Understanding security landscapes contributes to the longevity of CIO jobs

• Too often, CIOs work hard to implement new initiatives, but leave before seeing the results of their efforts.
• Organizations around the world are tightening their belts and surveillance of purchases is at an all-time high.
• CIOs can spend millions on security and overcommunication, but the weakest link will always be the human firewall.

The world sees the work of CIO like nothing less than a juggling game. Because the stakes are high in computing, the game has become extremely insidious: system deployments are often in place for a long time, and it takes a long time to change a ship’s direction.

Too often, CIOs work hard to implement new initiatives, but leave before seeing the results of their efforts. A survey of 3,018 CIOs found that top performing CIOs reached an agreement with their C-suite colleagues about overall organizational goals and how IT can facilitate them.

So what does it take to be a long-term CIO? Here are some key pointers:

1. Learn to do more with less

Organizations around the world are tightening their belts and surveillance of purchases is at an all-time high. CIOs should look at key use cases to see where fat can be reduced. Contrasting and comparing the pros and cons of the best approaches to deduce the most cost effective is the need of the hour.

The key is to prioritize solutions that will save money in the long run. Key spend in critical areas can significantly reduce costs with proper analysis, and this is the primary task that CIOs need to accomplish.

2. Pay attention to the human firewall and maintain transparency

CIOs can spend millions on security and communicate priorities horizontally and vertically. But the weakest link will always be the human firewall. Maintaining awareness and implementing best practices with consistent governance can go a long way to ensuring social engineering and preventing the next data breach from being caused by a phishing email. This must be constantly monitored and enforced. IT leaders must take the initiative and lead from the front. Being responsible also means being able to react.

3. Stay informed

Companies have suffered an average of 130 security breaches per year per organization. CIOs should develop and extend a community-based cybersecurity strategy. CIOs can join industry, regional, and topical organizations, as well as special interest groups, such as Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISACs) and Information Sharing and Analysis Organizations ( ISAO). Security is a collaborative business, so CIOs, to stay in the game longer, must start by establishing neighborhood watch.

4. Flexibility and agility required

Technology is advancing at breakneck speed, requiring a high level of adaptability. CIOs unable to adapt to these changes will unfortunately be left behind in a competitive field. However, CIOs who see every new development as an opportunity – whether mobile, BYOD, CloudWhere IoT – will remain in demand because they have demonstrated that they can use new technologies to produce business value.


5. Keep learning mode on


In the world of information and technology, professional longevity comes at a cost, which is continuous learning. It’s easy to get stuck in old technology if CIOs aren’t passionate enough or complacent about technological advancements.

There are many ways to stay up to date, professional groups, conferences, developer boot camps and meetups are all great places to learn about new technologies and network with others in the relevant field. . CIOs must be familiar with their industry and the organization’s operations. It will be easier to produce more business-aligned goods, software, and services if CIOs have a better understanding of business needs.

The way forward for CIOs

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has spent around ₹416 crore to improve cyber defense across the country by June 2021, which is 389% more than the ₹85 crore it spent in 2015- 2016. And it clearly proclaims the need for CIOs to up their security game.

To determine the right path, CIOs must communicate value and demonstrate an overall passion for the changing perception of IT from a cost center to a business enabler. The ability to communicate the true value of technology investment to non-technology leaders is the most important talent. Each CIO is chosen to lead a project at a given moment in their technological career.

To ensure success, CIOs need to make sure they have all the right tools when the time comes. If one wants to move into management, this is a crucial factor in determining career longevity. In reality, CIOs must continually strive to enrich their experience working on a variety of projects in order to be able to effectively lead the business in an ever-expanding cyber threat landscape.