A number of Scandinavia’s top IT leaders met at the Grand Hôtel in Stockholm on the 7th of November for a private roundtable dinner hosted by Financial Times columnist and digital strategist Ade McCormack. This report summarises the major discussion points.

1. CiO & TECHNOLOGy
LEADERS SERiES
Enhancing Value to Business:
CIO Best Practices
Summary Report
7 November 2013
Grand Hôtel
Stockholm
@FTLiveTweets #FTHPCIO

2. STOCKHOLM
7 NOVEMBER 2013
AGENDA
18:00
Guest Arrival & Welcome Drinks
18:15
Welcome Remarks from FT chair
Ade McCormack
Opinion Columnist
Financial Times
18:20
Guest Introductions, First Course Served
18:30
Discussion Begins: The Changing Role of the CIO and the Importance of IT in
Enhancing Business Performance
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The changing nature of the business.
The changing role of the CIO.
Achieving strategic relevance through business transformation.
Turning technology trends into business value
19:55
Concluding Remarks from FT chair
Ade McCormack
Opinion Columnist
Financial Times
20:00
Networking Drinks

3. STOCKHOLM
7 NOVEMBER 2013
Speakers
Ade McCormack
Opinion Columnist
Financial Times
Ade McCormack has been an opinion columnist with the Financial Times since 2004.
His focus is on advising business leaders on IT matters. He is the author of a number of books including the ‘IT Value Stack A Boardroom Guide to IT Leadership’ which was critically acclaimed by Nick Carr, former editor of Harvard Business Review ,
“Ade McCormack sounds a much-needed clarion call for IT to “grow up” and become a mature business function.”
Mr McCormack is also a visiting lecturer at MIT Sloan School of Management where he lectures on digital leadership as part of
the MBA programme. He also helps organisations prepare for the digital economy through his eWorld Academy
(www.eworldacademy.com). His IT Beacon blog (www.itbeaconblog.com) was recently short listed by Computer Weekly
magazine as one of the most influential logs in respect of the Chief Information Officer.

4. Summary REPORT
STOCKHOLM
7 NOVEMBER 2013
A number of Scandinavia’s top IT leaders met at the Grand Hôtel in Stockholm on the 7th of November for a private
roundtable dinner which was hosted by Financial Times columnist and digital strategist Ade McCormack. The
heightened security resulting from a visiting Prime Minister in a nearby room set the tone for the conversation. This
report summarises the major discussion points.
Everyone agreed that the manner in which business and society are changing necessitates changes in the manner
in which the IT function supports the organisation. Chief Information Officers need to be technically aware but they
must also develop the skills to gain the trust of the leadership team. This needs to cascade right through the IT
function, particularly at the user service touch points.
Despite the increasing operational pressures to do more with less budget, it was felt that CIOs need to somehow
make time and resources available to demonstrate the manner in which technology can be used in support of
business innovation.
There was a sense that in some sectors the impact of globalisation has yet to hit the region and that action needs to
be taken now, even if on the face of it one appears to be cannibalising a perfectly good business model.
Security, particularly in the context of the bring your own device (BYOD) trend, was a major concern. Maintaining a
secure organisation whilst compromising the existing model is sure to end unhappily. Though it was pointed out that
businesses need to review the security risks in the context of cost and business value, this is not a decision for the
CIO; the enterprise leadership team must make a decision whilst understanding the associated potential for a ‘Black
Swan’ event.
The Internet of Things was brought up given the number of device / appliance players in attendance. It is quite
possible that much like IT many of these products may move to a service based model. Hot on the heels of the
Internet of Things we can expect rapid growth in the Internet of Things in people!
The conversation moved into the social economy and it was suggested that by its very nature this new model
would kill the sales function. The question of whether it would kill retail stores was raised. It was felt that a physical
presence is required though not necessarily to generate sales. It could be that stores are paid on the basis of their
ability to provide a value-added service in respect of educating the market, which can then purchase the item online
at its leisure.
Taking this to the next stage, 3D printers could ultimately lead to manufacturing in the home, whether it be clothing
or meals. The vendors would thus move out of manufacturing and likely focus on licensing their printing algorithms
to the consumers.
The role of IT vendors was explored and it was decided that those that do not build their organisation around the
needs of the customer will enter the ‘hospice’ tech sub sector.
Another question raised during the discussion was ‘who is the customer?’, and everyone agreed that users are better
seen as partners to the IT function. Both should be focused on working together to improve the condition of the end
customer / citizen.
Whilst the digital economy pushes us to be more agile and perhaps to cut corners to meet the needs of the market,
certain industries are constrained by regulation and safety concerns.
Offshore technology service providers were generally viewed in a positive light by participants as they offer great
value for commodity IT requirements.
This in turn caused some of the guests to reconsider the extent to which IT is core to their business. It was concluded
that the role of CIO is to provide the organisation with the tools to ensure that the strategic outcomes are achieved,
technology being a means to this end.

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