Evolving role of the CIO key to the future of work
Allan Tate, executive chair of the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium, explains how the pandemic pushed CIOs to the forefront as enterprises scrambled to adapt to a new normal
Source | searchcio-techtarget-com.cdn.ampproject.org | Gabriella Frick
When the pandemic forced organizations to shift their employees to remote work and find new ways to serve customers, one thing became clear: The CIO role is key to the future of work. Over the past year, CIOs have stepped up to the plate, beefing up networks, implementing new communication platforms, automating business processes, bolstering security and — most notably — helping their companies figure out how to remain viable in a digital marketplace. More than perhaps ever before since the role debuted some 40 years ago, CIOs were called on to become business strategists.
“They’ve begun to think more abstractly about the business problems and partner with the other business leaders,” said Allan Tate, executive chair of the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium, which is introducing its first digital edition over the course of eight weeks starting on April 5, 2021.
We spoke with Tate ahead of the event to explore the evolving role of the CIO, what IT leaders were up against as the pandemic raged and the digital technologies they’re adopting to keep up as companies enter into the proverbial new normal.