Chief execs told to learn about IT or fail at business

Chief executives need to better understand information technology projects within their organisation or face falling behind their competitors, according to a new report by the Chartered Management Institute.

The study - which looked a thousand IT projects and interviewed twenty chief executives and chief information officers in such wide ranging organisations as retailer Tesco and the National Health Service (NHS) - showed that while business leaders accept the value of technology, they have little interest in learning about it.

Because of this, responsibility for change moves from the chief executive to IT specialists, often leaving aside business strategy. "I see day in and day out that some organisations are moving ahead of the rest," said Andy Green, chief executive of BT Global Services, which sponsored the study along with Deloitte and Serco. "Understanding how business strategy and IT strategy fit has never been more important."

During a panel discussion to announce the study, JP Rangaswami, the chief information officer of BT Global Services, warned that because a five-year strategic plan is worth about three technology cycles, business needs to up its pace. He said to consider Moore's law, where technology doubles every 18 months. "Human's haven't learned at that rate," Rangaswami said. But to stay competitive, chief executives are going to have to play catch-up.

Organisations must accept that change is the status quo and better manage it. "We have to get good at how our organisation handles change - that's nothing to do with IT, but no IT project worth its salt doesn't affect change," said Green.

Panellist Ian McCaig, chief executive of Lastminute.com, noted that the rate of change is accelerating. Change does not happen at a steady state, he said. "The real issue is the speed and acceleration with which things are moving. The only way for the leadership team to implement everything is to have governance absolutely bang on."

The report also advised organisations to improve communications, so failing projects can be identified earlier in the process. "People don't like acknowledging that they're wrong," said Rangaswami. "It's of team, collective value to say it's going off the rails, and it may not be anyone's fault."

Business leaders must realise that any important IT changes will affect everyone in the organisation and stop seeing them as one-off projects, the report advised. It's up to them to understand technology and lead the company, said Green. "Are we, as CEOs, prepared to realise that this is our job?" he asked.

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