

2. Aligning KPIs

Align your goals and KPI’s with the organisation

Identify match with other executive’s KPIs

= foundation for partnership

Make sure the executive knows

you have shared goal(s)

Be known as “can do” for

shared goals

DON’T SAY NO!


3. Prepare for Meetings

• Often neglected

• Demonstrates respect of their time

• Helps clarify key outcomes

• Check with your team before

• Review background of executive

• KPIs and goals

• Notes / actions from last meeting


What to talk about

1. Long-term strategic thinking

2. Change leadership

3. Expertise in running IT

4. Collaboration and influence

5. Team leadership.

stop


Basic hygiene


Desk top systems


Back Office systems


Production systems




Busin

ess v

alu

e

Executive conversations can be derailed

CIO wants to be talking up

here…..

But this has to be right to get

to the higher level

conversation


4. Maintaining executive relationships

• Deliver what you promise

• Informal interactions help develop the relationship

• Join executives in other executive conversations

• Leverage your relationships

• Review your calendar

• PAs = VIPs


5. Don’t be boring!

• It is about Business not IT

(them not you)

• Business Language is critical

• Have something interesting to

say


No IT jargon


6. Be positive

• Your attitude will affect everyone around you

• Be positive about the organisation and its objectives

• Share credit for joint successes.


7. Your Behaviours

• Initiate conversations by asking questions

• Ask others to become involved in your projects or

activities

• Share

• yourself

• information

• Everyone is different. stop


Session Content







Indicators you

have a problem

• Shadow IT groups

• Problems with funding

• Can’t get to executives

• Not included in big

decisions

• External consultants

• Benchmarks

• Negative conversations

about IT

• Focus on reducing IT

costs.


How to fix problems

With an individual

• Fix their IT issue(s)

• Advice from “third” party

• Informal power holders

• Leverage IT team

relationships

• External assistance

• Customer surveys.

With IT

• Communicate

• Early

• Often

• Lead the solution

• External assistance.

stop


In summary

• Understand your business and its objectives

• Put yourself in their shoes

• Understand how IT objectives align with each executive

• Review the health of all your executive relationships regularly

• Prepare for your executive meetings

• Be transparent on funding, prioritisation, costs, etc

• No CIO has perfect relationships with every colleague all the time

• Relationships are continuous…not something you ‘fix’ and forget.


Be so good they can’t ignore you.

Steve Martin


Questions

+61 2 9326 5547

+61 411 024 189

[email protected]


peternev10

Building executive level

relationships for the CIO

Peter Nevin

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.nevinconsulting.com/

Documents

Widescreen 16:9 Ratio Slide · Online sales, personal banking, CRM… CFO The CFO’s Focus. The CIO and the CFO • Golden rule – keep the CFO on side! What the CFO wants from