The Ways CIOs Can Contribute to Revenue Generation

CIOs will contribute to revenue generation when they are part of the senior exec team responsible for the revenue targets.

With the constant change in the capability of information and technology to serve the business, CIO's role in an enterprise is evolving accordingly. CIO has to foresee, anticipate business needs for information and then prepare and gear up the information systems to not only make readily available pertinent information to top business decision-makers but also preempt the need and present the business value. More specifically, here are six ways CIOs can contribute to revenue generation:

1. ENGAGEMENT: CIOs will contribute to revenue generation when they are part of the senior exec team responsible for the revenue targets. A well-rounded CIO should act like any other board member and contribute to the improvement of products, services, and sales channels. Besides operational efficiency, live, eat and inhale the business model, what can be done to improve these aspects?      
       
2. LISTENING: The best way to achieve partnership is to listen to what the business says they need. Let them tell you their stories and challenges. You have to know and relate to what they value and how they quantify that value first before you can add real value. Develop and socialize a strategic business plan that aligns both business strategies and technical direction. As a result, you'll have an organization that is viewed as a business partner that adds business value. Finally, to gain credibility, ensure better delivery on the commitments.

3. CONVINCING: It takes a strong CIO to convince management to continue IT investment to maintain that nimble state. Unfortunately, many executives see that once IT reaches that state of "can do it," now want to start to milk the process but stop the IT investment. IT efficiency and effectiveness is an ever-evolving state and sometimes it takes larger and not incremental investments to reach desired positions.

4. ANALYTICS: Better and efficient business analytics can provide visibility into the business and certain kind of trends can be seen and the early decision can be made in order to launch new services, tariff changes, improvement in the services. Being an integral part of the business unit(s) planning and budget processes, so the CIO has a clear understanding of the revenue drivers.

5. PROFIT: How can the CIO help a business improve net (profit). Improving revenue alone without improving the net will not be enough as stakeholders will be more interested to see how much net generated from the business rather than revenue. The key question is what will improve the top line and at the same time decrease expenses to improve the bottom line. CIOs can help businesses improve net, by reducing the cost of doing business by keeping the cost down while at the same time maximizing its output so when the business revenue increase, IT cost remains the same which will improve net.

6. “COMMERCIAL”: A good CIO needs to be "commercial" and has some market expertise and business unit managers need back to back KPIs with the CIO on applications/service deliveries, so the organization sees "wholeness” and IT makes contribution cross-organization:
   • The readiness of IT for business initiatives. IT should be highly available and efficient internally that It should take minimum time to market.
   • Better Management of services and operations through IT Systems. Bringing the efficiency and effectiveness of the processes which are obviously run on IT Systems.
   • Better and effective Management of complaints. It means an increase in revenue and customer satisfaction.
   • Stopping the revenue leakage due to IT systems errors
   • Retention of customers/reduction in the churn with better management of services provided to the customers will be an indirect way of increasing and maintaining the revenue.

Posted in: CIO Debate,CIO Leadership,IT Performance Management