Australian CIOs coming out of the shadows

The growing trend of shadow IT among Australian businesses is paradoxically giving CIOs an opportunity to take a leading role in their organisations, according to BT.

Shadow IT is common practice in Australia, according to a study commissioned by the telecom giant.

Around 69% of Australian CIOs report seeing shadow IT within their organisations, and shadow IT now accounts for around 20% of the average Australian organisation’s IT spend.

But the growing confidence of business units in buying their own IT solutions also means CIOs can spend less time micromanaging and more time focused on taking a more strategic role.

Just over half (51%) of Australian respondents feel the CIO has a much more central role in the boardroom compared to two years ago, and 71% believe the board’s expectations of them have increased substantially during the same period.

This is reflected in factors including CIOs now having more business-oriented than technology-oriented KPIs, as well as boardrooms now recognising the need for a more creative CIO that can operate across the organisation.

The survey suggests that Australia is slightly behind the global curve when it comes to shadow IT adoption - worldwide, 76% of CIOs report seeing shadow IT within their organisations, and shadow IT accounts for an average of 25% of total IT spend.

“I’ve been a CIO and to me it feels as if we’re on the verge of a renaissance of the profession with greater opportunities than ever before,” BT Global Services CIO Luis Alvarez commented.

“In this new environment, CIOs who can adopt a creative, imaginative and visionary mindset, and look more to their IT partners for innovation and fresh thinking, will thrive.”

Image courtesy of Jose Camões Silva under CC