How To Present To The BOD

04 – 08 November 2018 / Barcelona, Spain
A Practical Approach to
Presenting to the Board of
Directors for CIOs
Tina Nunno
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Objective: Open
Avoid Accurate
“Bored” Relevant
Diplomatic
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Key Issues
1. How can CIOs respond to the board’s increased focus on

technology as a competitive weapon?
2. Which CIO communication practices are most effective with
the board?
3. How can CIOs both steer and respond to the board’s questions
on digital business?
How Can CIOs Respond
to the Board’s Increased
Focus on Technology as
a Competitive Weapon?
Boards and CIOs Often Fall Into a Vicious Cycle of
Communications …
4 Board feels uncertain
Board and CIO
about technology; CIO
discomfort increases;
feels uncertain about
cycle repeats itself
the board
1
CIO guesses or gives Board avoids CIO or

them what they asked asks a minimal
for, but did not want 2 number of questions
Top Strategic Business Priorities for 2018 and 2019
(Simple)
Growth
Product
Improvements Cost
33% 28% 23%
Financial Management
13% 10% 9%
31% 9%
15% 15%
40% Sales
IT-Related Customer
Efficiency and
Productivity
Corporate Workforce Management
(Structural Development)
Degree of increase Degree of decrease

from previous year from previous year
Base: All respondents, n = 460

“Please tell us about your organization’s top 5 strategic business priorities for the next 2 years (2018 and 2019)”
Percentage of respondents — ranked by summary top 3 mentions
But boards can be challenging to engage in quality conversations about
these subjects:
 Operating or nonoperating
Board Rule for income
Revenue/  Enhance nonrevenue
Messaging: Mission mission objectives
The Board
Only Cares About  Future cost avoidance
 Immediate decrease in
Three Things Cost operating expenses
 Regulatory compliance
and security
 Infrastructure reliability
Risk  Innovation
 Brand and reputation
Which CIO
Communication
Practices Are
Most Effective With
the Board?
The CIOs Approach Will Vary Based on the Category of
Board Meeting and Objective
Level Primary Objective Secondary Objective
Funding
Request for
Approval
Direction
IT Overview
Board Status
Project
Education
Strategic
Discussion
Co-creation
Board Rule What Are You Requesting and Why?
for Approvals:
Decide what  Be specific; money, staff, approval of direction, or
directive to staff
you want
 Timing matters; is this the right time to make this
particular request?
 Determine if your board is a one-stage or multistage
board or situation
Funding
Request for
Approval
Direction
Present
Lay the Finalize
options as a
groundwork the ask
cut/choose
Board Rule Did You Get What You Wanted?
for Approvals:
Know when to get  Best practices that matter:
out and walk away Order Matters
Scale Matters
State the
specific Listening Matters
Do not make
request first, the sales Exiting Matters
not last Know when
pitch bigger you are in a
than the Do not sell
Funding discussion past the close
Request for request rather than a
Approval
Direction presentation
Board Rule Board Presentations Are Not About
for Status: What the CIO Wants Them to Think
It is more important What do you want them to:
to be interesting than  Feel: It is not the CIO’s job to be objective; take a
to be complete position and tell the story
 Remember: If they remember nothing else from your
interaction with them, what one thing do you want
them to remember?
IT Overview
Status  Do: What actions do you want the board or executive
Project
team to take as a result of your interaction with them?
Status What Kind of Story Is This?
Board Rule Good or

for Feel: bad news?
Never show the How do
board data without you want High or low
interpreting it them to impact?
for them feel?
Getting better
or worse?
Status What Is the Story Over Time and
the Players?
Board Rule
for Remember: Revenue
IT Resources Trend
Always show data
in context
Status What Will You Ask for If the
Status Is Red?
Board Rule What do you need to get to green and can the board
for Do: actually help you get it?
IT Departmental Vendor and Contractor Business Unit
After reporting bad Resources Resources Resources
news, there should  Number of hours and

availability estimated
 Number of hours and
 Number of hours and
always be an ask and allocated

 Appropriate IT skill sets
and allocated
 Appropriate contractor
and allocated
 Appropriate skills in
identified, available and skills identified, and relevant business
allocated available processes identified,
 Budget for hardware and  Budget allocated and set available and allocated
software acquisition aside for contractors for  Contingent staff
allocated implementation budgeted and allocated
 Funding for long-term  Long-term contractor as needed
maintenance budgeted support budgeted and  Long-term staffing plan
and allocated allocated and funding set aside
Status Example Board Question:
“Are We Secure?”
Board Rule:
The answer to
most board
questions
is a trade-off Technology Insurance Resiliency
and Practices Coverage Fund
Risk Mitigation Portfolio
How Can CIOs Both
Steer and Respond to
the Board’s Questions
on Digital Business?
Boards Are Pressuring Their
Businesses to Change Their Thinking
Change in business thinking — 2018 to 2019
Percentage of Respondents
Higher risk
CEOs cite
board mission
alignment as the 16% 22%
No. 1 reason for Shorter time Longer time
this change horizon horizon
17% 23%
21%
Our time horizon and Lower risk
risk appetite will be
unchanged

Q. Which of the following best describes the likely change in the way you think about your business in 2018 and 2019?
Strategic The CIO-Board Conversation Journey
Discussions Toward Digital Business
The board’s questions
have evolved along
this path: Why can’t we
Why can’t we be a digital
have competitive company?
Why can’t IT advantage
move faster? from IT?
Education Are we secure
Strategic and compliant?
Discussion
Co-creation
Why is IT so
expensive? Then they ask the CIO to tell
them what their question means.
Strategic Boards Need CIOs to Explain the Meaning
Discussion
of Their Questions
Interpreting and answering board questions is a process
Question the board asks What they mean Answer and ask pre-emptive questions
What is X, what should our We don’t know what bad, good or Definition and big picture representation of what
approach to X be? great looks like the enterprise currently has, and specifically how it
got that way
Why do we need X, or We don’t know how to make Map business capabilities to X and describe
why is X that way? decisions about this limitations of the current state
How does X work? Tell us how it works so we can tell Educate, demonstrate and create framework story
you what to do to guide the conversation
What are our options Help us figure out the flexibility and Co-create and negotiate the strategic story,
regarding X? levers we have to use this to impact through a persistent focus on cost/value/risk
business outcomes trade-offs of the different options
Strategic questions about X We are now comfortable and know Reinforce the strategic story by asking and
how to have a quality conversation answering key strategic questions that drive
about this toward the co-created business outcomes
Strategic Answer Their Digital Questions,
Discussion
Then Ask Them Yours …
Digital conversations illustrate the full transformation of IT from
service provider to business partnership, leadership and co-creation
Question the board asks What they mean
What is digital, what should our approach to We don’t know what bad, good or great looks like
becoming a digital business be?
Why do we need digital, or why is digital that way? We don’t know how to make decisions about this
How does a digital business work? Tell us how it works so we can tell you what to do
Help us figure out the flexibility and levers we have to

What are our digital options?
use this to impact business outcomes
We are now comfortable and know how to have a
Strategic questions for digital
quality conversation about this
What is your primary metric of digital transformation progress and success?

Half of the CEOs surveyed responded “None.”
What is digital, what should our approach to We don’t know what bad, good or great looks like
becoming a digital business be?
CIO Answers … CIO Asks …

Education Co-creation
Let me show you… … how ready are we to go digital?
 Where are our industry and our

competitors in digital maturity?
 How ready is our enterprise for
digital business?
– Cultural
– Technological
– Talent and skills
 How much are we willing to invest?
 What will success look like for us, as an
enterprise?
Why do we need digital, or why is digital that way? We don’t know how to make decisions about this.

Education It will help us optimize or Co-creation … which benefits matter the most
transform to grow revenue … to us?
Digital Business Ambition Do we want to optimize?

Percentage of Respondents 46%
Our digital business  Pursue improved productivity and products?
ambition is
 Create a better customer experience?
54% optimization
Do we want to transform?
Our digital business
ambition is
transformation  Pursue new business and operating models?
 Create new digital products and services?
Which do we need to do to survive or lead in
our industry?

Q. Which of the following opposing statements do you agree with most?
How does a digital business work? Tell us how it works so we can tell you what to do.

Education Combines physical and digital Co-creation … so what is our approach
world by experimentation ... to risk?
 Does our enterprise approach to risk-match
our digital ambition?
 How willing are we to digitally experiment in
order to learn?
 How much is our enterprise willing to risk?
– Money
– Time
– Customer
– Regulatory
– Ethically
 What will we do with our legacy businesses?
What are our digital options? Help us figure out the flexibility and levers we have.

Education Co-creation … which do we want to set
There are a number of options …
as the goal?
Less More
Transformative
Consumer products digital business example Transformative
1 2 3 4 5 6
Sell Digitalize Sell Contract Based on Build a Move Into
Digital Product Metered Shared-Risk Platform Adjacent & New
Assets or Service Usage Outcome Business Industries
E.g., sell data E.g., sell connected E.g., sell on E.g., price varies E.g., a business E.g., use know-how in
and algorithms machines pay-as-you-use based on a shared- that has sellers, one industry to launch
and services basis outcome metric buyers all working on in another
same platform
Strategic questions for digital We are now comfortable and know how to have a
quality conversation about this.

Education Potential metrics for Co-creation … how quickly do we want
digital success …. to progress?
Customer Experience and Service Sales and Marketing Operations Products
Digitalizing Customer Digitalizing Customer Digitalizing Digitalizing Digitalizing Digitalizing Supply Digitalizing
Interactions Service Marketing Sales Operations Chain Products
20%-25% 20%-30%
0.5%-1% higher
lower call 3%-5% 1%-3% 2%-3%
lower mfg. utilization
centre cost lower cost higher higher
operations 5% lower
20%-30% of revenue annual
cost fuel costs
20%-25% lower time acquisition 10%-20% gross
10%-15% Balance
higher 24/7 to resolution 7%-12% lower cost margins;
higher 75% point:
availability Balance higher of sales Balance
asset Payback
Balance 70% point: conversion Balance
uptime 50 point:
point: Customer Balance point: for key % Lower
2020 50% Balance routes only
Customer satisfaction 50% point: Customer warranty
Goal point:
satisfaction Channel adoption fulfillment
Payback
mix for key costs;
Today 25% 33% 25% higher
12% assets only
customer
15% 5% 5% “retention”
2% 1%
% of interactions % of smart % of marketing % of % of operational % of % of

that are digital machine spend that is revenue through assets fleet tracked in “sensorized”
interactions digital digital channels that are connected real time products
Recommendations
 Feel: The good news is that you can apply much of what you already
know to succeed in even the most strategic board discussions
 Remember: The board only cares about three things regardless of
the technology — revenue, cost and risk
 Do: Follow the “board rules” to help you design great presentations
and discussions, and to excel at all of your board meetings
Recommended Gartner Research
 A Board Narrative to Transform Operational Risk and Cybersecurity Into a

Business Service
Paul Proctor, Jeffrey Wheatman and Others (G00329451)
 Board-Ready Slides for Cybersecurity and Technology Risk Sample Narrative —
Progress Update
Rob McMillan, Paul Proctor and Jeffrey Wheatman (G00319141)
 CIOs Emphasize Value, Not Technology, When Communicating Strategy to the Board
Heather Colella (G00337499)
 Digital Business KPIs: Defining and Measuring Success
James Anderson and Paul Proctor (G00341667)
 A Practical Approach to Strategic Thinking on Enterprise Value for CIOs
Tina Nunno (G00317301)
For information, please contact your Gartner representative.

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04 – 08 November 2018 / Barcelona, Spain

1. How can CIOs respond to the board’s increased focus on

CIO guesses or gives Board avoids CIO or

Degree of increase Degree of decrease

Base: All respondents, n = 460

Board Rule Good or

news, there should  Number of hours and

always be an ask and allocated

Risk Mitigation Portfolio

Base: All respondents, n = 460

Help us figure out the flexibility and levers we have to

What is your primary metric of digital transformation progress and success?

CIO Answers … CIO Asks …

 Where are our industry and our

CIO Answers … CIO Asks …

Digital Business Ambition Do we want to optimize?

Base: All respondents, n = 460

CIO Answers … CIO Asks …

CIO Answers … CIO Asks …

CIO Answers … CIO Asks …

% of interactions % of smart % of marketing % of % of operational % of % of

 A Board Narrative to Transform Operational Risk and Cybersecurity Into a

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