In many small to midsize companies today, IT services are provided either by a third party or by a small team of IT people. Typically, those IT staffers focus on the day-to-day tactical technology needs of the company. This leaves the organization with a huge gap between the needs of the business and the capabilities that the IT can provide.
Small and midsize companies don’t need to go without critical senior strategic technology leadership. Fractional CIOs from Faros Consulting can help your organization get the full-service strategic technology leadership you need on a part-time basis.
What is a fractional CIO?
A CIO (or Chief Information Officer) is typically the senior executive responsible providing strategic technology leadership to the organization. The CIO, who is both a business leader and a technologist, works closely with other senior executives to define the overall business strategy and select technology solutions that will help the business achieve its goals. While most large organizations need a full-time CIO to ensure the business takes full advantage of their technology investments, small and mid- sized companies often can’t afford a full-time CIO. A fractional CIO gives these small to mid-sized businesses all the benefits of a strategic IT leader but on a part-time basis.
Why hire a fractional CIO?
As your business grows, you will be making increasingly complex technology decisions. Even if you have a small IT team, most of the time, they are tactically focused, primarily making sure your computers stay operational. A CIO brings both the technical know-how and the business savvy to ensure that technology investments will not only serve the organization now but will be able to scale well as your company grows. The fractional CIO can serve as your technology team leader, giving your full-time IT staff guidance and direction, helping them be more efficient and effective. Finally, a CIO can help with key strategic initiatives, from vendor selection, ensuring that your company’s interests are represented in contract negotiations, to overseeing the project to its successful completion.
How can a Fractional CIO help your business?
Fractional CIOs can provide key strategic leadership. They typically can help you with:
- Strategic planning
- Key Strategic initiative planning and leadership
- Technology roadmaps
- Business process improvement, Re-engineering and Transformation
- Vendor management including vendor selection, contract negotiation and system implementation leadership
- Cost control / Financial planning
- Cyber security and IT Governance
- Technology People, Process and Platforms evaluations
What is an Interim CIO and why do you need one?
Having a vacancy in the CIO seat can leave an organization with a major technology gap that can threaten key initiatives that may be underway and reduce the overall effectiveness of the IT team. Finding and hiring a new CIO should not be something to be rushed. You want to find the right person who will be able to not only do the job but fit well with your company culture and long term strategic goals. A typical CIO search can take 6-9 months. An Interim CIO can be engaged to help bridge the gap and ensure that in-flight projects remain on target. They can also help ensure that IT operations remain smooth running. An Interim CIO can even help you interview and select your next CIO. They can also help transition leadership to the new leader and ensure that they get up to speed as quickly as possible.
Faros Consulting also offers Interim CIO services to help you bridge the gap after a senior technology leader leaves the organization. Don’t let your key initiatives falter because your leader left. We can help.
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