Strategies for being a good CIO

The CIO's job is always being refined. Should she dictate the company's IT direction? Should she be saving money or making money? Should she be troubleshooting when something goes wrong with the system?

Some of these issues present a tug-of-war for the CIO's strategy. A group of public and private-sector CIOs at the California CIO Academy gathered last week to come up with tips on what a CIO should know and problems to avoid. Here are a few of them:

• Embrace change. Don't let financial hard times hold you back.
• Have a good relationship with your team. Develop strong relationships with people at all levels of the IT shop.
• Keep stress at bay. Be a positive motivator to your staff, not a negative one.
• Build a team you can rely on and treat them like gold.
• Be accountable. Make sure you are as accountable as you expect your staff to be.

Make sure you have a well-run ship, not one that continually has personnel problems or needs to be patched.

For more on being a good CIO:
- see this GovTech.com article

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