Since becoming J.R. Simplot’s chief information officer, Roger Parks has made information technology a relevant part of the company’s strategic decisions. In doing so, the family-owned company has been lauded as an innovative agribusiness. Parks offers his perspective on the state of information technology within corporations and what must be done to put the CIO in the same ballpark as other
executives.
How would you assess the value of leadership positions in the field of information technology today? How have IT leadership and the CIO position changed over the last decade?
Roger Parks: The value of IT leadership and the role and value of IT are changing rapidly today. IT leaders across the organization all need to become more business focused and strategic to the enterprise, going beyond technology leadership. IT leaders must have an understanding of their company goals, customers, and suppliers, as well as the industry they are in.
Over the last decade we have seen the beginning of the role of the IT executive or CIO transforming from a technology leader to a true business services leader. With the pervasiveness of technology in every function of most every industry today, IT is no longer just about provisioning, managing, and supporting business transaction systems. IT is about developing business technology strategies for identifying the business value of current and emerging business technologies, adopting the right business technologies in the enterprise, and managing the deployment and support of those technologies and systems to provide real business value and competitive differentiation.