Intelligent CIO Middle East Issue 26 | Page 45

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// A s no two digital transformation projects will ever be the same, from the very start of the process, CIOs need to be extremely clear on the business outcomes the organisation wants to achieve through digital transformation. Moreover, CIOs need to have a fundamental understanding of the company’s business models and leverage their visibility across the organisation to help identify how such a digital transformation journey might affect each area of the company. After all, undertaking a digital transformation project for a traditional business, born in the age before cloud, will be very different from the www.intelligentcio.com FEATURE: DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION journey taken by a cloud-born start-up that’s looking to generate more revenue. It’s understanding these intricacies and objectives that will provide the CIO with the opportunity to approach a transformation programme in a much more effective way. The ideal is that any new type of digital transformation effort starts with a good business idea or premise and then it’s the CIOs and IT organisations’ role to help deliver the capabilities needed to validate the premise. It is now widely recognised that digital business models are changing the role of CIOs. This reality is amplifying the need for CIOs and their leadership colleagues across the enterprise to collaborate on Riverbed Technology’s CIO Richard Hillebrecht shares some critical factors that can determine the success of any digital transformation. INTELLIGENTCIO 45