Here’s my disclaimer – this isn’t an ego trip. This is just me, talking about what I know, namely being a government CIO. But most of what I am saying is applicable to most technology jobs in government. If you disagree, please feel free to use the comments section below – I welcome any and all constructive debate!
Being a government CIO is not an easy job. Last year, NextGov reported that the average tenure for agency CIOs is only two years. For state CIOs, it’s only 20 months! It’s not a job for a slacker, a underachiever or a clock puncher. It requires time, energy, creativity, patience and a strong stomach and spine. And to make matters worse, the job is constantly evolving. Many recent articles (see for example CIO’s Role Shifts From Managing Information to Promoting Innovation) have described the evolution of the CIO role – moving from a technology operations manager to that of a change agent. Of course that technology management role doesn’t disappear (see my earlier note about NO slackers). But the focus shifts to broader topics, stronger integration into the business strategy of the organization. A recent article from CIO.com paints a broad picture of the next decade:
CIOs can expect their jobs to change dramatically by the end of the decade. Expect an increased role in everything from business planning and cybersecurity to robot management and, of course, the cloud.
Wait. Robot management? Wow. Now that has some serious potential, but I digress.
The simple point is this: CIOs must be willing to innovate or die trying. We’d better be sharp and solid. We are the catalyst for change and improvement. We got to be nimble but we also need to put down roots when necessary. We’ve got to have the guts to boldly venture out into the darkness but also know when to hang back. And we’ve got to remember that you cannot do it alone. Gloryhounds, techno-dilettantes and those not willing to share successes and opportunities with the innovators on your team who are backing you up and pushing you forward will fail. End of story.
You’ve got to balance leadership and empowerment; be a coach, a student, a listener, a talker and a counselor. Like I said…not easy. And in government, with stretched funds and dozens of individual lines of business, the pressure is tenfold.
That being said, I love my job. I am only a few weeks into my third municipal CIO gig, but I can already tell that I am meant to be here. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere but in this hotseat. The energy in a well-run IT shop, percolating with talent, is practically intoxicating to me. It’s like a raw diamond that I get to help polish into a thing of beauty. We build the things that people need – to do their jobs, to run their business or to live their lives. And I am a part of it…and they pay me too? Sign me up!
If you are a private sector CIO, you are missing out my friend. Yeah, I bet you’ve got gobs of money and you’re on the short track to early retirement, but I’ve got a few things that I bet you don’t. Government CIOs have a leg up in many ways. You gotta be in it for the “right” reasons, but here’s a few things to think about when it comes to being a government techie:
Stewardship – we are entrusted with public funds. We are living off of everybody’s taxes, so we must constantly challenge ourselves to do the most with the least. We can’t/don’t/won’t just toss cash at a problem to make it go away. We’ll think it through and get all kinds of creative on it. The gauntlet has been thrown.
Teamwork –The best projects come from a team – a team of customers, techies and maybe even a few quality vendor folks as well. Bringing together a team of independent players around the war table to solve a common problem or reach a shared goal is a very good feeling.
Collaboration – We have a giant network of peers across the globe. Fellow techies on a similar mission. And guess what? We don’t have trade secrets. We’re all about sharing – best practices, projects, people and ideas. We are in competition with ourselves, not each other, so we can build and share and maximize whatever limited resources we’ve got.
Diversity – Governments are dozens of independent businesses wrapped into one organization. They patrol the streets, they loan books, they put out fires, they help you vote, they teach you to swim, they [INSERT A HUNDRED OTHER ACTIVITIES HERE]. And each of those functions uses IT. They need automation. They need project management. They need business process re-engineering. They need databases. They need mobile apps. They need phones. They need radios. They need [INSERT A THOUSAND OTHER SERVICES HERE]. Keep it fun. Keep it fresh. Keep it moving.
Creativity – The economy has shrunk. Recovery might be on the way, but it won’t be quick. As budgets shrink, agencies turn to IT for cost savings – let’s automate these manual processes, let’s upgrade to self-service, etc. Our funding is reduced too, yet the project load doesn’t shrink accordingly. Demands go up but funding, staffing and resources dwindle or if you’re lucky, they stay level. If necessity is the mother of invention, government IT must be the father. We stretch, twist, pull and mold ideas out of best practices, what our neighbors are doing or even some dark and squirrely recess of our mind.
Evolution – The only constant in technology is change. Today is no different. Yesterday, the cloud, open data and BYOD were all theoretical. Today, we are living through them (like it or not). Tomorrow they’ll be resolved and we’ll face new challenges and adventures. At the 2012 North Carolina Digital Summit, Dr. Shannon Tufts from the UNC School of Government said that we should not have technology projects; there should only be business projects with technology components. Point taken. Platform is irrelevant. Service, information and processes should rule the day. Stay open, stay involved, and communicate with customers if you want to stay relevant.
To all my fellow government CIOs and technology types, did I do this justice? I welcome your debate and feedback; I am always up for a fresh perspective! What have I missed? Where do we differ? Where do we agree? Since our roles are so dynamic, let’s make this an ongoing conversation!
Hey Bill, I think you nailed it. I spent 35 years in government service, starting as a street cop, finishing for over 8 years as CTO/CIO for the City of Seattle. I’m proud to continue working with government CIOs at the Center for Digital Government http://www.govtech.com. I think you only missed one thing, although these really runs throughout your blog: commitment to public service.
When I talk to City, County and State government employees – and CIOs – it is this commitment to serving the public which is our strongest motivator. Who else provides and supports wonderful parks, clean water, rapid response to medical incidents or fires, law enforcement, public schools, and a host of other services to every one of the 314 million people of the United States. Who responds when you call 911 or 311? Our information technology units support all that and more.
Thanks for the chance to comment.
P.S. Alas, we don’t get access to the corporate jet, however – http://ow.ly/d1Olw
Good catch Bill – commitment to public service is definitely a pre-requisite! We might not get the corporate jet, but I am still holding out for one of those robots!
Well stated. It is exciting and at the same time a bit scary. Having come from the private sector, the collaboration component is the most refreshing surprise. Most of your peers are more than willing to share what has worked (and not worked) for them. Good luck with the new gig.
Thanks for the feedback Dale! I agree that the collab is one of the best parts!
Excellent summary Bill! I think that a part of our jobs that is somewhat between the lines is to develop people and teach them how to use information and technology in their daily operations. As a CIO I get to lead a team that gets to learn as much as we can about 30+ different business operations to figure out how IT services can help them at the ground level. For me this is one of the most rewarding parts of the job. Especially, when a plan finally comes together. Of course that takes patience, tact, the ability to speak lots of different languages (one for each business unit), and being able to take the complexity out of getting value from technology services & toolsets. The people and relationships are what gets things done and makes the job interesting and fun! Oh, and let’s not forget that we get to be on-call 24/7…
Great summary Kirk! Maybe one of us will get bored (not likely) and build a universal lexicon to make talking all those different languages a little easier! ‘Til then, keep communicating!
Great article Bill…at the state leve, while I had the same desire for public service and awareness of where your budget (and paycheck) came from my awareness is even higher in County level. I think it is because the reach at the local level is so broad…As our friend Bill states….one day the discussion will be with public safety and the next day its a discussion with parks. Today, more than anytime in my career, I can say that understanding the business needs of all the departments I serve is more important than ever.
I’m looking forward to the future and where it takes both my staff and I….it’s an exciting time to be in technology!!
Completely agree with you Chris. It is definitely an exciting time. Whatever else you want to call the job, you can’t call it boring!
Nice Bill, you are right on target! One of the most satisfying aspect to me as a CIO of the largest gov IT shop in our community (yet much smaller than your current gig now), is being able to leverage my organization’s IT capabilities to help our smaller local organizations; cities, schools, colleges, and non-profit partners. It makes a real difference in the community. Working on local broadband issues is a blast, and ties the entire community together as well.
When do I get my robot?
Great point Steve – that collaboration aspect is definitely a highlight for me as well. To me it is a perfect breeding ground for more good stuff as a result of synergy!
Great post Bill and I am enjoying the discussion. Kirk hit the nail on the head. Govt CIO’s create and manage a single IT infrastructure that has to support 20 to 30 different lines of business. We support mandated secure and high availability environments for public safety agencies, social services and health care on the same networks and platforms that also serve public libraries and open and transparent government. The balancing act can be extreme at times and is always fraught with risk. It makes for an exhilarating and demanding job but the rewards of serving the public good, even when they don’t appreciate it, make it all worth while. It’s good to be back in the fold.
Great feedback David. It’s like a thrill ride. We signed up to be scared out of our wits and we love every minute of it! (Okay, well maybe not every minute – but most of them at least!)
…and in a County or State, a lot of those lines of business are lead by an independently elected department head, who can tell you to pound sand as you try to implement enterprise projects/policies/strategies/etc., yet your still heald responsible for overall security/etc. It’s Fun! This post is great therapy Bill.
Glad you found it cathartic Steve!
Bill you definitely do the role justice with the article. There is both constant change and persistent stagnation at the same time, given the multitude of segmented departments that the government CIO comes in contact with on a daily basis. One interesting observation that I have made over the past few years as technology becomes more critical in daily operation is the interest in various departments to combine efforts and resources to reduce redundancy and inefficiencies when possible. For example the primary property offices (Auditor, Assessor and Treasurer) in the county getting together to improve workflow and collaboration, instead of harboring the ‘It’s my data, stay out of it’ or ‘I’m Elected and therefor not interested’ mentality. I’m sure that situation still exists in many locations, but I do feel that it will continue to get better.
Overcoming the fear that end users and department heads have over IT trying to improve processes has been a challenge as well. There is a fear that since we are trying to eliminate some of Employee A’s work, we are therefor trying to eliminate Employee A. We all know that isn’t necessarily true, it is just that we think there are more important/valuable things Employee A can be doing since we can replace many of the tasks with a batch file or script!
Lastly- You are correct in that no one takes on a government CIO role to get rich, but the rewards are still great (albeit not monetary!). The budget line item for IT has thankfully, at least in my experience, become one viewed as increasingly important to the successful overall operation of the municipality. This allows us to implement solutions and technology that benefit not only our direct end users, but the external users (taxpayers, other municipalities, businesses, organizations, etc.) as well.
Hey Dave – thanks for weighing in. You’ve made some great additions to the topic!
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This is an impressive post. I resonated with each point. Even if you can’t speak at CityCamp, I encourage you to attend. It’s quite an amazing experience–especially if you’ve never been to an unconference.