What companies look for when recruiting CIOs

“The ability to translate the technical capabilities of IT to a business problem [and] the skills of interpersonal relationships, the ability to communicate and enlist people and get buy in and support” are two of the key areas that companies are looking for in a senior role according to Peter Acheson, CEO at Peoplebank.

Acheson spoke to CIO as part of the CIO Careers video series, alongside leaders from Harvey Nash and Korn Ferry.

As many CIOs will attest, it’s the non-technical aspects of the role that help to deliver IT value and bring projects in on budget and on time. At the interview stage it’s these same “soft skills” that make a candidate stand out.

“A CIO stands out for their ability to have a commercial business perspective, the ability to show where they’ve brought a technology impact to the business they’ve worked in, as well as their ability to adapt and show agility,” says Tony Rossano, senior client partner, managing director, global technology markets, APAC at Korn Ferry.

“Anybody who has good communications and EQ skills will get more attention from the market,” notes Bridget Gray, managing director at Harvey Nash.

She says that the interview process is beyond just the traditional CV and instead looks as much at culture and behaviours and a CIOs ability to collaborate and lead.

More videos on CIO careers are below.