CIOs should make digital business tech an IT responsibility

CIOs need to decide how they will position their IT organization in relation to emerging digital business technologies, such as the Internet of Things, 3D printing, wearable technology and robotics, according to Gartner.

“The IT organization is used to owning and supporting “back office” and infrastructure technologies. Digital business technologies support the “front office” and operations and may be emerging technologies that are not commonly part of the IT agenda,” Gartner Fellow Hung LeHong said.

As a result, some CIOs will take a supportive role in relation to digital technologies, while operations and other business departments take the lead, he said.

However, some CIOs will take a leadership role, expanding its skill sets and business knowledge and extending the IT organization’s role from one that is IT-centric to one that fully supports a digital business.

“Regardless of the eventual stance, we believe CIOs should have an opinion, and should participate in innovating and in testing the business cases for these technologies in the early stages,” said Mr. LeHong.

“Many companies are looking to digital business technologies as their next source of competitive advantage. There is too much at stake — in both business value and technology investment — for CIOs to stay in the margins.”

Gartner has identified six emerging areas that will potentially be adopted by digital businesses that CIOs need to consider.

Cybersecurity

Although not a technology, no discussion with CIOs about digital business technologies can be complete without addressing cybersecurity needs. Digital business technologies are already found throughout operations in many enterprises. Security responsibilities for those technologies are not generally found in IT security today. However, that is changing. Digital business technologies will be used in physical security infrastructure in the same way it will be used in IT security infrastructure. This will drive deeper collaboration by CIO security staff with physical security personnel, and deeper integration between IT and physical security infrastructure and services.

The Internet of Things (IoT)

For many enterprises, most endpoints on a corporate network will be things (for example, machines and building sensors), and not PCs or mobile devices. From a business value perspective, the IoT is poised to deliver major productivity improvements and new revenue streams (combined, Gartner forecasts $9 trillion by 2020).

According to Gartner, the IoT will create political tension between operations, product development and IT. Consumer-centered IoT (such as the connected home) has few legacy deployments and therefore, CIOs can get in on the ground floor, influencing outcomes and contributing to the technology selections. Industrial-centered IoT also has many opportunities, but CIOs will need to approach these with a lighter hand, because there is likely to be a pre-existing body of technology invested over many years, or even decades, by engineering and operations groups. CIOs will need to navigate these political challenges carefully and plan for the resources and skills they will need to span operational and technology projects.

3D Printing

According to Gartner, 3D printing has formidable, transformational potential that CIOs should not underestimate. At the least, 3D printing will remain a niche market in manufacturing and of consumer hobbyists. At its most transformational potential, 3D printing can affect global trade. For example, 3D printing products can eliminate the need to import and disintermediate any part of the supply chain.

CIOs need to have a position on how transformational (or not) 3D printing will be in their industry and enterprise and related issues like intellectual property rights.

Human augmentation and wearable technology

Technology can be used to augment humans. This can range from increasingly present wearable technologies to emerging brain-interface and implanted technologies. Wearable technology can improve employee effectiveness, safety and health. However, bring-your-own-wearable issues will require clear policies. CIOs need to consider human, legal, social and ethical issues — which will vary greatly across geographies and demographic groups.

Robotics and autonomous machines

Robotics and autonomous machines are essentially the convergence of computers, mechanical systems and electronics (for example, cameras and sensors). This convergence may force robots and autonomous machines (including vehicles) to directly or indirectly appear on CIOs’ agendas.

Newer-generation robots change the cost equation, with a purchase cost approximately equivalent to the annual earnings of a minimum wage employee. However, when evaluating the business case for robots and autonomous machines, CIOs should look well beyond labor savings. Other benefits may include less machine wear, shorter lead times, greater safety and less downtime.

Cognitive machines

Cognitive machines are characterized by their ability to handle decision-making tasks that often require a level of judgment only humans were thought to be able to handle (for example, writing news articles, acting as personal assistants or interacting with customers like a customer service representative).

CIOs should look for repetitive use cases and think about using these technologies in a way that complement, rather than replace, human employees, for example, as an aid to help doctors diagnose and discover/confirm treatment plans. Using cognitive machines has significant impact on an enterprise’s brand and perception in the industry, so the decision to use cognitive machines becomes a question for the board and CEO — with advice from CIOs and other senior executives.