Fifty-seven percent of chief information officers (CIOs) in Singapore would replace half or more of their company’s current technology if they were given a chance to reboot from scratch, according to a recent study by tech company Lenovo.
As business models change, more than three-quarters (88%) of the CIOs surveyed would definitely or probably consider adding new as-a-Service offerings over the next two years. Six in 10 are already using more device-as-a-service in their technology stack than the previous year.
These plans to invest more in digital transformation are not surprising as technology is the nervous system that connects corporate strategy, finance, innovation, operations, and talent in today’s organisations.
The study also reveals that the role of the CIO has evolved and expanded in the past few years. Nearly all CIOs in Singapore claim that their role and responsibilities have expanded beyond technology, including non-traditional areas such as digital transformation and business process automation (65%), data analytics and business reporting (51%), and business model transformation (45%).
More than four in five also say their role has become more challenging compared to two years ago. The top challenges are data privacy/security (77%), cybersecurity/ransomware (74%), keeping up with technological change (72%), adopting/deploying new technology (72%), and cloud transformation (65%).
As such, the surveyed CIOs expect to work more closely with their vendors to solve a variety of problems, including increasing their organisational agility (62%), simplifying the configuration, deployment and maintenance of technology (50%), and optimising costs (49%).
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“Modern CIOs are the ‘mission control’ for their organisations. From navigating complex tech ecosystems to keep up with the speed of digital transformation to upskilling employees and managing a global shortage of IT talent, today’s CIO is responsible for the entire technology value chain and beyond,” says Nigel Lee, general manager of Lenovo Singapore.
He continues: “As Lenovo’s research highlights, CIOs look to their technology vendors beyond just delivering the basics well – namely, increase organisational agility, simplify configuration, and optimise costs. IT leaders also need counsel and guidance on how emerging technology can enhance their business goals. The opportunities for technology to add real business value – right across the enterprise – are immense.”
