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  • #2183478

    DOWNLOAD: IT managers share 15 complaints about CIOs

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    by jodygilbert ·

    http://techrepublic.com.com/5138-10878-5714930.html

    After you take a look at this download, please post your feedback, ideas for improvements, or further thoughts on this topic.

    Thanks,
    –The TechRepublic Downloads Team

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    • #3236141

      Auugghhhh!!!

      by amcol ·

      In reply to DOWNLOAD: IT managers share 15 complaints about CIOs

      OK, admittedly I have a biased point of view since I am a CIO/CTO.

      However…I don’t have to read this document to hate it already. Not because of anything it says (I did read it, and I actually agree with some of it), but because of its orientation.

      It’s so, so easy to complain. We all love to do it. It’s fun, it’s cathartic, we get to vent. And then it’s over. Instant, momentary gratification. Did we learn anything? Has anything improved?

      It didn’t occur to you geniuses at TR that a document entitled “IT Managers Share 15 Qualities of High Performance CIO’s” would do your customer base a MUCH better service?

      How about equal time for those of us in the executive suite? Are you planning on coming out with something called “CIO’s Share 15 Complaints About Deadbeat, Whiny, Incompetent, Irresponsible, Feel-I’m-Entitled-To-Everything Employees”?

      I’ve long maintained that good management skills and good parenting skills are very consistent with each other. That’s not to say managers should be parental to their employees, nor that parents should manage their kids. It simply means that the skills set that makes one good at either overlaps greatly. I’ve found that both my employees and my children respond far more enthusiastically to positive reinforcement than to negative. So other than providing all of us a chuckle as well as something we can look at and say, “Yeah, my doofus CIO is just like that”, what educational enlightenment have you provided us with?

      Maybe you could provide people with a framework they could emulate, rather than a prescription for failure? Did it also occur to any of you that documents like this only serve to accentuate and validate the growing gulf between management and workers? Shouldn’t TR exercise some professional responsibility of its own and do whatever it can to encourage the two sides to come together, not grow further apart?

      Thanks a lot. On behalf of all of us.

      • #3236092

        I wonder about the process of article review

        by j.lupo ·

        In reply to Auugghhhh!!!

        I know TR wants to get more people involved in contributing in different ways. I appreciate your comments amcol because you do what we all need to. Try to turn a negative to positive.

        Ok, get your moment of gratification to releive the stress, then take all those points that you just made and see how they can be fixed. How can they be changed? Do you have any influence on their changing? And so many other points.

        Perhaps with articles, including downloads, there should be some sort of peer review process. Not as strict as with academic literature, but to check that the content fits with the mission of TR. Just an opinion.

        Oh, and I would be willing to be a peer-reviewer for articles. 🙂

        • #3236008

          Great idea

          by amcol ·

          In reply to I wonder about the process of article review

          All the major technical print publications have peer review boards. I’ve served on a couple of them myself, and I can state from personal experience they work, especially when publishers want to produce a high quality product that serves the needs of its readership.

          Your message is a good one…TR is having a bit of an identity crisis. Or, maybe it should be having one. What do you want to be, TR? Just a place where the tech community can come to discuss whatever and get a few superficial, sophomoric, limited value downloads? Or an online forum providing high quality material?

        • #3236001

          When I first came to TR

          by j.lupo ·

          In reply to Great idea

          I was attracted by an article that was describing research that a manager had done. It was a really good article and I got approval to use it in my studies. I would really like to see more articles on that level. Unbiased, providing help, guidence, direction, insights, and so on.

          Today when I read some of the articles, it looks almost like a comment on another article posted in the media. I am not suggesting an academic level review process, but something a little more balanced and original then restating what others have written about in the media on the hot topic of the moment.

          We can have those media related comments too. 🙂 I attempted to start a few discussions along those lines. So much knowledge here at TR. How to put it all out there is the question.

          I think there have been great strides in improving the site. Perhaps this request can go on the “wish list” 😀

        • #3338930

          Thanks for your input on this

          by jasonhiner ·

          In reply to When I first came to TR

          To both j.lupo and amcol I’d like to say thanks for providing input to help us improve the downloads on our site. We’ll definitely consider your peer review idea (we’ve actually been throwing around similar ideas for several years). I’ll put the two of you on the short list of members that are interested in this type of peer review. Thanks again.

        • #3260342

          That’s what we are here for.

          by j.lupo ·

          In reply to Thanks for your input on this

          It is up to all of us members to let those of you working hard at TR know what we want. We should also be willing to contribute in some way. I know we are all busy, but if we each take an interest than TR can be almost everything to everyone and meet all our needs.

      • #3260319

        Generating solutions

        by jodygilbert ·

        In reply to Auugghhhh!!!

        Hi amcol,
        Thanks for your comments. Your point is well taken, but I think we’re not quite as far off the mark as it maybe seems with this content. I’m actually an advocate of a certain amount of venting partly because it’s cathartic but mainly because it sets the stage for members to share their experiences with peers, to realize they’re not the only beleagured techs in the industry, and ultimately to recommend/discover solutions.

        My hope is that a lot of members will jump in and have insights such as “I had the same communications problem with my boss but it greatly improved after we…” — etc. This kind of dialog tends to morph into the kind of positive, actionable material you’re describing, I think, with the added bonus of grass-roots credibility. (One example: Becky Roberts’ follow-up to “The top ten peeves of a support tech” [http://techrepublic.com.com/5138-10877-5715291.html], in which she presents her ideas for resolving the problems she’d previously identified.) Anyway, I completely agree that there needs to be more to come on this topic, with the aim of improving workplace relationships and allowing staff and management to understand each other better and to work effectively together. Thanks again for your thoughts.

        –Jody Gilbert
        TechRepublic Downloads Team

        • #3242646

          Continuous Improvement

          by mburtt ·

          In reply to Generating solutions

          An interesting article, very interesting responses and perhaps a catalyst to initiate change. Vent first, then roll up the sleeves and work toward the solution. I agree with your “Generating Solutions” post: “?morph into positive, actionable material”.

          Weak leadership skills are not the exclusive domain of the Executive. My career has afforded me the opportunity to wear many hats; from tech to senior manager but the hat I enjoyed most was that of change agent, the ?Quality guy?; helping companies from hi-tech to heavy manufacturing explore leadership and learn the strengths that build cohesive teams. And one constant throughout all those industries: effective leadership and motivation skills and are an undervalued commodity at all levels of North American industries. It is a fact of human behavior, that we observe and emulate our leaders. If my manager behaves a certain way, then I better darn well learn to behave in that manner if I wish to be successful here. Leadership starts with the CEO and permeates down through the ranks. Good and bad, we learn from above, and I would give odds that the managers who have offered these constructive criticisms have themselves been at times guilty of similar conduct.

          The good news is help is available. We can learn how to lead and motivate. There are professional organizations such as American Management Association who promote and provide education for advanced leadership skills. Our challenge is not how to change, it is when to change. Where will we begin motivating our leadership to value and promote those skills that serve to make us a more effective and cohesive team from the top down?

          Great leaders = Great company = Great success = Great economy. It all begins with our leaders.

          Cheers

        • #3239241

          Dangerous waters

          by amcol ·

          In reply to Continuous Improvement

          I disagree with your statement that “It is a fact of human behavior, that we observe and emulate our leaders”, or at least the second half of it. Yes, we absolutely do observe them…no, we absolutely do not as a fact emulate them.

          If that were true then the entirety of the business world would be composed of clones. Rather, humans follow the adopt/adapt/adept model…we adopt those qualities we admire and wish we had ourselves, we adapt our personalities and approaches to those qualities, and we become adept at them over the course of time. Most of us have the misfortune of working for people at least once in our careers who are either diametrically opposite ourselves, or are (to be blunt) complete jerks. Those “leaders” are not emulated…rather, we use them as a paradigm of what not to do. When life with these folks becomes intolerable we move on.

          Your equation quantifying greatness is also suspect. It’s true to a point, but only to the point you indicate…it BEGINS with great leadership. It is not an absolute that great leadership inevitably leads to highly motivated, highly productive, high performing teams that ultimately create economic growth. It’s a key ingredient, perhaps THE key ingredient, but it’s not a panacea.

          Working your equation backward leads to other interesting conclusions, which is to say a great economy doesn’t necessarily start with great leadership. Look at the period 1995-2000…economic growth out the wazoo, but hardly a period in the business cycle I’d hold up to historical scrutiny as one exemplifying great leadership.

        • #3239234

          leadership

          by j.lupo ·

          In reply to Dangerous waters

          And how do people define leadership and great leaders. I have been studying this particular topic for a long time. Do we think someone is a great leader because theya re a movie star? a sports figure? a business tycoon? a nation’s president?

          In my opinion, leaders are defined by those who follow them and the outcomes of their leadership. They don’t do great deeds to be noticed, they do them because the deed needs doing. That doesn’t mean they are altuistic or anything like that. However, you will find that real leaders are not easily defined, but are described by their accomplishments.

          Another point, people do not learn to be leaders. Leaders hone their leadership abilities through experience and training. Bennis (2001) said that we cannot pop in John and Jane Q Public to leadership school and out comes a “McLeader”.

          I know quite a few people who are managers, but are not leaders. I know CEO’s, CIO’s, SVPs, all the way to the Tech in the field that are not leaders and will never be even with the best training. Why? Because leaders (real leaders) have something undefinable that tells them when, how, where, and why to do different leadership things and be successful.

          Sure they fail too, but they learn from their failures.

          This is all just my opinion based on my experience and reading and continued desire to grow speaking. I am sure the leadership debate will continue for many decades to come.

        • #3239220

          That’s why it’s called leadership quality

          by amcol ·

          In reply to leadership

          You can’t learn a quality. You either come by it naturally, or you do a really good job of faking it. But j.lupo is correct that one can’t learn leadership.

          My own definition of great leadership is quite simple. A great leader is someone whose people will follow him or her off a cliff, no questions asked.

          There are great managers who are lousy leaders, just as there are great leaders who are lousy managers. I like to think of management as tactics and leadership as strategy, and it’s very rare to find someone who excels at both. If you have the great good fortune to do so, work for that person for the rest of your life. Life will be a breeze.

        • #3235926

          Leader or brain-washer?

          by becky roberts ·

          In reply to That’s why it’s called leadership quality

          I find your definition of a great leader to be deeply disturbing – “A great leader is someone whose people will follow him or her off a cliff, no questions asked” – is more suggestive of brain-washing and manipulation – it reminds of me of certain leaders of religious cults who were able to manipulate their followers into performing heinous acts and ultimately suicide. Surely these are not qualities which we seek in a leader – isn’t a leader a servant, a teacher, an enabler, someone with great humility and values we can admire, a person who can inspire others to achieve greatness?

        • #3235829

          You’re reading too much into it

          by amcol ·

          In reply to That’s why it’s called leadership quality

          I’m not for one second suggesting great leadership has anything to do with mindlessly following anyone anywhere, with the leader in question having been elevated to some godlike status. There’s no overlap between cult-like behavior and anything that goes on anywhere in the business world.

          I simply mean that great leaders are those who set and live by their own examples. To borrow a trite phrase, they talk the talk AND walk the walk. They have consistently excellent skills, can formulate and articulate a vision, and can execute in such a fashion that expectations are routinely met and exceeded no matter how high the bar. They do this not by micromanaging or taking on all the responsibility themselves, but quite the opposite…they know how to marshall resources and get everyone marching in lockstep toward a common goal. Great leaders have teams whose members are so confident in their leader’s abilities and so enthusiastic about achieving the goals as set by the leader that they will, in fact, follow him or her off a cliff.

        • #3235733

          Like I said . . .

          by j.lupo ·

          In reply to That’s why it’s called leadership quality

          We can define great leaders by the people that follow them. Without followers we don’t have leaders. Also, great leaders generally have great followers.

          I think Bennis discussed followers in his book “On Leadership”, I could be wrong though cause I have been reading so many books by so many people on these topics. Kanter, Dupree, Bennis, Branchard, etc. There are so many good discussions about leaders and followers. It is a debate though that will never be definitively answered. IMHO.

        • #3235828

          Growth

          by mburtt ·

          In reply to Continuous Improvement

          Good stuff all.

          Becky, I agree with what you are saying. Although I do trust those Great leaders I have met, I will not follow them ?anywhere?. I have my own morality, conscience, vision to guide me, and not a ?Jonestown mentality?. Your point is well taken. There are organizations and companies who employ psychological techniques to manipulate their people and maintain control or dominate. That is not leadership that is control, plain and simple. A leader inspires, supports and provides vision to name a few. But a leader is not a servant, at least not to the individual. A servant to the cause, the organization, the entity perhaps.

          J.Lupo, you are correct, the debate of leadership will continue, but perhaps we are adding a nano-bit to the understanding or at the very least, helping each other to improve and grow.

          Leaders are ascribed by their accomplishments and their legacies; especially those they touch; whether individually or as a society. Leadership is not a natural ability, it a learned behavior. That learning should begin at the very least with a good mentor, and at best with accredited education. I did not intend to suggest that simple courseware would transform a person into a great leader. Education is the starting point of the journey, the formal introduction.

          But sometimes promotion (or stagnation) to leadership is based on class or skill and not on ability to lead. Let me give examples: the hotshot tech promoted to team manager often becomes engrossed in solving technical problems and misses the opportunity to help the team learn and grow. Or the Engineer hired for the Director position that becomes distracted by the system details and misses the opportunity to deliver vision to the department. Good leadership from above will identify the situation and provide direction, mentoring, and education as necessary.

          Amcol, I wholeheartedly agree with you ?When life with these folks becomes intolerable we move on?. That is a hallmark of a good leader. Principles. Unfortunately its existence appears limited.

          Perhaps my reference to emulation should be explained better. It has been my observation that within an organization, there is a common mode of conduct / thought, a corporate / industry sector functional/organizational paradigm. That is to say, there exists a ?culture?. Humans associate in groups, clans, and societies and develop a ?culture?. Group dynamics tend to promote behaviors the group feels meet their ?standards?. Dress, language, attitude, religion. Success, perhaps survival, depends on emulating (adopting) those regional behaviors. ?When in Rome do as the Romans?. At the individual level, some generalities can be drawn if one assumes that leaders are not haphazard in their thinking. A leader is carefully selected to meet specific criteria, one of which is usually ?fit?, and fit usually has a component of being compatible with the boss. If a person wishes to succeed inside an organization, then that person had better understand the necessity of being ?compatible? with the boss. Adopt the boss?s modes. Adapt those modes to their daily regimen. Become adept at those modes, support the bosses ?way? and succeed in the organization. ?Corporate culture? where certain modes are promoted while others are discouraged. Disagree with the existing modes and it will be a whole lot less difficult to find another place to work than to be a lightening rod for change. Lightening rods get burned.

          Working the equation backward? very intriguing indeed. Could this indicate the antithesis of great leadership might be dramatic (albeit short lived) growth? Could the measure of Great leadership be sustained growth? A stable foundation? Our iron/industrial economy has faltered, but we continue to grow, only now it is has a foundation on the Information sector, due in no small part to Microsoft, Sun, Oracle et al and their leadership and vision of the mid 80?s / 90?s? There?s an interesting discussion.

        • #3235819

          Good points

          by amcol ·

          In reply to Growth

          Leadership is the antithesis of control. Leadership is inspirational…control is imperative. Leaders get people to perform in a certain way because the people themselves want to, while controllers get people to perform through imposition of will. It’s the basic difference between positive and negative reinforcement, and it explains why controllers ultimately fail…when the basic human need to act freely exceeds the compulsion to bend to another’s bidding, the controller’s power is gone. The leader draws power from within, the controller from without, which makes it artificial.

          No, leadership is not a learned behavior. Anyone can learn the techniques of leadership but it requires natural ability to practice those skills effectively. A person who lacks that natural ability is merely acting, and the absolute essence of great leadership is honesty. I would never put my faith and trust in a leader who is merely working on the basis of what he/she has learned how to do. Certainly there are shades of grey in that there are those who are reasonably good leaders whose only qualification is their educationally acquired knowledge. However, we’re talking about great leadership here, not merely good.

          Your description of cultural adaptation is accurate but at the same time a prescription for leadership mediocrity. True greatness comes from creative differences. How great a leader do you have to be in order to simply fit in with the existing culture? That’s not leadership, that’s exactly the opposite. What you describe is more consistent with Becky Roberts’ comment about brainwashing. You talk about lightning rods getting burned but in another post you said one of your most satisfying jobs was that of change agent. Which way do you want it?

          I like your cause/effect analysis of great leadership and sustained growth. I think you’re on to something there.

        • #3235731

          Very eloquently said

          by j.lupo ·

          In reply to Good points

          to both of you. Though I find myself agreeing with Amcol about great leadership and leadership. Here is another thought. . .Is it mediocracy of leadership or the nature of a follower. You work to adapt to fit in, isn’t that part of what a follower does?

          Change agents and leaders don’t go with the flow, they are constantly looking for new and better ways, more right ways, to get things done. This is why Bennis said they burn out. That is where all the great leaders are going, they are burning out.

          I once wrote an article about leaders, leadership, followers, and followership. I called it “Where have all the leaders gone? . . . To leadership school everyone!” Think of the song where have all the flowers gone. 🙂

          The point is that there is no solid definition about whether they are born or made. However, if we don’t solve our leadership crisis by discussing it, understanding the roles we all play in our organizations, and build stronger foundations, I think we will all be in for some deep trouble.

        • #3254877

          Out of the frying pan…

          by mburtt ·

          In reply to Very eloquently said

          Oh buddy. A change agent is the embodiment of the lightening rod and I?m still smokin?.
          LoL

          From a man in the trenches, it takes an uncompromising commitment to a higher ideal (a religious fervor?) to fortify one against the challenges of leading change. And burnout? Most definitely Yes. My personal solution is variety. Take leave and do other work for a while. Let the mind settle, build up the reservoir of stamina again. With primary skills in telecom and project management I have been fortunate to secure continuous work. The greatest source of stress leading change is the perception by many that the change agent will create and deliver a new system while the rest of the company continues on unaffected until that magic implementation date. The ?Quality Guy? mentality. That couldn?t be farther from the truth. Change and Quality are a corporate commitment, a shared pain, and like any project a shared responsibility. And that is why it is my unwavering belief that change must come from the top. The very top has to walk the talk and participate on an active basis, not just at something akin to opening and closing ceremonies. If there is no commitment from the top, then it is a wise decision for the practitioner to walk away.

          It would be a foolish to suggest that a good portion of Great Leadership is not personal character. Honesty, Charisma, Fortitude? These are intrinsic qualities and the foundation of a leader. But does education not play a critical role in creating a Great Leader? It is one thing to have vision and purpose and to lead masses ?somewhere?. It is somewhat more to have vision, analyze choices, make informed decisions, establish benchmarks, communicate goals, motivate people, prove capability, and deliver results. I suggest a whole heck of a lot of that process is learned behaviors and the purview of leadership.

          My view toward corporate culture is based on experience laboring to change the unchangeable but it is not a universal constant. I won?t expand more on mediocrity except to say I appreciate the reference. There are many companies who embrace change and celebrate improvement. But for every one, there are dozens secure in their knowledge they are doing the best they can. Perhaps it is brainwashing, but a person entering a company is expected to assume the attitude of that company ?the way we do things around here?. Fail to make the adjustment and risk marginalization (this can be very easily expanded to include geo-political segments). It is not a philosophy that I subscribe to, but it does exist and it is often the source of the ?15 Complaints? that began this discussion.

          I stand by my recommendation that the first step to leadership (Great or good) is education. It should be a mandate by every corporation that every leader have a basic set of leadership education skills to establish their capability to understand the fundamentals of leadership and management. And those skills should be continually developed and improved. The second step is to celebrate change and improvement.

          Cheers

        • #3254824

          Yeah, okay

          by amcol ·

          In reply to Very eloquently said

          I buy the idea that some education is required in order to evolve into a great leader. Just as I wouldn’t put my faith and trust into someone whose only qualifications for leadership were educational credentials, neither would I follow someone whose only qualification was natural ability. Both, ultimately, are shams to a certain extent in that neither one can ever be anything other than reasonably good.

          That’s why I used the word “evolve”…as j.lupo correctly points out in a previous post “…people do not learn to be leaders. Leaders hone their leadership abilities through experience and training”. It’s an evolutionary process, and the person with natural ability has significantly greater potential to achieve greatness than someone who lacks it.

          The only part of your post, mburtt, that troubles me a bit is the concept of burnout being a necessary by-product of performing in the role of change agent. I’m not holding myself up as an example of any kind, but I’ve spent my whole career, all thirty plus years of it, being a change agent and fighting the system. Having spent a couple of years marketing consulting services, I have a sales mindset…never rest on your laurels, what have you done for me TODAY (not just lately), etc. You have to fight the good fight every single day, without any self-indulgence. If as a true change agent you feel something is important enough to warrant your attention and do what’s needed to try to turn the Titanic, then you gotta do what you gotta do no matter what. To hold back or let something go by because you’re tired or burned out or just low on energy is to be untrue to yourself, and in that case you can’t perform to the ultimate level of your potential and/or ability. That’s not what we all get paid for. I’ve got plenty of time to be retired when I get old(er).

        • #3239244

          I hope you’re right

          by amcol ·

          In reply to Generating solutions

          It would be most interesting to collect tidbits of information offered not merely as confirmation that we all share the same pain but as examples of successful actions taken in response to particular pain points. I hope the member community comes up with such insights.

          I think also that TR may be missing out on another opportunity to provide a valuable service to its membership, one that it’s in a relatively unique position to provide. The message forums and threads are not much more than an electronic paradigm of the Pony Express…there’s no immediacy to the communication, and interactivity is severely limited by the medium. Rather than simply put out downloads and solicit after the fact feedback, why not host webcasts in which a panel of interested parties could discuss topics of relevance? Those who tune in remotely could be given an e-mail address for posting real time input the panelists could work into the discussion or even for voting on which of several sides of any particular issue the community at large is in agreement with. While there are those who participate herein who want to hide behind the anonymity of a member name, I’m sure you could find folks (I’d volunteer) who’d be willing to “out” their real identities and take part in such a forum.

      • #3235765

        It is the attitude

        by dcharlesm ·

        In reply to Auugghhhh!!!

        My goodness – these are folks reporting directly to a CIO??? Wow – it reminds me – my high school reunion is coming up. Get it? What a bunch of whiners. You cannot succeed, at work, or in life, with these whiney attitudes. I like amcol’s analogy of parenting, however I have always used the analogy of a marraige – you can’t maintain an effective marraige relationship with a whiney, accusational attitude. I try to treat my employees with respect and honesty and trust – just as I do with my wife. I expect the same from her/them. You can’t maintain an effective working relationship with a whiney, accusational attitude – from either side of the management coin.
        Life is all about the attitude you take. Now, if the CIOs really do act like they are portrayed here, then we have another side of the coin that needs polishing….

        • #3235729

          That is where we all need to become

          by j.lupo ·

          In reply to It is the attitude

          change agents. It is a very slow process but self education and education into the culture of an organization take time. I have done it, I have seen it done, but it takes time. The question is, does it last after you have left?

          If the CIO’s are as depicted in the article, then perhaps it is time for some 360 feedback in the organization to find necessary changes. Usually there is a communication breakdown going on and what one party perceives as reality isn’t the reality of the other party. (you can interchange CIO and employee for party in that sentence).

          Communication is the key and I like the way you express your style of communication. respect, honesty, and trust all things that are earned and need to be done to earn from others.

          Like Amcol quoted “Talk the talk and walk the walk”.

    • #3242580

      hhhhmmmm

      by rogersd ·

      In reply to DOWNLOAD: IT managers share 15 complaints about CIOs

      I read most of the comments and generally agree. I also read the complaint list and agree with it, and have been guilty of some of them myself, at work and home . Could the list be boiled down to ? Respect, Communication, Team Player, and Trust?

      I do not know if the positive side is really that necessary, during peer review and code review / test, as well as getting customer feedback it will most often have more in the ?doesn?t have? and ?I don?t like? columns.

      To keep the ball rolling here is my 2 cents.

      Positive

      1)Gets the Key facts before making a decision.
      2)Keeps meetings focused and on topic.
      3)Accepts Responsibility
      4)Listens attentively
      5)Stays abreast of technology
      6)Provides constructive critiques
      7)Frequently and consistently keeps others informed
      8)Clearly and succinctly assigns tasks and expectations
      9)Effective Team Building
      10)Trusts his team to deliver results
      11)Expects his team to listen
      12) Respects others time
      13)Trusts his team to deliver results
      14)Humble
      15)Places credit where credit is due

      Review – The list seemed to be, well, confusing, as most complaint lists tend to be, and sometimes I didn?t know if the complaint was ?legit? or a whine. Here is a short review.

      1)What time constraints and customer/client urgency is at stake? Are all facts and all options needed to make a decision? Did he get the Key points?
      2)Is this really a ?poor meeting skills? topic (be, start, and keep on time and on topic) or a Speak Clearly and Succinctly? Who missed the point of the analogies and did anyone ask for the application?
      3)Are 3, 6, and 15 related? I hope this was not the manager in item number 7.
      4)Is it really ?always?? If he is a top performer then he must be listing to somebody. Is the one not listened to jealous?
      5)No comment
      6)See 3. And did the corrections have anything to do with checking the policies where it states to use Caps?
      7)See it, done it, need to work on it. I like this one.
      8)Are they ?friendly reminders? and is this an intended insult?
      9)HHHHMMMM ? along with 10, is he disrespecting your knowledge or making a decision you do not agree with?
      10)Did he support your decision but the client/customer over-ruled you? Did you do item number 1?
      11)See 8 and 2
      12)Did you reply to the e-mail before she came over?
      13)Hope this is not the same boss as item 7. Looks like a tight rope between 7, 9,10, and 11.
      14)Agree; humility is needed.
      15)Agree; see it had it done to me. Need to understand relationship between this and item number 3.

    • #3239069

      Attitude adjustment needed – mine!

      by nerdy_gurl ·

      In reply to DOWNLOAD: IT managers share 15 complaints about CIOs

      Since I have had some problems relating to my immediate supervisor who is also the CTO, CFO, CIO etc. of the small company where I work, I read the article thinking I would identify his faults in it.

      However, the article was almost completely the opposite!!

      With one exception which wasn’t that serious, he doesn’t present himself that way, at least at this time. That doesn’t mean he and I didn’t and don’t have differences of opinion (I’m the person who manages all the day-to-day computer stuff at our company, thus I’m the ‘manager’ there).

      When he first came on board, I was very resentful, as previously I had all the ‘power’ when it came to making IT decisions. I guess I didn’t relate well to the fact that, as our small company took on more expansion, we needed some more people. When I found out he was going to be my ‘superior’ and was now responsible for my performance reviews, too, I was really upset.

      But I lived thru all of this change (because I really like my job and its perks) and gradually have come to work pretty well with this guy. He came from a consultant/corporate background and our company has mostly creatives and artsy people in it (I’m an artist who learned tech on my own and switched careers 5 years ago).

      He has helped tremendously with redoing business processes that just weren’t up to date and effective. He and I did have a few head-to head confrontations in a polite and 1-on-1 manner along the way. These, I believe established and reinforced certain boundaries of working with each other.

      And the irony of it all is that the problem that I thought was with him is actually with the business owners who unfortunately fit much more closely the profile of negative faults published in the article!

      I have found it’s a good idea to check one’s own attitude thoroughly before assigning any blame in a seemingly unhappy situation, because many times you can’t take something back once it’s out in the open.

    • #3181743

      goverment ITproblem, who is the CIO?

      by danlm ·

      In reply to DOWNLOAD: IT managers share 15 complaints about CIOs

      We are winding down from a conversion from a main frame to a client server based application. The biggest problem that I seen wasn’t that the CIO couldn’t communicate, but that there were so many that thought they were CIO that the IT department was basicatly running in circles trying to make everyone happy. So many changes occured with regard to priorities and who was setting them, that we lost years in the analysit and development stages. We faced all the issues that were raised in the article that I read, but we also faced the issue of there were just too many people calling the shots and nothing would be firmly decided because of it. Priorities changed, then reinstated, then added to. It went on and on.
      I have the privliage of relocating because of marriage, and I will not go back into public service because of the last couple years. It has to be better in the private world with regard to decesion making, no matter how cut throat it is.

      Dan Miller

      • #3181630

        That is just poor project management

        by j.lupo ·

        In reply to goverment ITproblem, who is the CIO?

        Part of the role of the people in charge is to make certain everyone KNOWS their role with regards to the project and how that fits with the organization’s strategy. What you describe sounds like very poor project management – Poorly defined roles, poorly defined objectives, poorly defined responsibilities, etc.

        A department only runs in circles when everyone is left to lead and everyone is trying to follow what they think the directive of the day is. Doesn’t work well ever as you saw.

        As to the private sector. That isn’t true. What you say in the public arena happens in the private sector also. The difference is that when you look for a job, you will ask better interview questions because you will know what you DON’T want in a company.

        Remember the interview process isn’t just the employer interviewing you for fit, it is you interviewing them for fit. Think on your experiences and find ways to TACTFULLY ask questions at your interviews that will help you determine if you are headed into the same type of situation or not.

        Good Luck

    • #3171936

      IT Leadership is hard

      by old timer ·

      In reply to DOWNLOAD: IT managers share 15 complaints about CIOs

      Leading IT organisations is, in my opinion, one of the toughest jobs in the enterprise. As IT professionals we are expected to know all the IT ?techo? detail about the most obscure techo problems as well as extensive detail about the latest hot product, its market positioning, what it can do for our enterprise and its price; just in-case! Similarly we must know all about the enterprises business processes, its clients and the systems that support it, if not business executives are quick to denigrate us. Succeeding in this environment would be tough enough.. but wait…. there?s more.

      We have to be expert business change managers – it?s always up to us to lead major business transformational projects, which are thinly disguised as IT projects and take the can if the business can?t deliver the value; that?s code for passively resit the change. When something goes wrong with a system or technology we had nothing to do with, we are the first to be called in to fix it; whilst every other enterprise executive stands back and ?cheers us on?. I think its cheering I can hear.

      Oh, we also need to know how balance all this whilst providing a better, cheaper, faster service and if we don?t…you know what….we get outsourced; oops I forgot, we must add value to the enterprise bottom line too.

      As any IT executive knows just keeping the lights on is tough enough, but we also have to contend with the latest compliance demands whilst we are trying to implement CoBIT and ITIL to do the better, faster, cheaper stuff. With skills like these I?m puzzled why CIO?s don?t become CEO?s more often, even when they survive beyond the suggested industry standard 2 years they are generally last in line for the top job. The least we can do is act like professionals and give the CIO as much backing as we can, when we can, even if they make the same human mistakes as the rest of us.

      • #3172441

        Well put …

        by jasonhiner ·

        In reply to IT Leadership is hard

        Jeffrey,

        I really enjoyed your post. There’s a lot of truth in your words and I have often felt the same way – IT is one of the most challenging fields to work in, and it’s usually one of the toughest departments to work in within an organization.

        Jason

        • #3170498

          Assuming you can get in

          by j.lupo ·

          In reply to Well put …

          and be accepted as a participating member of the department. Not all, but I think most IT people are very dedicated to what they do. If they didn’t love it and were not dedicated they would quickly leave it far behind for many of the reasons stated.

    • #3169680

      Rediculous

      by register ·

      In reply to DOWNLOAD: IT managers share 15 complaints about CIOs

      Whoever wrote this was obviously a disgruntled employee with authority problems. Not that the items aren’t true but my god have a little tact in your presentation. I can’t believe this was even released. Don’t you have editors?

    • #3169612

      10 traits of the best ??

      by cb0503 ·

      In reply to DOWNLOAD: IT managers share 15 complaints about CIOs

      Following on from prus posts, wouldn’t it create some balance to have the traits of the “best” CIOs etc as well ?

      Then we have a chance to look at the gap, and discuss how WE influence their behaviour and how WE can coach someone, who will be somewhere on the “worst to best” spectrum to get closer to “best” than they currently are ?

    • #2581058

      Get rid of this article – stop recycling garbage

      by reptechlic ·

      In reply to DOWNLOAD: IT managers share 15 complaints about CIOs

      Terms like “always”, “never”, “terrible” and “ignorant” sabotage credibility. This is another article fostering negative working relationships between management and staff. Get rid of it, please!

    • #2581050

      Need to add #16

      by steve.petrilli ·

      In reply to DOWNLOAD: IT managers share 15 complaints about CIOs

      What about the person who is consistently late for meetings or constantly rescheduling meetings with their direct reports. Sends a very clear message of lack of planning and a disregard for the time and schedule of others.

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