As AI reshapes businesses, the CIO is your new change management officer

Placing generative AI budgets, oversight, and strategy squarely inside the CIO’s office marks a pivotal shift, aligning cutting-edge technology with core business strategies — and that’s generally a good thing.

But let’s not kid ourselves — this is a monumental shift from the traditional CIO wheelhouse.

We’re not just talking about navigating IT challenges anymore. CIOs are now at the helm, redesigning business workflows with an organizational lens. It’s a whole new ball game, and it’s exactly the kind of bold move that defines the future of tech leadership.

Summarized by Writer

• CIOs are now responsible for overseeing generative AI budgets, oversight, and strategy, shifting their role from traditional IT management to business process redesign.
• Generative AI requires CIOs to create entirely new business processes from scratch, rather than just implementing systems or software.
• Challenges in AI adoption include strategic alignment, cultural adoption, and data governance, which CIOs must address to successfully implement generative AI.
• To effectively deploy generative AI, CIOs need to foster cross-functional collaboration, involving business units, product managers, and AI program directors.
• Education is crucial for successful AI integration, as it helps secure buy-in from business leaders and users and enables enterprises to create new business processes and achieve successful AI integration.

Rethinking the traditional responsibilities of CIOs

Traditionally, CIOs have been the backbone of a company’s IT operations. Their core duties are to oversee IT infrastructure and make sure the implementation and maintenance of technology systems go smoothly.

These systems demand that CIOs focus heavily on operational efficiency and technical management to support business functions. While primarily technical, this role is vital in maintaining the IT structures that businesses depend on for effective operation.

But the rise of generative AI is starting to shift these duties. It’s important to remember that with generative AI, shipping business value means shipping entirely new business processes — not just systems or software — to the organization.

CIOs are adapting these responsibilities to an AI-powered environment, which makes them more central in reshaping how businesses operate. Generative AI has already proven its value for enterprises, shifting the conversation from “if” businesses should adopt generative AI to “when” and “how.”

To answer these questions, CIOs need to evaluate different generative AI solutions, learn how to create processes from scratch, and champion change management.

Transforming systems into dynamic processes

When you ship a system, that system comes with opinions and pre-defined process logic. It’s customizable, but only to a degree.

With generative AI, for the most part, you’re starting from scratch to reinvent processes that heretofore have had no system — and that’s hard. CIOs have to proactively find ways to do more with less while also scaling new business solutions that deliver real value.

This transition presents both challenges and opportunities. On the challenge side, there are three main barriers to AI adoption:

1. Strategic alignment: CIOs must have a deep understanding of technology and business needs to identify where AI can deliver concrete value and set clear, measurable goals aligned with strategic plans.
2. Cultural adoption: By educating to dispel AI fears, CIOs can lead change management that fosters a culture ready to embrace dynamic new processes.
3. Data governance: With strong frameworks for data quality, compliance, and security, CIOs can ensure AI systems rely on trustworthy, ethical data and operate within regulatory and ethical guidelines.

CIOs — this is your moment to seize the opportunity. Embrace your new strategic role and drive innovation like never before. We’re talking about reinventing processes that were previously untouched by tech. Think custom AI solutions that automate complex decisions or personalized AI-driven services that revolutionize customer interactions. By influencing executive-level strategic decisions, you can give your business a competitive edge that’s unmatched. It’s time to step up and make your mark.

Improving cross-functional collaboration

Generative AI is transformative for every corner of the business. To nail its deployment, IT leadership needs to get seriously cross-functional, align closely with business units, and bring in more product managers—both within IT and across the organization. Roles like AI program directors can team up with the CIO to drive internal strategies and rally support for generative AI adoption.

In top-tier, AI-first companies, 52% of nontechnical personnel understand the value and risks of integrating AI into their daily work.

Compare that to the mere 21% in other organizations.

This gap screams for CIOs to lead the charge on holistic change management.

When nontechnical team members can tap into new abilities with generative AI — like building no-code AI apps customized to their unique workflows with Writer AI Studio — innovation becomes accessible to everyone, and productivity skyrockets. It’s time to step up and make this happen.

Advancing enterprises with AI education

Generative AI in the CIO’s office is a massive shift for most organizations, and it’s why we see so many half-baked AI experiments in the enterprise. The new business processes are either not figured out, incomplete, or lack buy-in from business leaders and users. Education is the key to overcoming these challenges.

Writer is leading the charge, partnering with enterprises to navigate these hurdles. We not only help create new business processes but also secure buy-in from business leaders and users by showcasing the potential for growth and innovation.

Through dedicated AI program management, educational initiatives, and workshops, Writer supports enterprises in crafting new business processes and achieving successful AI integration.

Schedule a demo to see how we can partner with your enterprise and collaborate with you as you redefine work — and leadership roles —  in the age of AI.