Chief Information Officer: A Journey Through Time

Abstract

Since, the available informational and technological resources constitute a source of prosperity and differentiation for the organizations, the role of the Chief Information Officer (CIO) is becoming more crucial and vital. The thirty years of the CIO’s existence have shown a path of changes and difficulties on defining and establishing the particular role within the organizational context. The present study examines the CIO role evolution over the last thirty years. The examination of the evolution of the CIO role identifies four main areas of interest that can be used as a conceptual framework for the CIO role research. These areas relate to business strategy, innovation and competitive advantage, relationships building and external environment. The analysis provides insights about the responsibilities of the CIOs, and how those are affected by the key disruptive technologies in the last thirty years.

Keywords: Chief Information Officer, role model, Information Management, Information Systems