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CIOs left out in the cold by business
Three out of four tech chiefs do not see themselves as strategic

By Gemma Simpson

Published: Monday 18 June 2007

UK CIOs feel left out of the business loop with nearly two-thirds blaming unclear and unrealistic business objectives for failing IT projects.

More than three-quarters (76 per cent) of CIOs said they did not consider themselves a strategic influencer within the business, according to a survey by IT services company Atos Origin.

But more than half (56 per cent) of those surveyed saw themselves as a "manager of IT and of outsourced IT suppliers", according to the survey.

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Atos Origin COO John Stevenson said CIOs are preoccupied with managing multiple IT suppliers and relationships, without the appropriate internal infrastructure and governance, leaving them little time to focus on developing their roles within the business.

Stevenson added this impacts an IT department's ability to provide innovative solutions to make the company more agile and increase their business advantage.

According to the survey, 92 per cent of CIOs encourage innovation, but only 13 per cent formally measure the return on investment it provides.

When asked to name the top issues preventing their success, 61 per cent of CIOs named unclear and unrealistic business objectives as the number-one barrier.

Legacy systems and undersized budgets came in joint third position with 48 per cent of the CIO vote each.

A lack of business involvement and interest came in fourth (42 per cent) and the IT skills shortage nabbed the fifth spot (25 per cent), according to the survey of 125 CIOs and senior IT staff in UK organisations with more than 1,000 employees.

Nearly two-thirds (59 per cent) of CIOs said an "increased interest and involvement of the business in IT strategy and planning" would help them do their job more effectively and 54 per cent asked for a bigger IT budget.