One difficult question for a CIO who wants to lead an Investment Center

Regarding our discussion in class about IT roles above the pure implementation line there is one question that might be interesting to answer. What is the new role of alliances between the business and its customers and suppliers if the new CIO needs to move his organization to an Investment Center?

Below the line, history has already been written by business accountants: “Do some benchmark” and find whether you need to make or buy (i.e. do it yourself or outsource). Above the line, it might be quite different: “There is no benchmark” so find who is prepared to take the risk with you. That seems to be tough. How do you convince your current customers or suppliers that you actually have a new innovation agenda and that you want to try with them? If any of these customers or suppliers denies your offer, are they no longer strategic partners for the business?

My answer comes from some leadership background. It's very fresh in my mind so that is why I'm using it and also because I thing it is very useful to frame a possible approach. Joshua Chamberlain, a US commander of the Union Army during the Civil War was awarded a Medal of Honor for his critical contribution in the battle of Gettysburg. Some historians think that his vision in a very specific moment during this battle changed the outcome of the war. In one of his famous speeches, he addressed to a group of twenty mutineers:

“There is nothing I can do today, we are moving up in a few minutes and we will be moving all day…I’ve told that if you don’t come I can shoot you. Well you know I won’t do that. Others can, but not me. We can surely use you. We are now well below half strength. Whether you fight or not is up to you. Whether you come along … well you are coming … We are here for something new, this has not happened much. What we are fighting for, in the end, we are fighting for each other. If you choose to join us and you want your muskets back you can have them. If you choose not to join us, well you can come along and when this is all over I’ll do whatever I can to see you get a fair treatment but for now we are moving out. Gentleman, I think that if we lose this fight, we lose the war. So if you choose to join us, I’ll be personally very grateful” (www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kdOKJXfTU4)

So there is a lot of humanity in IT, maybe more than buzzwords. To answer the questions in my own words I would certainly point to:

1) Be though with your IT goals (you are moving),

2) Be true about their novelty and about their risk (you are here for something new)

3) Make your organization's present critical for the future of everyone of your customers and suppliers but create mutually acceptable conditions (whether they come along or not is not the question. The question is whether they'll be active or passive).