CIO Pool
Okay, I know that “stenopool” is outdated, but…
Well, it was funny, right? Anyway….
So, guess what the latest trend in IT is? Contract CIO’s. At least, according to this article on Australian IT. Really, with all the mergers and buyouts and “strategic restructurings” that go on, this makes sense. After all, everyone else on an IT staff might be contract and kept for just as long as there’s a need, or until the end of a particular project. So, why not have CIO’s that work the same way? Bring on one kind of CIO to steer a company through a merger, then another kind to grow the infrastructure, and a third to stabilize the whole thing for future growth.
Consider, for a minute, what’s going on at my company. Potentially outsourcing most of what we do, if not all of it. Sounds like a perfect job for someone who’s done all that before, right? But, why keep him around afterward when his, or her, skills are obsolete? Just bring in the next ex-dotcom “guru” who’s already managed an outsourced IT department. Chances are good that he’ll come a little cheaper for a longer-term contract. And, he might even go full-time. Sounds pretty familiar to me. And, it makes just as much sense for a CIO as it does for a Network Geek.
It’ll be interesting to see where this trend goes…