Succeeding in the role of CIO requires a mix of skills that encompass leadership, business savvy, and technology. This ebook looks at the knowledge and expertise that will help you excel in this role.

From the ebook:

With digital transformation efforts underway at many companies, the CIO has an opportunity to become an important member of the C-suite who can find technical ways to advance the company’s goals. But how do you actually become a CIO?

While a tech background gives you an advantage in areas such as security and working with vendors, those from other business realms often have the communication, management, and strategy skills the CIO job demands.

The CIO role is more fluid than it used to be, said Ansgar Schulte, a Gartner analyst on the CIO team. “You need to be open to different responsibilities coming your way. In the future, the focus of the CIO will be less on information management and more on reaping business opportunities through digital technologies.”

Here are some of the skills and attributes you need to pick up in your quest to climb the corporate ladder and land a CIO job.

Willingness to take on the hardest projects
David Giambruno, former CIO of Shutterstock, started his career in sales at a networking company, where he learned how customers were using technology.

How did he move up the ranks? “I took the absolute worst jobs,” Giambruno said. “If someone said, ‘This project is going to be a total failure,’ I would raise my hand, because there was no downside. It taught me how to wield technology for an outcome and how to use every single asset at my disposal, including people, processes, and technology, to get a good outcome.”

This is especially important for CIOs without experience on the enterprise side, according to Matt Guarini, vice president and research director serving CIOs at Forrester. “If you start with your roots within IT, get outside and look for opportunities where you can work in the business. It will help you build knowledge of an organization and business tech and will help you think about innovation and problem solving.”