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Preview of the May 21 MIT Sloan CIO Symposium: Taking the Next Steps Forward

May 14, 2014

These are the questions most CIOs grapple with every day in one form or another. While answers are unique to every organization, there are many common strategies and solutions to be shared. In one day, May 21, the 2014 MIT Sloan CIO Symposium will offer an all-star lineup of experts—from industry, academia, and CIO practitioners themselves—who will discuss, debate and debunk current trends and practices.

Among the highlights of the day are these sessions on professional development and CIO trends:

 

1. Evolve or Perish: Becoming the CIO of the Future

Summary: Only one in four CIOs is perceived by their business counterparts as a game changer or even as a true peer, according to the 2014 State of the CIO report from CIO.com. Some 48% of CIOs acknowledged their IT groups are perceived as service providers or cost centers. Can the CIOs of cost centers survive? What does it take to become a game changer?

Not only are technologies rapidly changing, but there’s also been a dramatic shift in the kinds of technologies within the enterprise; particularly, cloud platforms. This shift has enabled business units and departments, like marketing, to manage their own technologies, possibly diminishing the role of CIOs in leading innovation. On the other hand, with the rise of the CIO Plus, as documented in the work of Richard Hunter and George Westerman, CIOs who are great leaders of their IT units are getting the opportunity to lead other parts of the enterprise — such as operations, shared services, strategy, and digital media. Some have even become CEOs in their own right. Will CIOs have more or less responsibility in the future? What can today’s CIOs do now to influence the future direction of their careers? Hear from:

  • Shawn Banerji, Russell Reynolds Associates – Moderator
  • Ricardo Bartra, Deutsche Post DHL – Global Forwarding
  • Douglas Menefee, Amazon Web Services
  • Dan Petlon, Consultant
  • Stephanie Woerner, MIT Center for Information Systems Research (CISR)

 

2. Meet the MIT Sloan CIO Leadership Award honorees.

Five Chief Information Officers who lead their organizations to deliver business value and innovative use of IT in exceptional ways, have been nominated for the award, which will be announced May 20. The finalists are: Thaddeus Arroyo, CIO, AT&T Services; Dr. Dieter Haban, CIO, Daimler Trucks NA; Adriana Karaboutis, VP & Global CIO, Dell; Stephen Neff, Enterprise CTO, Fidelity; Rebecca Rhoads, President, Global Business Services and CIO, Raytheon.

Each is an exemplary leader and innovator who has delivered tremendous value to their organizations and advanced its ability to compete and succeed in today’s digital world. Hear each of these outstanding CIOs share their insights at the following panels:

  • Thaddeus Arroyo, Panel: CIO, CMO, CDO Perspectives on Digital Transformation

Arroyo has successfully advanced AT&T’s IT transformation strategy from integration, rationalization and capabilities development to an innovation-fueled organization focused on transforming business processes and market offerings in ways that create new value and velocity for AT&T’s business, customers and partners.

  • Dr. Dieter Haban, Panel: Capitalizing on the Internet of Things

Haban is responsible for the entire Daimler Trucks North America IT systems network and overarching technology strategy for the company’s manufacturing network across North America. His a specific focus is on creating innovative solutions to improve company IT processes.

  • Adriana Karaboutis, Panel: Leading the Digital Enterprise

Karaboutis was appointed Vice President and Global CIO for Dell in November 2011. She is responsible for managing an efficient and innovative global IT enterprise focused on enabling the transformation of Dell into an end-to-end solutions provider. She has been with Dell since 2010.

  • Stephen Neff, Panel: Working with the CEO and the Board

As a member of the firm’s Executive Committee, Neff is responsible for the coordination and execution of the firm’s technology functions. He also chairs the enterprise CIO council.

  • Rebecca Rhoads, Panel: Leading the Digital Enterprise
  • Rhoads was named CIO in April 2001 and is responsible for the company’s global IT strategy, processes and personnel. Her vision to leverage common systems and deliver business value led to the creation of Global Business Services in January 2013. She heads this shared services group of functional service delivery areas for supply chain, finance, IT, HR and advanced media.

VIEW THE COMPLETE AGENDA AND PANELS