The CIO role is evolving into a strategic business leadership position
Technology used to sit at the back of the room. Now it sits at the head of the table. CIOs are no longer just responsible for maintaining infrastructure and fixing outages. Today, they are business strategists, partners in growth. In fast-moving markets, technology powers competitive advantage. This makes the CIO central to how companies innovate, create better customer experiences, and grow revenue.
Leadership is noticing. Boardrooms now expect CIOs to speak the language of business, not just systems. That means shaping strategic decisions, not just supporting them. It means understanding market dynamics, customer demands, and revenue models, and applying technology in ways that move company metrics forward.
Sal DiFranco, managing partner at DHR Global, explains this shift clearly. He says organizations are giving CIOs broader responsibility because technology is tied directly to top-line growth. According to him, CIOs who focus on technology for its own sake, and not for its business impact, won’t get the top roles anymore. Innovation matters, but it’s not enough on its own. Innovation must drive measurable outcomes. That’s the new bar.
The modern CIO has to stay close to product strategy, customer needs, and financial goals. That’s what earns a seat at the decision-making table. And once you’re there, the expectation is even higher: deliver growth, not just stability.
CIOs must adopt a profit and loss (P&L) mindset
It’s not enough for CIOs to optimize systems. They have to understand how every tech investment impacts the bottom line. A profit-and-loss mindset isn’t optional anymore, it’s required. If you’re running IT, you’re not just a service leader. You’re running a business within the business.
CIOs are now expected to quantify everything, from cloud strategy to AI pilots, in terms executives care about: cost savings, revenue impact, and speed to market. You should be able to explain how a system reduces churn, improves margins, or drives upsell. If you can’t answer those questions clearly, your next project probably won’t get funded.
Sal DiFranco puts it simply: top-tier CIOs have shifted their thinking. They act and speak like CEOs of their tech organizations. That includes P&L fluency. If your IT team doesn’t know its impact on operating leverage, you’re behind. Being innovative isn’t enough, you have to be operationally excellent too.
This shift also changes how CIOs communicate across the executive team. You’re not presenting technical milestones; you’re discussing growth levers. You’re shaping financial forecasts through technology choices. If your peers understand why your investment in automation improves EBITDA, they’ll back your roadmap. If not, they’ll see IT as overhead.
Owning a P&L perspective also builds credibility. It allows IT to stop reacting and start leading. That’s the difference between fixing issues and driving transformation.
Aligning technology initiatives with business goals
When technology doesn’t tie back to real business objectives, it loses relevance. That’s the core issue most companies face. Systems may function smoothly, but the real question is: do they move the revenue needle? Do they improve customer experience in a meaningful way? CIOs who get this right don’t just keep the lights on, they turn technology into a revenue engine.
Doug Gilbert, CIO and Chief Digital Officer at Sutherland, made this pivot happen by categorizing revenue into two types: digitally driven and digitally dependent. That’s a smart move. It puts numbers behind strategy. Teams stop treating tech as overhead and start seeing it as a growth factor. It also enables year-over-year tracking of digital initiatives with clear KPIs linked to business performance.
This isn’t theory, it’s execution. Gilbert partnered with C-level peers across functions to build digital experiences focused on cross-functional value. It broke down silos. The result? A business-wide shift in mindset. Every team, not just IT, began connecting their efforts to outcomes tied to technology.
Executives looking to replicate this approach should assess every IT initiative on one metric: impact. If the project doesn’t support revenue, reduce cost, or improve product velocity, it needs a rethink. Technology has to prove its value in business terms, always.
Cross-functional collaboration and synchronized leadership
The failure point in most digital transformations isn’t software, it’s people. Specifically, leadership that isn’t aligned. If timelines, incentives, and KPIs point in different directions across business units, the whole effort slows down or collapses entirely. That’s why cross-functional alignment matters. A lot.
Doug Gilbert addresses this head-on. At Sutherland, he ensured digital projects had shared definitions of value from the start. Metrics weren’t siloed. They were co-owned across functions. This approach anchored everyone to the same business goals, not just deployment milestones.
He also implemented structured governance: visible reporting, steering committees with multi-team participation, and constant feedback loops. These aren’t merely administrative tools, they allow for fast, informed adjustments when priorities shift. That’s important. Markets move fast, and digital strategies must be able to adjust quickly without breaking alignment.
When C-suite leaders commit to shared KPIs and stay involved in governance, digital efforts stop being “IT projects” and start becoming enterprise-level change initiatives. That changes how teams think about their role in transformation. And most importantly, it significantly raises the chance of long-term success.
Clear communication and incremental value delivery build trust
Big, complex projects that offer no visible results for long stretches often lose support. People get frustrated when they can’t see progress. Executives start to question funding. That’s why clear communication and early, incremental value delivery matter. They’re not just beneficial, they’re essential.
Anisha Vaswani, Chief Information and Customer Officer at Extreme Networks, is clear on this. She pushes for agile, step-by-step execution instead of long-term programs that take years to show outcomes. Her team actively communicates milestones, even if the full result isn’t ready. This gives teams something to track, something to support. It boosts confidence.
This approach does more than manage expectations, it improves adoption. When stakeholders understand how a project is evolving, and why certain steps matter, they’re more likely to stay engaged. They get the “why” behind the change. That makes the rollout smoother and the results easier to scale.
For decision-makers, it’s a reminder: digital transformation isn’t just a delivery challenge. It’s a communication challenge. The better you explain progress and purpose, early and often, the more aligned your organization becomes. If the value story is clear from day one, support sustains itself automatically.
Balancing experimentation with emerging technology
AI and similar technologies offer big potential, but not all experiments will succeed. That’s a reality CIOs have to accept. The job isn’t just to innovate, it’s to innovate with discipline. That means giving teams room to test, while holding each initiative up to a clear standard: did this deliver real, measurable business value?
Anisha Vaswani points to this balance directly. Her advice is simple: create a space for experimentation, but don’t fall in love with the tech. Let people try things, learn, and move on quickly if the results don’t materialize. The goal isn’t to chase hype, it’s to stay focused on defined outcomes. If it doesn’t serve customers or improve efficiency, it’s not worth scaling.
Success and failure both need to be clearly defined ahead of time. That’s what keeps momentum strong and strategy grounded. It also protects time and budget. Leaders who can walk away from low-impact ideas tend to move faster overall.
Executives should be selective with emerging technology. Not cautious, just sharp. The aim is to move fast without letting enthusiasm outweigh results. That’s how you keep innovation practical and purposeful.
Pursuing smaller, high-impact projects can build momentum and credibility
One project that delivers value quickly is more persuasive than a portfolio filled with delayed potential. This is why CIOs focused on smaller, high-impact initiatives are gaining the trust and support needed to scale transformation on a broader level. These wins provide concrete proof that investment in technology delivers measurable business outcomes.
Sal DiFranco, managing partner at DHR Global, sees this trend accelerating. He notes that CIOs who partner closely with business leaders to achieve quick results are setting the foundation for wider organizational change. It’s working because the value is visible early, and that builds internal momentum.
Anisha Vaswani from Extreme Networks reinforces the point: be transparent about what’s working and what isn’t. Not everything will go smoothly. That’s normal. But being open about failures earns trust. It sets the tone for honest collaboration. It signals to peers that IT is accountable and focused on outcomes, not just execution.
For executives, this means supporting a tech agenda that isn’t solely built around scale, it’s built around proof. The fastest way to win confidence in transformation is to show it’s already working. Deliver impact, then expand. That’s how you earn long-term buy-in at every level of the organization.
Recap
Technology leadership isn’t what it used to be, and that’s a good thing. The modern CIO sits at the intersection of innovation, revenue, and execution. This shift demands more than technical depth, it requires operational awareness, financial clarity, and a sharp focus on outcomes.
For executive teams, this creates a new opportunity. A high-functioning CIO can unlock real business value, faster growth, and stronger execution across departments. But only if there’s alignment, support, and a shared understanding of what success looks like. It means removing silos, communicating clearly, and staying grounded in metrics that actually matter.
Treat tech investments like business bets. Back your CIOs like you would back a product owner or a business line leader. Hold them to smart benchmarks. Give them room to deliver, and to fail fast when needed. That’s how transformation moves from concept to impact.
Keep it pragmatic. Make value visible early. And let your technology leaders think big while staying focused on what moves the business forward.
