Transformer 05 2015

In the not-so-distant past, C!Os oversaw IT organisations that focused on managing IT infrastructure and automating business processes. Nowadays, CIOs have to be competent in many more functions of the business since their scope of work extends to discovering new ways to bring value to the businesses they work for through technology that supports organisational and cultural transformation.

It is on this note that I welcome you, dear reader, to the latest issue of Transformer, the official magazine of the CIO Council of South Africa. In this issue, we focus on the CIO and their role in driving transformation and strategy from within organisations.

This kind of transformation occurs when CIOs go beyond technology enablement and prioritise change management. They do this by introducing technology solutions that help break down silos by facilitating cross-team collaboration among divisions through, for instance, solutions such as Skype for Business and the enterprise-grade social network Yammer.

For Microsoft, the culmination of our own transformative process was for the company to become more agile in a new operating environment in which consumers are more informed than ever and newly established startups can take market share away from established corporations through the introduction of innovative products, services, or experiences. Agility in business is simply the ability of a company to quickly and cost­effectively respond to change, be it in the form of changes in the market changes in consumer buying trends, or to disruption.

We achieved this by simplifying the way we work to drive greater accountability and move faster. Additionally, we reduced the number of layers of management, both top down and sideways, to accelerate the flow of information and decision-making. This step included flattening organisations and increasing the span of control of people managers. Last but not least, we also made our business processes and support models leaner and more efficient leading to greater trust between teams. So far, the overall result of these changes include more productive, impactful teams across Microsoft.

It's up to modem CIOs in South Africa to discover ways to employ technology to enable their company to connect directly with customers, proactively monitor its social networks, and become more responsive to opportunities, challenges, and disruption. After doing so, the CIO goes from technology enabler to innovation evangelist, and he or she is able to lead their newly transformed agile, customer-focussed organisation down a technology-driven path of prosperity.

Happy reading.

Ulrike Weitz
Editor
uweitz@microsoft.com