CIO Transition Group is comprised of professional senior IT executives who are available for short-term (typically 1 to 6-month engagements) as Interim CIO or another key IT executive position.  These individuals bring to the task a history of successful accomplishment in meeting business objectives using Information Technology during their careers.

We normally function as interim executives, taking full responsibility for the IT function and reporting to the President or CEO for the duration of the engagement.  We function as a member of the Executive Team, ensuring alignment of business and IT objectives, priorities and budgets.  During this time our focus is on three things:

• quickly identifying, documenting and resolving risks to the organization resulting from the IT leadership gap
• preparing for the new CIO (which may include identifying and interviewing candidates if requested), and
• rapidly transitioning IT leadership to the new CIO when he/she arrives.

A key part of our methodology is our immediate preparation of written documentation for all key IT areas/functions and their Key Performance Indicators.  This enables a very quick information uptake for the Interim CIO, enabling he/she and the executive team to act quickly and decisively on business-critical issues.  It also provides the new CIO a one-stop information summary of all critical IT information.  We call deliverable from this part of the methodology the IT Leadership Transition Briefing Book.

For Interim CIO engagements we use a structured method to identify and IT-related business risks.  Our approach explicitly documents and deals with each of these key IT continuity issues.  Then, once the new CIO is on board, the method supports his or her transition through use of several tools, including an IT Leadership Transition Briefing Book.  Developed during the Interim engagement, the LTBB documents all key IT issues and associated risks, actions taken during the interim work, and recommendations for future consideration.  This enables the new CIO to rapidly assume his or her new functions by quickly focusing on critical issues while consulting with a peer who's already dealt with those issues on an interim basis.

When the new CIO arrives, he/she reviews the LTBB with the Interim CIO and they agree upon a transition plan.  This plan defines precisely what functions are to be transitioned and the schedule for making that happen on an expedited basis.  Generally, the Interim CIO continues to manage selected critical activities while the new CIO is getting established.  This enables the new CIO to get up-to-speed and productively engaged in a much shorter timeframe than normal, saving the business substantial time and money.

If you'd like to discuss the additional benefits and cost savings of using an Interim CIO, we'll be pleased to discuss the details at your convenience.  Please feel free to contact us to discuss availability and options.