InformationWeek

September 22, 1998

I am an ERP consultant just starting my career with one of the top ERP vendors. I have a B.S. in liberal studies with a minor in computer science. I've also completed an MBA at a second-tier school. My long-term goal is a CIO position in a large company. How should I best develop my career towards this goal? I have good technical skills, but I am currently working as a functional (business analyst) consultant. What is the best track, technical or functional (I could do either)? Should I pursue some kind of certification? What do you recommend?

You are developing your career--you just need more experiences along the way. Starting with a major ERP player is a great start to deepen both your technical and business depth. I can't think of a better way to build a foundation for your career. At this point, certainly certification isn't going to hurt you--but it isn't going to help you either. What is clearly more important is that with every client, you absorb the business implication of the technology you're deploying and build relationships with both people on the line as well as internally. Your career track to a CIO won't be decided on technical expertise, but on how savvy you've become in understanding business issues and how well you have managed the relationships you've built along the way.

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