At the beginning of 2019, is your role as a Chief Information Officer what it was a year or two ago? Is that even still your title? Chances are the answers are no. Your role is possibly broader and more strategic than it was.

Much has been written about the changing role of the CIO. There is talk about CIO 3.0. Some CIOs may feel pressure to take on new responsibilities, so they aren’t overshadowed by other new CXO leaders. But many more want to broaden their role as healthcare and technology evolves.

As John Glaser summarized so well in his article, “The Evolution of the Health Care Chief Information Officer”, many new CXO roles now interplay with the CIO role.

He talked about the five factors shaping the CIO 3.0:  the transformation of the health care business model; relentless innovation in information technology; shift in strategic emphasis; stepping up your skills; and IT leadership becoming a team sport. This last one is critical. The CIO and other evolving roles must play well with one another in the interest of the organization.

One of our StarBridge Advisors blogs in 2018 was by Avery Cloud, a former advisor and now CIO at Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System (FMOLH).  The title of his blog post was “The C-Double I-O”, adding a second “I” in the CIO title for innovation. He challenged CIOs to become as conversant in innovation principles as they are in ITIL.

David Chou, Chief Information and Digital Officer at Children’s Mercy Hospital, suggests that CIO also must mean “chief influence officer”. In his article he emphasizes the importance of creating a strong culture that supports transformation, and thinking like a CEO.

In the most recent StarBridge Advisors blog, “10 Steps to Prepare for 2019 – Big Challenges – Bigger Opportunities”, David Muntz had some advice for CIOs in the coming year. In step #3 he encourages CIOs to do a self-assessment. He comments on the changing role saying, “The CIOs who can evolve and collaborate will succeed. Those who cannot will be replaced or find themselves reporting to someone else in the C-suite or to one of the titles that traditionally reported to them.”  Recognizing that no one individual has all the abilities needed, the bottom line according to David is “collaborate, coordinate, and communicate.”

In a 2018 Gartner article, Mike Jones, research director at Gartner, recommended six key actions for healthcare CIOs. One in particular stands out regarding the changing CIO role. The sixth action he outlines is “master soft skills to drive change more effectively” described as follows:

Delivering digital initiatives in the politically charged and resource constrained environment of healthcare is not just dependent on having the right IT planning. It also relies on the ability of IT leaders to inspire and persuade. CIOs should boost their competency in four areas:

Politics: Manage the pervasive importance of organizational politics by building strategic partnerships with other leaders.

Cohesion building: Target cohesion and a sense of belonging as a goal of application rationalization, especially when also dealing with mergers, acquisitions or public health system consolidations (shared services).

Upward mentoring: Mentor leaders who do not know that IT has evidence-based practices (just like medicine) or are not yet committed to following them.

Visual storytelling: Elevate the visual aspect of storytelling by creating more compelling and lasting mental images of pain and potential gain.  

If you want to be a CIO 3.0, you need to be an influencer, an innovator, a strategist, a business leader, a communicator and to think like a CEO. You need to develop and nurture a strong IT leadership team. But there is no “one size fits all” when it comes to the CIO role. Organizations vary in their size and complexity. CIOs vary in their core competencies and ambitions.

You need to determine the role(s) needed by your organization. You need to develop the skills and knowledge to ensure you can fill that role. You need to align with and partner with other senior leaders to ensure your organization is well served.  And remember, you are part of a team in this continually evolving healthcare environment.

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