10 CIO Career Trends That May Surprise You

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In recent years, the role of the CIO has become one that is more strategic to a company's overall mission. It touches departments beyond IT within an organization, and might help a CEO drive revenue or reduce costs.

But as recently as five years ago, that was not the case. There was even talk of whether the CIO position would remain relevant, given the increasing stature and importance paid to the role of chief marketing officer, who would be responsible for a company's digital efforts.

Adding to the doubt was the growing emergence of shadow IT, which was initially expected to further reduce the role of CIOs, until it was as largely moved to the list of CIO responsibilities, Bob Miano, president and CEO of Harvey Nash USAPAC, told InformationWeek. However, he added that shadow IT has since been largely moved to the list of CIO responsibilities.

As technology infrastructures have become more stable and app development cycles more robust, CIOs now have more time to do strategic planning and are freed up to work on projects that bring in revenue, Miano said. These new focuses are elevating the role's stature to have more contact with the CEO and executive boards, he added. That was not so in earlier years, when the role centered mostly on keeping IT operating and on stomping out emergencies, he said.

[See 11 Books to Help CIOs Become Better Leaders.]

"Now, it's more exciting for CIOs to help grow revenue, rather than the utility role of keeping the lights on at the organization," Miano said, noting that technology is becoming more crucial to business.

That role shift and others are highlighted in the recently released Harvey Nash/KPMG CIO Survey 2016, in which 3,352 CIOs and technology leaders from 82 countries participated. The 18th annual survey was conducted between Dec. 12, 2015 and April 10, 2016. The findings give insight into the growing influence of CIOs, the composition of women in senior IT roles, and the overall satisfaction that CIOs have for their jobs.

Here's are 10 interesting results of the report. Let us know what you think in the comments section. How do the findings compare with your or your boss's experience?

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