Episode 5: Cloud: A quick win or digital backbone?

Want to build an always-on Living Enterprise, which puts employee and customer engagement at the heart of business? You’ve come to the right place. In episode eight, the last of the series, our globally dispersed CIOs, CTOs, CDOs and other tech experts give us the top tips to building The Living Enterprise, from influencing the boardroom and building trusted line-of-business relationships to driving employee and customer experience, making smart cloud decisions and safeguarding security.

In this penultimate episode of The Living Enterprise, our band of merry CIOs, CTOs, CDOs and other technology executives gaze into the crystal balls, and see what’s coming over the horizon for 2021 and beyond. In a wide-ranging episode, our experts discuss how to approach and take advantage of emerging technologies, how to adapt to changing workplaces, ensure business continuity and disaster recovery planning, and build diverse and inclusive teams that can push the business forward. And finally, they also discuss what’s keeping them up at night.

Security has all too often been outpaced by digital disruption. But that has to change amid ongoing social, economic and regulatory uncertainty. In this sixth episode of The Living Enterprise, the peer-to-peer podcast series bought to you by CIO in association with Adobe and Microsoft, our band of CIOs, CTOs, CDOs and other technology executives talk horror data breaches, how to approach tricky security conversations with the C-suite, why governance is critical, and how cybercriminals are starting to leverage the power of artificial intelligence. Moreover, our experts also discuss their belief that – when done right – cybersecurity can become a competitive differentiator.

From cost control to containers, the cloud is a complex beast, but one which is increasingly becoming the bedrock of the digital business. In this fifth episode of The Living Enterprise podcast series, our expert CIOs, CTOs, CDOs and other leading technology executives discuss cloud wins, how its value has moved from cost and efficiency to business speed and agility, and the opportunities around data collection and cybersecurity. Our panel also mull hybrid cloud as the optimum business operating model, the multiple challenges around internal skillsets and how to combat the risk of vendor lock-in.

Customer experience is marketing's job, right? Not so fast. The CIO and their equivalent is fast becoming an integral player in the new digital, data-centric organization. In the fourth episode of The Living Enterprise, the peer-led podcast series brought to you by CIO in partnership with Adobe and Microsoft, our band of global CIOs, CTOs and CDOs discuss preconceptions about customer experience, why the IT leader is now a pivotal player, and how they build better working relationships with CMOs and other line-of-business peers. Along the way, our experts discuss building a customer experience strategy from scratch, the impact on data management, the importance of trust and the new value that organizations can exploit through machine learning and artificial intelligence.

As IT leaders grow in prominence, their success hinges on interpersonal relationships as much as anything else. From liaising with the CFO on cost control to working with the CMO on customer experience and HR on workplace policies, these relationships hold the key to CIOs, CTOs and equivalent gaining greater influence and voice – and being able to drive organizational change. In this third episode of The Living Enterprise, our IT and business leaders debate the value of interpersonal relationships, the need to forge more allies than enemies, and the key relationships that need to be nurtured. You’ll also hear the value of storytelling, of evangelizing about the smart use of data, leading change management and how to defeat internal resistance.

CIOs now have a seat at the boardroom table. But with such responsibility comes a need to drive prolonged change, and to take your people with you. In this second episode of The Living Enterprise, sit back and enjoy a masterclass from world-recognized IT leaders on setting the boardroom agenda, improving stakeholder management and driving digital change within the customer-centric organization. You’ll also hear why it’s important to focus on the small wins, how to articulate and communicate your vision to your peers, and how to build teams with the right culture and mentality.

Amid global crisis, Chief Information Officers have found themselves thrust into the spotlight. From having to accelerate digital transformation initiatives from months to weeks, to supporting remote workforces and ensuring business continuity, these IT leaders have had their hands full. In this opening episode of The Living Enterprise, the peer-led podcast series brought to you by CIO in association with Adobe and Microsoft, our star panel of leading CIOs, CTOs and CDOs discuss IT leadership’s transition from backroom order taker to boardroom business strategist, how to drive transformative change, as well as the need to develop skillsets and meet new business KPIs.