Changing the IT Leader's Mindset - Time for revolution rather than evolution

Description

Are you a stereotypical IT Leader?

Although the typical aspects of the stereotypical IT Leader are extremely valuable, they are often regarded as incompatible, not only with the Board, but also with modern business strategy, which now tends to emerge through a process of ongoing dialogue in response to ill-defined, dynamic, and often unpredictable market conditions.

In order to break into the Board’s confidence and help to lead their organization, CIOs must now become masters of the soft skills and deal with imperfectly seizing the unknown rather than working to perfect the known.

Strike a balance—bring innovation and success

Incorporating the latest business thinking, this book explains how the IT Leader can strike this balance, evolve into the CTO—Chief Transformation Officer—and really contribute to the development and success of business enterprises.

Read this book and learn how to:

• Successfully balance Transactional and Transformational Leadership

  By becoming flexible in your approach to leadership, you will be able to simultaneously deliver business as usual, while enabling change and innovation.

• Understand the IT Leader stereotype and how to alter its perception

  People have developed through evolution to automatically stereotype, and, as part of the IT professional crowd, there is a certain stigma attached to your perception that can often make you seen to be an outsider. This book will show you not only how to understand others’ perceptions but also how to work with them to become a trusted and leading member of your organisation.

• Utilize tools like action learning and co-creation

  In a leading role, you will have to deal with a multiplicity of situations and varying reactions from the individuals of your team. To help understand them and align their ability to assess, the book will show you how to use key tools such as action learning and co-creation to inspire innovation and increase your future prospects.

By employing key steps and reflective points, this book provides useful tools and sound advice to help you get to grips with balancing soft skills with hard techniques, letting you break out of the IT stereotype and bring innovation into the inner sanctum of your organisation.

It does not try to paint the necessary personal transition as a simplistic process or procedure but focuses on an understanding of human nature and evolutionary psychology.

With these key insights into the corporate environment (and more), you will be able to transform your outlook. By showing you how to build on your foundations and be flexible in your approach, this book will help you open all business-doors to success and become an engine for innovation in your organisation.

About the authors

Dr Robina Chatham has 14 years’ experience in IT culminating with the position of CIO for a leading Merchant Bank. She is a Visiting Fellow at Cranfield School of Management and also runs her own training consultancy specialising in helping senior IT managers to increase their personal impact at board level. Last year she was voted a medalist for the BCS IT industry award ‘IT Consultant of the Year’.

Dr Brian Sutton has over 30 years’ experience of running engineering and IS projects having managed major initiatives and projects varying in size from hundreds of thousands of pounds to tens of millions of pounds. He was formerly a Professor of Systems Management in the Information Resources Management College of the National Defense University in Washington DC and is currently a visiting professor with the Institute for Work Based Learning at Middlesex University.