The role of the CIO has been under the spotlight for the last few years, to say the least. With the sudden transition to a remote workforce, never-ending and increasingly complicated cybersecurity threats, and global digital transformations, CIOs have their work cut out for them. Not only are CIOs scrambling to adapt to the fallout of the pandemic, but market shifts are causing many organizations to change focus to cost-cutting and providing practical value to customers, adding a whole new level to the CIO’s role.
What does this mean for your CIO resume? It means that your resume likely needs an update! Employers aren’t looking for a CIO to simply work on back-end IT services anymore. Their needs—and the role of the CIO—have evolved to be more complicated and integrated with the business strategy with higher input and expectations. If you haven’t updated your CIO resume in the last 1–3 years, you should make getting it up to date one of your goals. Make sure you include the following accomplishments and contributions.
What to Emphasize in Your CIO Resume
- Vetting New Technologies. As a CIO, you are expected to be aware of upcoming next-gen technologies, their maturity, and how they may or may not benefit your organization in terms of cost savings, monetization, and customer experience.
- Adapting to a Distributed Workforce. When describing how you reacted during the early days of the pandemic, be sure to provide context. How many employees were there, and how wide was the distribution? Most CIOs had to perform some sort of cloud migration in 2020; show how your experience in doing so is unique. To take it a step further, write specifically about how you fostered a culture of digital collaboration.
- Consolidating Technology Stacks. Organizations are prioritizing a single technology vision. CIOs are expected to collaborate with C-level and other business leaders to identify which technologies will best serve the organization. Consolidation is significantly more complex when M&As are involved, so be sure to mention that context if applicable.
- Cutting Costs. You’ve probably prioritized some cost savings initiatives over the last couple of years. Dig up some numbers and quantify as many of your efforts as possible. Evaluate the ROI on legacy platforms vs. new technology tools you implemented. You’ll get bonus points if you demonstrate that you contributed to revenue growth.
- Unifying Data Management Architecture. As organizations consolidate and upgrade their technology stacks and platforms, it is critical to have access to underlying data. Write about how you added value by optimizing your organization’s technology tools and developing a secure, cohesive, and accessible data management architecture.
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