Pressure to impact revenue puts CIOs under immense strain, study finds

, Jan 15, 2020

  • 61% of CIOs say time spent on strategic planning increased in last 12 months
  • 43% of CIOs are measured on revenue growth
  • 49% state job satisfaction decreased in last 12 months
  • 29% say work/life balance got worse 

London, 15th January 2019: The role of the CIO is evolving with more of a focus on revenue and strategy, according to the 2019 Global CIO Survey from Logicalis, a global provider of IT solutions. The study, which questioned 888 CIOs from around the world, found that 61% of CIOs have spent more time on strategic planning in the last 12 months whilst 43% are now being measured on their contribution to revenue growth. 

The survey reveals that although CIOs are becoming more strategic and accountable, they are under pressure with reduced budgets and higher security risks. Almost half of respondents (48%) say that their time spent on security defenses has increased in the last year, with CIO’s spending 25% of their time on information and security compliance. The maintenance of technology remains a key aspect of the CIO’s role, with CIO’s on average, spending one-third (33%) of their time focused on day-to-day management of technology. 

The increased strain is having a negative impact on CIOs’ enjoyment of their job. Almost half of CIOs (49%) believe their job satisfaction has decreased in the last 12 months, whilst 29% say their work/life balance has worsened. The expanded focus on strategy and revenue has had an impact on the amount of time CIOs are able to spend on innovation, with 30% saying it has decreased in the last 12 months. 

Mark Rogers, CEO at Logicalis, said: “It is clear from these survey results that the role of the CIO has changed and is continuing to evolve. Digital transformation has impacted almost every industry, which has led to the role of the CIO increasing in importance. CIOs are now expected to be responsible for business performance at a strategic level which has added to the time that they are expected to spend on maintaining IT infrastructure.” 

“This increase in strategic responsibility - should be embraced by businesses and CIOs alike - because technology does hold the key to unlocking competitive advantage and operational efficiency. However, these survey results are stark in their findings and show the increased amount of pressure being exerted on CIOs. Organisations must ensure their CIO is fully supported and has the necessary resources to carry out their job effectively. Businesses are pushing their CIOs to understand more about the line of business and input on strategy, whilst CIOs are still under pressure carrying out day-to-day activities. Clearly, this needs to be addressed.” 

 

About Logicalis

Logicalis is an international multi-skilled solution provider providing digital enablement services to help customers harness digital technology and innovative services to deliver powerful business outcomes.

Our customers span industries and geographical regions; and our focus is to engage in the dynamics of our customers’ vertical markets; including financial services, TMT (telecommunications, media and technology), education, healthcare, retail, government, manufacturing and professional services, and apply the skills of our 6,500 employees in modernising key digital pillars; data centre and cloud services, security and network infrastructure, workspace communications and collaboration, data and information strategies, and IT operation modernisation. 

We are the advocates for our customers for some of the world’s leading technology companies including Cisco, HPE, IBM, CA Technologies, NetApp, Microsoft, Oracle, VMware and ServiceNow.

The Logicalis Group has annualised revenues of $1.7 billion, from operations in Europe, North America, Latin America, Asia Pacific and Africa.  It is a division of Datatec Limited, listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, with revenues of over $4.3 billion. 

For more information, visit https://www.logicalis.com/

 

Press Contact:

Champion Communications Ltd
+44 (0)207 030 3818 
Logicalis@championcomms.com 

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