Hablamos mucho sobre cómo los gerentes de TI deben formular las estrategias adecuadas y asegurarse de que se implementen las tecnologías adecuadas. Pero para marcar una diferencia real, los líderes de TI deben ser agentes de cambio.
Most of us know, for example, that the models that emerge from analyzing mountains of business and periodic data are invaluable. Or that machine learning can reduce overhead and power transformational applications. Or that it's time to standardize security policies across multiple clouds. But how do IT managers get their organizations to make the leap?
They have to learn to sell. It is an essential skill for effective IT leadership.
What is the first step to sell? Prospection. You need to find out where the opportunities lie within your reach to demonstrate the value, for example, of a data-driven approach to modernizing legacy processes. Organizations where technologists are embedded in cross-functional workgroups have an advantage in that these allies can be called upon to identify quick wins.
So you have to convince a lead actor that it's worth it. It's not one and it's done. You need to work with this stakeholder (or whoever they designate) every step of the way, from requirements gathering to regular verification, testing, and training.
You also need to instrument your project early on to ensure that you can collect metrics to demonstrate success. If a positive result follows, you and/or an agent must disseminate the results. This is your internal marketing program. Get your first stakeholder singing the praises of your initiative and others will find their way to your door.
The ability to forge and maintain such relationships ranks high in CIO Associate Esther Schein's “7 Competencies of Successful Digital Leaders.” This goes hand-in-hand with other soft skills, such as the ability to clearly communicate goals, motivate others, and "tell stories" using terminology business leaders understand. Surrounding these qualities, Schein says, is adaptability to change, a trait that has been put to the test over the past 18 months.
Guidance on how work arrangements should be realigned in the wake of our ongoing pandemic rests with CEOs, not CIOs. But once the fundamental decisions have been made, are we going to reduce office space? What does hybrid work mean to us? - IT management must implement a consistent plan for associated collaboration, security, and automation solutions. As Computerworld editor Charlotte Trueman points out in “How to Make the Hybrid Workplace a Success,” many companies envision a “remote-first” future.
The challenges of working remotely have increased the stress level for security professionals. But purposeful security professionals capable of forging strong working relationships defy the stereotype of the embattled CISO, struggling in vain to fend off relentless attacks. In “CISO Job Satisfaction: Finding Meaning in Mission,” Mary Pratt offers a normative quote from MongoDB CISO Lena Smart: “You have to have a good story, and it has to be understandable and relatable. "Lone work, on the other hand, carries all sorts of dangers. In "12 Ways to Make Bad Tech Decisions," Isaac Sacolick, editor-in-chief of InfoWorld, returns to the same themes over and over again: Don't make assumptions. Interact with stakeholders and customers to determine their actual needs rather than stated ones. First, create proof-of-concept solutions to validate your choices instead of just moving on.
To succeed in any initiative, you need the right people with the right skills, including those who make your infrastructure work. As Network World contributor Maria Korolov observes in her overview of network certifications, the needs of IT organizations have evolved to accommodate remote work, resulting in a high demand for SDN, cloud and automation skills. . Network professionals who earn certifications in these fields are experiencing unprecedented salary increases.
Choosing the perfect solution or hiring highly qualified personnel is not enough for any technological expansion. Yes, continuous change promises to be our default state going forward.
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