Chief Information Officer Influence: An Exploratory Study

Effective initiation and execution of IS/T projects and systems has become a critical core competence for many organizations. One key to this is the influence of the senior executive responsible for IS/T, often called the Chief Information Officer (CIO). This paper explores the notions of influence and influence behaviors, top executive influence behaviors, how CIOs influence peers in the top management team, and reports the findings from an exploratory study. Contrary to some of the extant literature, the findings suggest that CIO influence can vary both in terms of how it is utilized and its effectiveness. Furthermore, CIO influence is exercised for the initiation of information systems projects, the implementation of these projects, and on overall business strategy. The paper concludes with a series of observations that summarize the findings

Irish CIOs’ Influence on Technology Innovation and IT-Business Alignment

Technology is the driving force behind many of today’s new products, services, and cost-cutting measures. However, there are gaps in our understanding about how technological innovation is fostered and nurtured in organizations. Part of the answer is to examine how Chief Information Officers (CIOs) exercise influence regarding technological innovation in organizations. This is particularly important since the CIO is the head of technology in organizations, an important source of technological innovation. This article draws on an established executive influence framework to demonstrate how Irish CIOs are able to solidify Information Technology’s (IT’s) contribution to technological innovation via relational means. Most of the CIOs in our study were able to successfully influence other executives to support these innovations which led to better IT-business alignment. However, other CIOs in our study were unsuccessful at influencing executives, which increased the disconnection between the CIO and the executive. Building on this study, we suggest significant practices and behaviors that CIOs can use to successfully influence other executives regarding technological innovations. CIOs must recognize that the relational side of technology alignment should be leveraged for them to successfully manage their contribution to technological innovation

CIOs\u27 Influence on Business Strategy Formulation and Realization

This paper examines chief information officers\u27 (CIOs\u27) influence on the IT component of business level strategy formulation and realization. A literature review summarizes definitions of power and organizational politics and reviews the ways the (IS) literature has treated these concepts. A research model, with specific research propositions, is then presented. The model contends that CIO influence is: 1) derived from many sources (e.g. inclusion in the top management team, level of IT expertise etc.), 2) used to shape the IT component of business strategy formulation, and 3) used to ensure the IT component of business strategy is realized

How CIOs Overcome the Competing Values Challenge: Irish CIOs’ Perspectives

Competing values are a fact of organizational life. However, there are gaps in our understanding about how these opposing beliefs hinder influence processes. This article draws on interview data to demonstrate how Irish Chief Information Officers (CIOs) are able to convince their colleagues to support new projects within their firms in the face of competing values. Focused interviews were used to explore the influence process and the competing values phenomenon, since this type of research is at an early stage and qualitative methods and analysis serve as a rich source of theory development. The data showed that the CIOs who did not face competing values were able to successfully influence other executives to support proposed projects. Additionally, half of the remaining CIOs who did face competing values were also successful at influencing their colleagues. In these cases, several features of the situation existed, including (a) small relative project size, (b) projects that were consistent with both external and internal environmental conditions, (c) the use of upward influence, and (d) the right combination of influence behaviors. Finally, we suggest actions that CIOs can use to successfully influence other executives when faced with the challenge of competing values

How CIOs Can Effectively Use Influence Behaviors

To accomplish their objectives, Chief Information Officers (CIOs) must rely on their abilities to influence members of top management. Effective use of influence behaviors can make the difference between successful and less successful CIOs. But aspiring senior managers are rarely formally taught how to influence others. They learn informally on the job.This article explores influence behaviors and their appropriate use by CIOs. It first describes 11 common influence behaviors—rational persuasion (logical arguments), apprising (emphasizing expected benefits), inspirational appeal, consultation, collaboration, personal appeal, ingratiation, exchange, legitimating (connected to precedent), coalition (asking others to persuade), and pressure. Then this article discusses which of the 11 are most effective in four scenarios that CIOs face: when the CIO is viewed either as a true peer of top management or as a supportive subordinate, and when the CIO is presenting either a high-stakes strategic initiative or a lower-stakes incremental one