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Global Business Leaders Say They Don't Know Enough About Technology To Succeed

Posted by samzenpus on from the do-we-have-the-cloud? dept.

Lemeowski writes: New Harvard Business Review research finds that only 45% of business leaders surveyed say they personally have the technology knowledge they need to succeed in their jobs. What's more, the survey of 436 global business leaders finds that only 23% are confident their organizations have the knowledge and skills to succeed in the digital aspects of their business. The report says that given the low levels of digital knowledge and skills outside of IT "it's troubling that close to half of all respondents (49%) said their department occasionally or frequently initiates IT projects with little or no direct involvement of IT."

4 of 110 comments (clear)

  1. I have a solution - H1B by ohnocitizen · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Let's have executives compete in the global market!

  2. Leaders by itamblyn · · Score: 3, Interesting

    If they don't know what they are doing, then why are they the leaders?

    1. Re:Leaders by tomhath · · Score: 4, Interesting

      It isn't that they don't know what they're doing. The majority recognize their own limitations and (presumably) seek help in areas where they need it. Nothing wrong with that. It also says a lot that 23% think their own IT organization is incompetent.

      That said, keep in mind two things: this report was sponsored by a company that sells IT services, and no matter what "global business leaders" do, half of them will be below average.

  3. Your two viewpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

    both are showing the same thing: A disconnect of interests.

    Now, whose job again was it to connect them, "align the noses" and get the great wheels turning?
    Whose job again was it to pick what requirements at what levels? Whenever the project goes under in requirements hell it is because the wrong people made the wrong decisions on the wrong levels, or even failed to make any real choices at all.
    Whose job again was it to hire people to do all that on various levels, and organise them in the various departments?

    Consultancy is useful basically to paper over failures in the fabric of the organisation. But that only gets you so far. It isn't failing to understand the technology that's tripping up CEOs. It's failure to understand their own job, that of management.