Telecom & Technology Consulting
We’ve written more than once in this space how technology leaders now have a seat at the executive table. They’re no longer tacticians – they’re strategists that help drive corporate growth. But it’s not redundant to revisit this idea once again. That’s because CIOs and CTOs are often not properly prepared for this extended role. To be effective, they must comprehend key business concepts and fundamentals.
For example, CEOs now expect tech leaders to aid with revenue growth objectives, identify new business opportunities, cut spending, and foster customer acquisition and retention. Doing so means thinking less about technology and focusing more on business strategy. It means learning the inner workings of each department so they can have substantial conversations and deliver contextual value.
There’s perhaps no better starting point than developing acumen around business financials. After all, that’s where the rubber meets the road for any organization. Tech leaders already know plenty about ROI for hardware, software, and systems purchases. But they require more sophisticated financial knowledge by gaining a solid understanding of ideas like cash flow, margins and ratios, growth, and revenue versus profit.
Rather than merely studying those concepts, tech leaders are wise to spend a few days (or weeks) in the sales, marketing, manufacturing, and customer service departments. Immersing themselves in the corporate trenches provides a first-hand look at how the company generates revenue and what creates the highest margins.
They encounter what’s meant by “business value creation.” They become more prepared to transform data into insights that drive measurable results. In turn, they are better positioned to initiate technology projects that precisely align with corporate goals.
Along the way, tech leaders inherently learn about another valuable business concept: customer lifetime value and product profitability. With their field trips to other departments, they can understand how data can be applied to impact growth. It’s data that allows them to form a deeper picture about target customers. It’s data that shifts their perspective from transactional to strategic. Ultimately, technology investments connect to revenue opportunities and unlock the greatest possible value to customers.
Tech leaders bring even more to the C-Suite table by learning about market positioning and go-to-market strategies. This extra layer of customer understanding ensures that new projects and investments match customer demand. Acumen with market positioning alters how they will need to develop, support, and secure projects.
An understanding of specific marketing strategies is also extremely beneficial. CIOs and CTOs should regularly study the current state of their specific market, including how the competition is promoting their products and services. Look at elements such as competitor messaging, creative tactics, even how they’re attempting to generate leads and develop brand awareness with ebooks, webinars, and social media posts.
Every strategic decision, however, involves some risk, which is another area with which tech leaders should become familiar. In fact, many CIOs now cite risk management as one of their top priorities. The lens must be broad – not solely risk around cybersecurity or technology but overall business risk. Technology choices must be made from the perspective of how they might impact sales and profits, brand reputation, and the ability to scale.
But the risk education must go beyond pure knowledge. Tech leaders should be able to consult with others on the C-suite on risk appetite, risk tolerance, and risk mitigation, guiding the other executives on which technologies are best suited to significantly decrease their risk concerns. These can be risks centered on legal, financial, and compliance issues.
Today, the most successful tech leaders are those who can identify which initiatives will best foster customer acquisition, product launches, faster time-to-market, and market differentiation. Unfortunately, too many CIOs and CTOs still keep the focus on implementing technology and forgo developing their strategic business acumen. But without the latter, chances of success significantly decrease.
We can’t overstate it: tech leaders must primarily bring a business mindset to each meeting, each interaction, each initiative-planning meeting. We live in a time in history where technology is no longer a facet that enables the business to carry out its mission – in many cases, today technology is the business.
The tech executives who bring this attitude to work everyday will naturally spread a growth-oriented mindset throughout their teams (as well as to other departments), which will foster the innovation mindset required to keep sailing in the right direction.
