Of course, this structure requires greater strategic acumen from the CIO than many have yet demonstrated. CIOs can't just argue for the technology in a vacuum; the CIO has to champion it by describing the transformational opportunities specific to the company that the technology offers. It's also important for the CEO to understand that the parts of the CIO's organization devoted to providing infrastructure services (for example, company networking, systems management) are different than other "business-facing" departments. The former are requirements and costs of doing business and it's unfair to judge them on the basis of return on investment.. By failing to separate IT service from IT strategy - and comprehend that the CIO is ultimately responsible for both - CEOs often grow frustrated with their chief technologists, confused as to whether they should be asked to provide merely utility or something much more critical than that. The answer is, CIOs need to manage both, and for the relationship between CEOs and CIOs to work, that unique dynamic has to be understood.

Bridging the Communication Gap

Creating a management and decision-making structure at a company that includes a significant role for the CIO is only the beginning; after that, a CEO must strongly communicate support for not only the CIO, but also the technology that the CIO represents. Otherwise, turf battles between business units and technology champions will inevitably break out.

At the same time, CIOs are going to have to shoulder the burden of tearing down the wall between themselves and their peers in the executive suite by learning to frame technology solutions in a business construct and to balance them against other business priorities. There are many ways for a CEO to publicly express backing for the CIO. One is to put the CIO on the calendar for regularly scheduled meetings -at least as frequently as the CEO meets alone with the head of sales, marketing, manufacturing, and the like. This offers CEOs the chance to question the CIO about technological initiatives that are suited to the company's plans. It's also an opportunity for the CEO to share private corporate information, such as the existence of ongoing merger discussions, and elicit the CIO's opinion. On the flip side, it gives the CIO a platform to show that he or she is ready for managerial strategizing.

Another way for a CEO to communicate support for the CIO is for the CEO to equate the organization's success with the implementation of the most advanced and highly leverageable technology. That is what occurred at Kinko's Inc., which has transformed itself from a campus-oriented copying center into a web of "branch offices" for small businesses fully outfitted with the latest networking, communications, and document-production technology. CEO Gary Kusin, facing rivals that range from stores like Mail Boxes Etc. to major manufacturers like Xerox, Canon, and Kodak, has publicly said that the current technology initiatives are just the beginning for Kinko's and that the company's future success depends on doing much more.

If the chief executive is a technology champion then the CIO must become the CEO's very visible partner in this effort. CIOs may not have had the chance to develop internal managerial skills, but they must acquire them in order to present business rationales and carefully calculated return-on-investment scenarios. Similarly, CIOs must develop the ability to articulate to the press, industry leaders, Wall Street, and nontechnical employees the company's core technology vision and how what flows from this vision will impact the organization's financial and operating performance.