| | SEPTEMBER - 2018ENTERPRISE SECURITY8IN MY OPINIONDigital Transformation and ITLeadership, Be the ChangeI f there was ever a time for strong leadership across all lines of business, especially the IT function, now is that time. Many futurists suggest that we're likely to see more change in the next 10 years than we saw in the previous 300. As most companies begin pursuing a digital transformation strategy, the entire business will need to take on a DevOps or Cloud operating model. In other words, the business, which includes IT, should be able to absorb, add, and refresh technology efficiently and in near real time. Making IT into an agile Cloud or DevOps organization is one thing, helping enable that same way of operating across all lines of business is entirely another. IT cannot do transformation alone. Creating solutions that provide real-time information is only helpful if the broader organization is designed to leverage that information in real-time. This required change will take more leadership skill with humans than in selecting and implementing new technology solutions.Times of Great Change require Great Leadership"There is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things." Niccolo Machiavelli"The supreme quality for leadership is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, a football field, in an army, or in an office." Dwight D. EisenhowerI've never been a perfect leader, but I've always believed that being a good leader was the best way to create sustainable and highly successful teams. I've also always believed, even before I could effectively articulate it that being a bad leader did more to hurt performance of a team than any one individual team member or accidental team dynamic. Success is measured in many ways and certainly revenue or stock value is one way but sustainably keeping a company and its culture healthy through massive change requires strong leadership, not something driven through fear, obfuscation or intimidation. Today's business climate, yes that also means IT, is such that maintaining advantage is a daily struggle. The speed of change associated with business strategies like becoming a platform or going through digital transformation means that today more than at any time in the past, companies need to use the resources they have with agility and a very high level of effectiveness. Having the wrong leader is analogous to continuously painting over a heavily rusted car. You can still use the car and keep painting it, but it will never be pretty and will always take more daily overhead than one that was fixed and dealt with properly to begin with.CIO Exhibits CEO QualitiesWhen IT is treated as the plumbing and your daily concern as a business is just whether ERP or email is running, By Mark Thiele, CIO and CSO, Apcera & Chairman, IDCA Technical Committee
< Page 7 | Page 9 >