The Transformational CIO: Leadership and Innovation Strategies for IT Executives in a Rapidly Changing World

Don't Be Afraid to Change Your Game

In my younger days, I was a highly competitive athlete. My primary sport was slalom skiing, and I was good enough to win two state championships when I was in high school. At various times in my life I have competed in football, wrestling, baseball, tennis, golf, and sailing. I guess you can say that competitive sports have played a significant role in my life. They have shaped me into the person I am today.

As an athlete, you learn early that every competitive experience exposes you to a different set of challenges. You learn to assess the situation rapidly, figure out how it is different, and adapt to it. In other words, you are continually changing your game.

Your ability to change, to adjust, to transform yourself becomes your greatest competitive advantage as an athlete. A former sportswriter told me that I fit the mold of the “intrepid athlete” because no matter what the circumstances, I'll always find a way to adjust my strategy and gain the edge over the competition.

You can only push these sports analogies so far when you're talking about business, but I think this one is valid, especially if you are a chief information officer or IT leader.

If you're going to succeed in a transformational role, you must be ready to change yourself. Sometimes the change will be a matter of fine-tuning, sometimes it will require much more. Part of your job is determining how much you have to change to achieve your goal—and then making that change as completely ...