7 CIOs on building a consultative IT culture

Leveling up the IT organization pays off in terms of credibility, trust, and stronger relationships with business partners. That’s critical for balancing the needs of all stakeholders in a way that everyone can feel comfortable with. ConMed’s Cotti-Osmanski finds that getting everyone clear on the goals also makes it easier to unite around a solution.

“If my security team had it their way, everyone would be working in a cement bunker with a pencil and paper that we burned at the end of every day,” she says. “There has to be a balance, and oftentimes when I see conflict, it’s because we haven’t aligned on or clearly defined our goals. We might both agree that there is a problem, but we don’t agree on what the problem is and how to solve it. The people who are the most successful are able to back the conversation up, listen and ask questions.”

This takes communication skills as well as consultative skills, two of those so-called soft skills that are now core to success in IT. According to Cotti-Osmanski, who started her career in consulting, “The more technology professionals and leaders get comfortable with these kinds of conversations, the more confidence they’ll have in their viewpoints and the more respect they’ll be given for them. They’ll also be more effective at understanding business context and articulating value, which is especially useful when it comes to difficult decisions.”

BCBSLA’s Kozik adds, “Sometimes you have to be that leader that says we’re not ready to tackle X. It’s having the courage and belief to say no, but for the right reason. It’s ‘no’ so that we can accomplish something else of value. But we need to equip our people to confidently have these different conversations.”

Building culture, increasing value

As more companies reorganize their technology organizations around the mega processes or value streams of the business, many CIOs see it as an opportunity to align and amplify IT’s role working hand-in-glove with the business. That means IT teams need the consultative mindset and skillset to hold up their end of the bargain.

DXC Technology

As DXC’s Grinnell says, the point is to help the company make not just better decisions about what and how to deploy technology, but better-informed business decisions that will drive tangible outcomes.

“We make decisions around data, process, and systems, in that order. And we do it purposely,” she says. “What data do we need in order to make a good business decision to drive good business insights so we can innovate and get ahead of the curve? We have KPIs that are looking at, what are the business outcomes we’re trying to achieve? Everything has to be looked at from that lens.”

Kozik, who has a track record of building a consultative culture across multiple companies and industries, has seen the results.

“I know how this movie ends. As my folks start to show up and engage differently, we start to drive more value. These successes change the narrative with our business colleagues, and we get invited to the first meeting where we can have the greatest impact. Meanwhile, morale improves across my department. This is why I’ve been so intentional about investing in the development of consulting and marketing skills,” she says.  

There has never been a better time to be in the IT profession, and those who apply these new skills while leveraging IT’s unique end-to-end view of the enterprise are going to continue to thrive.

Dan Roberts will be leading a pre-conference workshop, “Persuasive Communication,” for CIO’s FutureIT event March 29 in Dallas. The interactive session, led in conjunction with Larry Bonfante, will focus on negotiation, diplomacy, trust-building, and more. Register here.