| Abstract: |  Full text |
A Center for CIO Leadership Summary
CIO Context
You may be one of the many CIOs who aspire to general management roles and to become a COO or CEO. If so, it is important for you to identify and develop the behavioral skills that are critical to success. Indeed, according to these authors, there are specific behaviors that are required for promotion to the most senior executive posts in organizations.
Fortunately, you can learn and adopt new behaviors. Perhaps most important, the article suggests, is the willingness to look beyond the borders of IT. You need to learn to think in terms of profit and loss across interrelated business units instead of in terms of costs. Armed with the proper knowledge and support, you can effectively groom yourself for promotion.
Two Components of Behavior: Leadership Style and Thinking Style
How we act when we are aware of what other people expect of us is called our leadership style. How we act when we are not aware or choose to disregard such expectations is called our thinking style.
| Leadership styles—Under pressure, top-notch leaders switch from a participative, inquisitive leadership style to a quicker and more direct “social leadership style that is characterized by taking swifter action and managing their way through alternative solutions in quick concert with others. To excel, senior leaders need to demonstrate a very open (or multi-focus) style of leadership that helps them adapt and meet others on their terms. |
| Thinking styles—Thinking styles of the most successful CIOs differ from their CEO and COO counterparts. The primary difference is that CIOs are by custom, training, and experience much more analytical and adaptable than their colleagues. CIOs must constantly assess fast-moving, promising technology and applications of that technology to business. CEOs and COOs have a lower open/flexible tendency compared to CIOs, say the authors. Under pressure, CEOs and COOs move into action-focus sooner and they are more comfortable communicating their plans to others. |
Do your leadership and thinking styles match these descriptions? How do your styles compare to those of the CEO and COO in your company?
Emotional Competencies
Besides leadership and thinking styles, emotional competencies are also important. An emotional competency is composed of feelings and motivations that give energy and direction to our behaviors. Researchers call these “competencies” because they influence directly and importantly the ways in which we go about performing work assignments and the intensity of effort we bring to our work.
According to the authors, COOs, CEOs, and COOs share similar profiles of emotional competencies. Therefore, CIOs have the right emotional preparation to excel as COOs or CEOs. The articles describes six emotional competencies—ambiguity tolerance, composure, confidence, empathy, energy, and humility—and compares COOs, CEOs, and CIOs on these competencies.
Describe yourself in terms of each of these six emotional competences. How do you compare to your COO and CEO in these areas?
Glass Ceilings for CIOs
Some of the barriers hampering the rise of technology executives are self-imposed. For example, focusing narrowly on the needs of IT can be a serious impediment to promotion. Also, CIOs need to move from a manager to a leadership mentality. One C-level executive interviewed for the article said that CIOs need to “step away from the comfort zone of technology. Get to know your company so that you can add business value. And stop worrying about IT.”
Do you have self-limiting tunnel vision? If so, what do you need to do to get rid of it?
About Korn/Ferry International
Korn/Ferry International, with 89 offices in 38 countries, is a premier global provider of talent management solutions. Based in Los Angeles, the firm delivers an array of solutions that help clients to identify, deploy, develop, retain and reward their talent. For more information on the Korn/Ferry International family of companies, visit www.kornferry.com.
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