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A recently appointed CIO called me for advice on how to succeed in his new role. I quickly recounted my experiences, drawing on all the mistakes I've made (and continue to make). Then I gave him the following suggestions as starting points:
- Determine the critical few things that the company needs IT to deliver. Make sure you deliver those things as quickly and completely as possible.
- List and then prioritize all the stupid things that IT does. Stop doing the stupid things at the top of the list.
So just how do you identify the few critical things IT needs to deliver from all the tasks on your list? And how do you ferret out the stupid things so that IT can stop doing them?
I figure out the critical few by conferring with my peers. Where are their opportunities? What causes them the most pain? What are their priorities? From this list, we use best practices for portfolio and project management to select those with the highest and most immediate impact. I then allocate the right resources to those tasks. Another method that helps ensure that I deliver the critical few is to break up initiatives into small phases that can be prioritized. This way, I deliver the highest-value benefits as quickly as possible (and sometimes reallocate resources to other initiatives even before the first initiative is 100% complete).
I used this approach at a previous company, where I identified one of our critical few objectives to be accurate marketing. The vice president of marketing was concerned with the effectiveness of marketing, while the CEO was concerned with the costs. We presented to both IT tools that could improve targeting and link marketing cause and effect. But rather than start work on the be-all and end-all solution, we started with a first step of customer segmentation. This not only significantly improved our targeting but also showed immediate progress toward the larger goals.
The first step to stop doing the stupid things is to define what constitutes stupid. I use the principles of lean manufacturing as a guideline. What creates value for my customers? I then evaluate IT's processes, rules and practices to determine whether they directly create value.
For example, I worked with an IT director who personally reviewed every IT purchase for his division. If the CFO needed a cell phone, the IT director would review the request before passing on the order, a step that added several days to the purchasing process. When a frustrated employee wanted to know why it took so long to get IT equipment in the division, I worked with the IT director to map out the purchasing process.
As we went over the process step by step, we discussed the phase that involved reviewing every request, and I questioned why he bothered to review each one. The IT director explained that his approval ensured that his customers had ordered the right thing. But didn't our process include ordering from a catalog of approved equipment? I inquired. Well, he countered, his review was necessary so that he could manage budgets. But, I asked, isn't that the responsibility of the requesting department since the purchase is charged to its budget? The IT director conceded that he reviewed purchases so he knew what was going on (translation: so that IT could be perceived as controlling). I congratulated him on finding something stupid, and we stopped doing it.
I am convinced that I can enjoy a long and successful career as a CIO if I constantly deliver the critical few things and eliminate the stupid ones.
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