Mentors every CIO needs

As a CIO, you may feel fully competent to run your own shop and handle relations with the rest of the enterprise. But there is a school of thought that says, relying only on your own talents and energy may put you at a disadvantage. CIOUpdate.com suggests CIOs look to mentors for help in areas such as imagination, air cover and a reality check.

By "imagination," the article means, getting new ideas from CEOs and board members from other companies, IT people from completely different industries, and talented business people in other functions. "Air cover" is basically having someone to watch your back. It might be wise for CIOs to become close with someone higher up in the organization who can serve as an advocate on their behalf when they are not in the room. And then, there is the "reality check." In other words, a mentor can help a CIO keep up with changing business conditions and know-how about outsourcing and globalization, mobility and Web 2.0 business adoption.

It would be useful to look for mentors who run an outsourcing company, someone who has successfully implemented cost reductions and maybe even someone in their 20's who is a master at social networking.
 
For more advice for CIOs:
- see this CIOUpdate.com article
 
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