Big data and analytics, cloud and digitalisation/digital marketing top the list of priorities for new technology investments in 2016 Australia and and New Zealand CIOs, according to the findings of Gartner’s latest global CIO survey.
Despite this priority, and the fact that a higher proportion of ANZ CIOs lead digital transformation and innovation in the enterprise than their global counterparts, progress towards digital business in ANZ is slower than the global average.
The 2016 CIO Survey shows that the average ANZ CIO expects digital revenue to grow from 14 percent now to 32 percent of total revenue in the next five years (compared with 37 per cent globally), while in the ANZ public sector, CIOs are predicting a rise in digital processes from 38 to 79 per cent.
The findings of the survey were presented at the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo on the Gold Coast earlier this week by Gartner vice president Graham Waller, who predicts that leading businesses will have to shift to “platform thinking” in terms of their business models, delivery mechanisms, talent and leadership in order to ride the wave.
“As digitalisation is intensifying, it is becoming clear that hardcoded business and operational models will not suffice and that a more adaptable approach is required,” said Waller. “A platform provides the business with a foundation where resources can come together — with the ability to rapidly configure groups of assets both across the business and the broader ecosystem — to create value.”
He said that while technologists have long recognised the power of platform approaches to information and technology architecture, platform dynamics are now being applied to other aspects of the business with models where “multiple networks of stakeholders bring value to each other by exploiting network effects”.
While ANZ CIOs are being given carriage of dynamically evolving areas at a more rapid rate, with 52 per cent leading digital transformation and 40 per cent leading innovation (compared with global averages of 40 and 30 per cent respectively), they must capitalise on this advantage, according to Waller.
“These results show that CIOs are being given the opportunity lead digital transformation, but they must adapt their leadership style to exploit platform effects in leadership, building a network of digital leadership inside and outside the enterprise,” he said.
This platform thinking should also be applied to talent, which is an ongoing issue for CIOs, most prominently in the area of information and analytics skills. In ANZ, the next two biggest skills gaps are project management and architecture skills, while globally, business acumen and security were the biggest problem areas.
“It is time to think of talent as a platform and innovate with it,” said Waller. “CIOs must look at digital talent beyond the boundaries of the IT organisation, and indeed beyond the boundaries of the enterprise. Innovative talent management opportunities abound and include getting closer to universities by helping define and deliver courses and projects, performing reverse mentoring and implementing job rotations. CIOs should also think of their partners as extensions of the talent pool.”
Having a bimodal delivery platform – or having two modes of IT and the business to deal with both predictable and exploratory work – is key to better digital strategy performance, Gartner predicted back in 2014. The 2016 CIO survey found that almost 40 per cent of CIOs are now on the bimodal journey, with the majority of the remainder planing to follow in the next three years.
One of the worst things a CIO can do is delay bimodal, Gartner found, with the survey data showing that those who are planning to move towards bimodal, but have not taken steps yet, came out worst in terms of digital strategy performance.
