CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER PROFILE IN HIGHER
EDUCATION
Adam Marks
1
and Yacine Rezgui
2
1
Department of Business Administration, World-Wide, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, FL, U.S.A.
2
School of Engineering, Cardiff University, Queens Buildings, The Parade, Cardiff CF24 3AA, Wales, U.K.
Keywords: Chief Information Officer, Higher Education, CIO, IT Executive.
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to provide an unbiased picture of what many universities seek and expect in
terms of requirements, attributes, competencies, and expected functions and duties in IT executive
candidates, namely the Chief Information Officer (CIO). The paper provides a benchmark that can be used
by universities to compare or build their IT leadership profiles. The study examines the education,
experience, and other skills requirements in 374 active and archived electronic web advertisements for the
position of CIO. It also looks at the expected job requirements for that role. The findings suggest that
universities’ criteria and requirements for CIOs may vary based on factors such as the organization size and
needs, the complexity of the organizational structure, and available budget, but are overall comparable with
those of other industries.
1 INTRODUCTION
With the rapid developments of Information
technologies, and the growing cost associated with
it, higher education institutions are shifting to
sustainable, long term, strategic approaches for their
IT function (Nelson, 2003).Today, more Chief
Information Officers (CIOs) are reporting directly to
their organization’s Chief Executive Officers
(CEOs) and serving on the organization’s executive
management team (Zastrocky, 2000). However, this
new direction is not trouble-free. Chief Information
Officers in higher education suffer shortage in
number, limited longevity in the job, and an
expected high rate of retirement in the next ten years
(Katz, et al, , 2004), (Brown, 2009). In addition,
despite the increased prevalence of the Chief
Information Officer position, no single model seems
to realistically explain what to be expected of a
Chief Information Officer within the various
organizational contexts (Nelson, 2003).
As higher education institutions plan and
examine their IT performance and long term
strategies; a closer look at the qualifications,
attributes, and expected functions of those who
shape these organizations IT strategy is deemed
appropriate.
Higher education institutions are not only reliant
on information technologies for their managerial and
administrative and managerial needs, but also for
their education delivery needs (Rezgui and Marks,
2008). Although the IT higher education
environment may share many attributes with other
IT environments, the IT higher education
environment has its unique attributes. IT in higher
education tends to be more centralized and in-
sourcing by nature (Brown, 2007). It is also uniquely
characterized by equipment diversity, user diversity,
and a calculated IT security balance between sharing
access to knowledge systems and properly securing
those very same knowledge systems (Rezgui and
Marks, 2008).
The purpose of this paper is to provide an
unbiased picture of what many universities seek and
expect in terms of requirements, attributes,
competencies, and expected functions and duties in
an IT executive candidates, namely Chief
Information Officers.
While this paper does not address which
attributes or functions are more or less appropriate, it
provides a benchmark that can be used by other
universities to compare or build their IT leadership
profiles. The subsequent sections of this paper
present the reader with the study’s literature review,
methodology, findings, discussion and recommen-
dation, and finally the conclusion of this study.
159
Marks A. and Rezgui Y. (2010).
CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER PROFILE IN HIGHER EDUCATION.
In Proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems - Databases and Information Systems Integration, pages
159-165
DOI: 10.5220/0002887901590165
Copyright
c
SciTePress
2 RELATED WORK
The title of the senior IT executives in the institution
may vary wildly. According to Brown, (2007), while
the title “IT Director” was the most commonly used
title to refer to the top IT executive within the
organization in surveys between 2003 and 2006; the
2007 survey shows that the “Chief Information
Officer” title is now the most commonly used to
refer to the top IT executive person. For the sake of
this study, references to IT executive leadership and
Chief Information Officers are synonymous.
References to titles such as Chief Information
Officers date back to the 1980s (Synnott, et al,
1981). Early literature suggests that initially Chief
Information Officers appeared in organizations with
emphasis on the effective management of
information; and mainly due to two factors; the first
is the dissatisfaction with the performance or
productivity of information technology
management; and the second is a vision by executive
management that information is of strategic
significance to the organization (Penrod, et al,
1990). As many organizations shifted their IT
management approach from operational-focused to a
strategic-focused, the function of IT management
was also shifted from computer personnel to a
centralized strategist, hence the emergence of the
chief information officer (Alter, 1988). With the
shift of the functions of the Chief Information
Officer, the qualification emphasis was also shifted
from high technical expertise to less technical
expertise and more strategic planning (Nelson,
2003). Today, the Chief Information Officer
function is highly shaped by the primary mission
and culture of the organization. In higher education,
the Chief Information Officer must focus on the
institution’s educational vision, mission, and goals
(Penrod, et al, 1990).
The 2007 Higher Education CIO Effectiveness
Study conducted by Brown provides us with a
glimpse into the profile of todays CIOs in higher
education. It is important to note that the survey
shows the current status of the Chief Information
Officer level of education, not the status when they
were originally hired for the position. The study
reveals that 57% of the examined CIOs possess a
Master degree in a related discipline, while 17%
possess a doctorate degree, and 22% possess a
bachelor degree. Although supported by studies, it
has also been my observation that CIOs with
undergraduate level of education tend to pursue post
graduate studies after being hired for executive
positions (Katz, et al, 2004). Most of the CIOs
examined majored in disciplines such as business,
computer systems, education, information
technology, and engineering. The study also reveals
that prior to being hired for their current position;
the majority of the examined CIOs had prior IT
experience within higher education. In terms of
organizational hierarchy, the majority of CIOs
reported to the organization’s (CEO) (31%), or the
Chief Financial Officer (CFO) (18%), or other
assorted and academic VPs (30%). In addition, most
of the examined CIOs were members of the
organization’s executive committee. Brown’s study
reveals a more optimistic numbers than early studies
in terms of CIO’s tenure. The average number of
years spent by a CIO in his/her position averaged 7
years compared to 3 years in earlier studies. When
asked about the most important and least important
roles within their job description, most of the
surveyed CIOs viewed providing IT support and
contract oversight to be the most important roles
within their job description, while they viewed
organizational strategic planning and revising
business process, and educating employees as the
least important roles within their job description
(Brown, 2007).
Nelson (2003) views the CIO role as one that
requires the directorship of business factors,
technical factors, and organizational and behavioural
factors. He also suggests that CIOs should be able to
manage relationship with relevant others; convey
relevance and value of IT; and plan and implement
IT-Based solutions. Penrod (1990) summarizes the
primary responsibility of the CIO in aligning the
information technology enterprise with the mission
and goals of the institution. Brown (2007) suggests
that for CIOs to be effective, they should possess
communication skills, IT knowledge, political
sensibility, and strategic business knowledge. He
further explains that communication skills may
include the CIO’s fluency in the business language,
his or her fluency in the language of higher
education as well, and the ability to communicate
and present information in non-technical terms;
while IT knowledge may include an in-depth
understanding of how IT is applied in the
organization, the ability to use current IT resources
to fill institutional requirements, the ability to use
new technologies for the institution, and familiarity
with the acquisition of IT. Political sensibility may
include the ability to assess situations that might be
challenging and confrontational, the ability to work
well with the majority of people; and finally
strategic Business Knowledge may include
knowledge of institutional offerings; understanding
ICEIS 2010 - 12th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems
160
of market and business process, and familiarity with
competition.
Recent studies on the role of the CIO within
higher education suggest that in addition to
managing the IT enterprise within the organization,
CIOs should become more active within their
executive management role by making contribution
to the development and management of business
strategies and directions rather than being
constrained to role of IT communicator. Being a
member of the university executive team, the 21st
century, a CIO is expected to participate in
university’s’ political and public relations, financial
issues, general strategy. CIOs should understand the
CEO concerns and they should communicate with
the executive team in regular basis (Katz, et al,
2004), (Zastrocky, 2000).
3 METHODOLOGY
This study examined the findings from 374 active
and archived electronic web advertisements for the
position of CIO between the periods of January of
2007 and October of 2009. 282 of the examined
advertisements came from various higher education
institutions, while the remaining 92 came from other
industries. The study itself took place between May
and November of 2009. This study examines the
common attributes that shapes the profile of the CIO
universities seek to hire. The profile includes key
qualifications, competencies, attributes, and
expected duties. In addition, the study briefly
compares the examined CIO profiles in higher
education with their parallels in other industries.
While the study seeks to reveal what
many
universities seek in a CIO, the study does not
address why
universities seek these specific
attributes. It should also be noted that universities
criteria and requirements for a CIO may vary based
on factors such as the organization size and needs,
the complexity of the organizational structure,
available budget, and other factors that fall outside
the scope of this paper, mainly because their
influence before the ad is drafted is stronger than
after. Perhaps, this is the subject of another study.
For the sake of this study, we assume that most
universities make a rational decision of what they
seek in a CIO. To conduct a comprehensive review
of the attributes and the function expected of a CIO,
several electronic web sites and databases were
searched including higheredjobs.com, educause.edu,
chronicle.com, monster.com, careerbuilder.com, and
several large universities web sites including
University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill,
University of Central Florida, Carnegie Mellon
University, Texas A&M University, and George
Town University.
The study looks at four major sections within the
advertisements, they are: required education,
required experience, other requirements and
preferences, and job description and expected
functions. The following research question has been
identified to guide the investigation:
1. What are the key qualifications sought by
universities when hiring Chief Information Officers?
2. What are the main duties expected from a
Chief Information Officer?
4 FINDINGS
Universities seek a number of factors when seeking
CIOs. In almost 96% of the examined
advertisements, the criteria sought included
education, experience in IT management, and
experience in related industry. None of the examined
advertisements sought only a single criterion. The
findings also revealed a consistency in the order of
the listed criteria; which may seem to reflect the
level of emphasis on those criteria. In 84% of the
examined advertisements, education was listed first,
followed by the required number of years of
experience in IT management, followed by
experience in the related industry, and then followed
by additional requirements. Education and the
number of years of experience are usually listed as
requirements, while experience in the related field
and other preferences are usually listed as highly
desirable. A small percentage of the examined
advertisement (4%) did not list required attributes,
and only focused on expected responsibilities.
4.1 Required Education
In terms of the required level of education, this study
indicates that almost all examined universities (96%)
seeking CIOs required a minimum level of
education. Education is usually listed as the first
requirement. 76% of the examined advertisements
required a minimum level of education of a Master
degree, while 11% of the examined advertisements
required a minimum level of a doctorate degree, and
9% required a minimum level of a Bachelor degree.
4% of the examined advertisements did not list
education as one of the qualifications. In reference to
relevant education disciplines, 62% of the examined
advertisements listed more than three possible
CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER PROFILE IN HIGHER EDUCATION
161
disciplines, while the remaining 38% listed less than
three possible disciplines. The majority of
disciplines listed included information technology,
information systems, management of information
systems, computer science, management,
engineering, and education. Depending on the
minimum level of education required, some of the
advertisements allowed for substitution between
education and experience. A graduate degree may be
substituted for two years of the required experience.
4.2 Required Work Experience
In terms of required work experience, 53% of the
examined cases required a minimum of 10 years of
prior-related working experience, while 32%
required a minimum working experience of 7 years,
4% required less than 7 years of experience, and 4%
required more than 15 years of experience. 7% of
the examined cases did not list the required number
of years of experience; instead they used other
qualitative terms such as “Extensive Experience” or
“significant experience” to describe the required
level of prior work experience. This study also
revealed that 93% of the examined advertisements
listed applicable and related experience in higher
education, management, or IT management as a
condition, without listing any requirements in terms
of prior roles. Only 7% of the examined cases listed
something in line with “prior working experience as
a Chief Information Officer or an IT manager is
required” or “previous work experience in Higher
Education, as an Information Technology Manager
required”. 72% of the examined advertisements
listed prior higher education experience in IT as
highly desirable, while 15% listed it as a
requirement, and 13% did not include it as a
criterion in their advertisements. 70% of the
International higher education institutions examined
listed prior international experience as a preference
as well, while 21% listed it as a requirement, and 9%
did not list it as a criterion in their advertisements.
4.3 Other Requirements and
Preferences
Based on the needs of the university and the special
requirements of the position, some the
advertisements for a CIO included a statement
listing specific requirements or additional
preferences. 87% of the examined advertisements
listed excellent leadership, management,
interpersonal, communication, organization, and
collaborative skills as a condition, while 63% of the
examined advertisements listed technical
competence; knowledge of current and emerging
information technologies; broad knowledge of
networking, information security,
telecommunications, administrative systems,
education-delivery systems, web technologies and
user support services as a requirement as well. Only
24% of the examined advertisements listed
knowledge of project management concepts, tools
and techniques as a requirement. 28% of the
examined advertisements required broad knowledge
of developments in academic and administrative
information technologies. Strong customer service
orientation; and the ability to build consensus for
strategy and execution among diverse constituents
were also listed among other requirements in 22% of
the examined advertisements.
In terms of specific technical knowledge, 52% of
the examined advertisements required experience in
one or more of the following: specific software
development methods, specific platforms, specific
protocols, specific application systems, or specific
set of technical skills, while 31% listed a general
statement in line with “ability and experience with a
variety of computing environments”. The remaining
17% did not specify any technical requirements. The
examined advertisements also revealed other
requirements such as experience and skill managing
departmental fiscal responsibilities (41%); prior
experience within a research, teaching, or academic
environment (46%); and the ability to effectively
establish and maintain cooperative working
relationships within a diverse multicultural
environment (8%). 28% required an understanding
of the unique character of higher education
institutions, including shared governance, academic
culture and the expectations and needs of the
different constituents.
4.4 Principal Duties and Reporting
Structure
In 36% of the examined advertisements, it was
found that the title of the CIO was joined with the
title “Vice President of Information Technology”. In
32% of the examined advertisements the title of the
CIO was joined with the title “Executive Director of
Information Technology”. In 22% of the examined
advertisements, the title of the CIO was not joined
with any other titles; and in 10% of the examined
advertisements, the title was joined with an
“Associate or Assistant - Vice President”,
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162
“Associate or Assistant - Provost” or “Associate or
Assistant - Chancellor” title. While the reporting
structure may be obvious for some titles such as
“Associate Provost & CIO” or “Associate
Chancellor & CIO”; the case may be different for
other titles such as “Executive Director/CIO or just
“CIO”.
Only 78% of the examined advertisements listed
the reporting structure of the CIO position. While
98% of the examined advertisements described a
single direct line of reporting; 2% reported a dual
line of reporting (Primary and secondary). In these
cases, the CIO reported primarily to the Provost and
secondary to the V.P of Finance and Administration.
90% of CIOs with a Vice President title did not
report directly to the president; instead they reported
to senior vice presidents or Executive vice
Presidents. 88% of CIOs with Executive Director
Title reported to other vice presidents such as V.P of
Planning and V.P Administration. Only 12%
reported to non-V.P title such as the president or the
provost. Similarly, CIOs with associate or assistant
V.P title (100%) reported directly to other V.Ps such
as the Vice President of Finance and Administration
(86%) or the Vice Presidents for Academic Affairs
(14%). Finally, CIOs with no other title associated
reported to a variety of other executive positions
such as the chancellor, the provost, and the CEO.
82% of the examined advertisements reported that
the CIO is expected to serves as a member of the
senior or executive administrative council or
committee.
In terms of principal duties, 84% of the
examined advertisements reported that the CIO is
expected to provide vision and direction in line with
the university’s overarching vision and strategic
plans; leverage the use of technology to transform
higher education administration, teaching and
learning, research and collaboration; and manage all
aspects relating to information technology (IT) at the
University, including staffing, budgeting, planning,
purchasing, and policy development. In 74% of the
examined advertisements, universities listed that the
CIO is responsible for the planning, development,
coordination, and implementation of the university
IT strategy, IT policies, and IT systems that support
the strategy of the university. 58% of the examined
advertisements specified the number of staff and the
expected annual budget the CIO is expected to
manage.
While the majority of advertisements used broad
language as shown above, 28% were more specific
in terms of what is expected of a CIO. For instance,
some of the advertisements listed that
responsibilities include oversight of Information
Security, Application Technology Support
(including academic and administrative systems),
Classroom Technology Support (including media
services and class/lab support), and Infrastructure
Technology Services (including
telecommunications, network services and help
desk). Others stated that the CIO is expected to serve
three types of internal stakeholders: faculty,
students, and administrators. The CIO serves faculty
by providing the computing systems necessary to
support teaching and research. He serves students by
providing them with the resources required to
support their classroom and online activities. The
CIO supports administrators by providing them with
the ability to manage the university enterprise
system to facilitate business operations. The CIO
plays a key role in the support of the College's
growing on-line education initiatives and works
closely with faculty on research grants and grant
opportunities.
In general, it was found in more than 70% of the
examined advertisements that universities expect
CIO to do many, if not all of the following
functions:
Oversee University-wide IT governance;
facilitate discussion of IT plans and policies at all
levels of the administration; work with the IT
area and University to prioritize activities and
plan initiatives that are in line with the strategic
objectives and mission of the University; and
serve on the University’s IT Steering Committee.
Manage IT architecture; maintain standards and
develop appropriate guidelines for the
deployment of information technologies
throughout the University.
Manage IT acquisitions to enhance and expand
enterprise applications to streamline the business
processes of the University.
Oversee IT security expanding upon the
computer and network infrastructure and security
planning for the campus.
Update IT policies as required by external
regulations and to reinforce the appropriate use
of technology.
Promote and enhance collaborative
communication.
Obtain convergence of IT at all levels — not just
structures.
Continue to work on enhancing a positive culture
at the University regarding IT.
CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER PROFILE IN HIGHER EDUCATION
163
Advance the development (training) of IT staff in
areas of technical skills, customer service, and
overall professionalism.
Provide a University-wide training program for
administrative applications, learning
management systems, productivity applications
and exposure to new technologies.
Direct strategic initiatives to significantly
increase the University’s online presence.
Coordinate initiatives to minimize duplication of
effort, realize operating efficiencies, minimize
costs, and bring process improvements to the
University. The following sections discuss the
findings of this study and puts recommendations
forward.
5 DISCUSSION AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
As the findings of this study indicate, the CIO is the
highest IT executive position that usually reports to
a senior executive authority such as the provost,
CEO, or an executive vice president. In most cases,
the CIO title is joined with Vice President, associate,
or assistant, for Information Technology title. The
CIO is often a member of the university’s executive
or senior committee. Reporting to the CIO is a
number of directors in charge of networking,
communication, enterprise and applications support,
help desk support, IT security, IT training, IT project
management, IT reporting, web services, etc. Each
director may have directly a number of staff
members reporting to him/her or indirectly through a
manager(s). Again, based on the organization
structure and the size and the need of the
organization; in some universities some of the above
functions are combined under the leadership of one
director, while in other universities, these functions
could be individually assigned.
The CIO profile in higher education seems to be
highly competitive with those of other industries.
While most of the requirements were almost
identical in terms of minimum level of education,
required experience, and other IT competencies; one
of the main differences was prior experience within
related industry. The findings if this study indicates
that most universities seeking CIOs shared the
following basic requirements:
A minimum level of education of a Master
degree in a discipline such as information
technology, information systems, management of
information systems, computer science,
management engineering, and education.
A minimum of 10 years of related work
experience in IT management, preferably in
higher education.
Technical competence; knowledge of current and
emerging information technologies; broad
knowledge of networking, information security,
telecommunications, administrative systems,
education-delivery systems, web technologies
and user support services.
Excellent leadership, management, interper-
sonal, communication, organization and collabo-
rative skills.
Experience in one or more of the following:
specific software development methods, specific
platforms, specific protocols, specific application
systems, or specific set of technical skills
While these basic requirements were shared
among many universities, fewer universities listed
additional requirements such as:
Knowledge of project management concepts,
tools and techniques.
Broad knowledge of developments in academic
and administrative information technologies.
Strong customer service orientation; and the
ability to build consensus for strategy and
execution among diverse constituents.
Experience and skill managing departmental
fiscal responsibilities.
Prior experience within a research, teaching, or
academic environment.
Ability to effectively establish and maintain
cooperative working relationships within a
diverse multicultural environment.
Understanding of the unique character of higher
education institutions, including shared
governance, academic culture and the
expectations and needs of the different
constituents.
Many of the examined advertisements indicated
the reporting structure and a brief synopsis about the
university. Only 41% of the examined
advertisements included information about expected
compensation and other benefits. Only half of the
examined advertisements included information
about the size of the IT department to be managed or
the annual budget. Although the positions advertised
are full time positions, the number of working hours
ICEIS 2010 - 12th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems
164
(usually 40) was not listed in the majority of the
advertisements.
In terms of principal duties, the CIO is expected
to provide vision and direction in line with the
university’s overarching vision and strategic plans;
leverage the use of technology to transform higher
education administration, teaching and learning,
research and collaboration; manage all aspects
relating to information technology (IT) at the
University, including staffing, budgeting, planning,
purchasing, and policy development. The role of the
CIO is no longer restricted to the technical realm;
CIOs must engage themselves in the management of
the university not only the IT enterprise.
6 CONCLUSIONS
The findings of this study provide universities and
IT personnel with important information regarding
what many universities regard as appropriate
attributes and expected duties of IT executive
leadership in higher education. The paper lists
education, work experience, and other skills
minimum requirements; and it also describes the key
duties expected of a CIO. The findings of this study
suggest that higher education requirements are
highly comparable with those of other industries.
With all things being equal, prior experience in
higher education IT management was the key
difference.
There are a number of things that universities can
do to improve the advertisement and selection
process of a CIO:
Include salary range information in the
advertisements.
Include a brief statement describing possible
remuneration package.
Include the number of personnel expected to be
managed.
Include the number of divisions or sub-units
expected to be managed.
Include the annual budget expected to be
managed.
Use quantitative terms to describe requirements
instead of qualitative terms such as “significant
experience” as the latter tend to be subjective.
Include enough details of what is expected of a
CIO in the advertisements, not only main
themes.
Include a statement encouraging minorities and
special groups to apply for the position.
The inclusion of the above items in the
advertisement will help both universities and
candidates. Institution should reflect a true picture of
what they seek and what they expect without
appearing vague or deceiving. Some institutions,
especially those with “less-than-competitive”
salaries don’t advertise pay information. Instead,
they use pompous language to attract candidates to
apply for the position. The inclusion of the above
information will save the candidates and the
universities time, effort, and cost; and allow them to
focus on their target area. It will also help
universities eliminate inadequate candidates early on
the process. With the shortage of Chief Information
Officers and the expected rate of retirement in
higher education, universities should reach out to
diverse groups, especially women to maintain
leadership continuity in IT executive leadership.
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