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Survey Reveals Why CIOs Must “Flip” Leadership Styles- Gartner

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As the technologies and trends that power digitalization move to center stage, Chief Information Officers (CIOs) are being presented with a unique opportunity to become digital leaders according to a global survey of CIOs by Gartner, Inc.

The survey showed that CIOs are fully aware that they will need to change in order to succeed in digital business, with 75 percent of respondents saying that they need to adapt their leadership style in the next three years.

Gartner analysts presented these findings during the sold out Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, which is taking place here through Thursday.

“To grasp the digital opportunity, incrementally improving IT performance isn’t enough,” said Dave Aron, vice president and Gartner Fellow. Digitalization is no longer a sideshow — it has moved to center stage and is changing the whole game. CIOs now have a unique opportunity, but they must ‘flip’ their information, technology, value and people leadership practices to deliver on the digital promise.”

The worldwide survey included responses from 2,810 CIOs, representing more than $397 billion in CIO IT budgets in 84 countries.

The Gartner report “Flipping to Digital Leadership: The 2015 CIO Agenda,” represents the most comprehensive examination of digital business opportunities and threats and CIO strategies.

Gartner’s last CIO Survey — “Taming the Digital Dragon: The 2014 CIO Agenda” — explored the advent of the third era of enterprise IT, where information and technology make a fundamentally different contribution to the business, less tied to efficiency and effectiveness of internal processes than to enabling disruptive new products, services and business models. Nearly one year later, the third era is here, and digitalization is increasingly determining the winners and losers in all industries.

“This isn’t just a high-tech story, a U.S. story, a private-sector story, a large-company story or a startup story,” said Mr. Aron. “Digitalization is transforming all types of companies and public sector agencies. More often than not, these transformations represent both massive opportunities and substantial challenges for the CIO and the IT organization. Digitalization is not only a way to gain a competitive edge, but also provides a powerful ability to flip disadvantages into advantages.”

According to the 2015 CIO Survey, 89 percent of CIOs agree that in addition to the considerable opportunities afforded by digitalization, the digital world engenders new, vastly different and higher levels of risk, and 69 percent said that the discipline of risk management is not keeping up.

CIOs therefore need to review with the enterprise and IT risk leaders whether risk management is adapting fast enough to a digital world.

The exciting news for CIOs, is that despite the rise of roles, such as the chief digital officer, they are not doomed to be an observer of the digital revolution.

According the survey, 41 percent of CIOs are reporting to their CEO.

This is a return to one of the highest levels it has ever been, a result of the digital narrative gaining prominence in the boardroom and on the executive committee.

Even stronger evidence of opportunity for CIOs is the fact that the survey reveals that CEOs expect them to lead the digital charge during this critical transition period.

However, as in last year’s CIO survey, it appears that IT budgets are not growing exuberantly.

The average IT budget will grow by just one percent from 2014 to 2015. CIOs estimate that 79 percent of IT spending will be “inside” the IT budget (up slightly from last year), but much digital innovation can and will be funded outside the planned IT spending.

Perhaps the biggest hurdle when it comes to digital opportunity for CIOs is the fact that the IT discipline within most enterprises has developed a set of behaviors and beliefs over many years, which are ill-suited to exploiting digital opportunities and responding to digital threats.

To start with, most enterprises still think of innovation in terms of the technology paradigm. If this continues, the digital opportunity may be lost.

Digital leadership means flipping the approach from legacy first to digital first, assuming all solutions will be cloud based, designed for mobile and highly contextualized, and looking to exploit unstructured data, and run data-led experiments. Secondly, most enterprises and their CIOs disproportionately focus on what is easily measurable (e.g., IT cost), rather than what is most valuable or requiring the most attention (e.g., the value of building a digital capability) — another situation that has to flip.

“During the second IT era of industrialization, people leadership was honed to emphasize precision, discipline and tight control,” said Graham Waller, vice president and executive partner for Gartner Executive Programs. “Therefore, through both nature and nurture, CIOs have evolved into control-style pragmatic leaders. Given the characteristics of the new digital era, this bias is dangerous. CIOs must invert their style to be more vision-led and inspirational.”

The survey results underline the fact that CIOs already know this. Seventy-three percent of surveyed CIOs say that they have changed their leadership style over the last three years, and 75 percent say they must change it over the next three years to flip their leadership style from “control first” to “vision first.”

“Being a powerful digital leader and influencer takes time and CIOs need to spend time being digital leaders,” said Mr. Aron. “Running an IT organization is a complex business, and when we compare the 2011 and 2015 Gartner CIO Surveys, we find that the average CIO is spending more, not less, time running the IT shop — five percent more, or an extra day per month.

“However, the survey data also tells us that, all things being equal, the CIOs with higher performance as IT leaders spend significantly less time running the IT shop and delegate some business unit leader engagement. This gives them an extra five percent ‘time bonus,’ or a day per month, to engage the board, senior leadership and external customers.”

 


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E-Business

Wema Bank Launches Second FGN-ALAT Digital ‘Skillnovation’ Cohort

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Wema Bank has launched the second cohort for the FGN-ALAT Digital Skillnovation Programme in partnership with the Federal Government to train and equip two million young people and 1 million MSMEs across Nigeria with relevant digital skills.

Since the launch of the first cohort in 2023, over 300,000 youths and business owners have leveraged the platform as a launchpad for their business and career success.

This cohort featured 100% virtual learning sessions through which participants from the 36 states in Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) were provided with self-paced online learning experiences.

As cohort 2 begins in the second quarter of 2024, the FGN-ALAT digital programme is officially transitioning to physical training sessions and the curriculum will cover key digital skills including software engineering, product management, business analysis, cloud computing and product design, among others.

This phase of the programme will be executed via FGN-ALAT digital hubs, which will be set up in the different states across the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria to ensure that every Nigerian can access the programme’s full benefits regardless of their location.

These hubs will be equipped with training and incubation facilities ideal for digital-driven learning, giving participants the opportunity to acquire marketable and transferrable digital skills and gain a competitive edge in the global digital ecosystem.

The FGN-ALAT digital hubs will be set up in phases and trainings will commence accordingly, starting with Borno  and Anambra State.

Wema Bank’s Executive Director of Retail and Digital Business, Tunde Mabawonku, emphasised the pivotal role of the programme in bridging the gaps in Nigeria’s macroeconomic landscape towards national development.

“We are unwavering in our commitment to supporting MSMEs and with the FGN-ALAT Digital Skillnovation Programme, it’s all about the bigger picture—which is why we have partnered with the Federal Government to augment the scale of this programme’s impact.

“By tailoring this programme to suit the needs of both entrepreneurial minded and professionally inclined Nigerians, we are not just arming SMEs for more efficient business management and growth, we are also equipping Nigeria’s workforce for increased productivity and the ripple effect will not only create more viable employment opportunities for Nigerians towards reduced unemployment and underemployment rates, but further drive economic growth and national development, boosting Nigeria’s position on the global playing field.

“The digital evolution is moving sporadically and by empowering our youth and MSMEs with in-demand digital skills, we are ensuring that Nigeria is not left behind as the world evolves.

“Beyond the intellectual resources and other non-monetary opportunities, we are going a step further to provide financial support for these participants in form of millions of naira in equity capital, soft loans and grants, to enable them put their learnings to practice and build sustainable streams of income that could help them become employers in their own right.

“I encourage you to take the big step forward in achieving your business and career goals by joining the programme. All you have to do is visit the website to register. This programme is completely free and there’s more than enough room for you. Your success is Nigeria’s success and as your unique journey unravels, our promise remains certain,” he said.

Referring to the programme as an eye-opener for all, Mariam Isah, a beneficiary of Cohort 1, said, “It’s almost unbelievable all I’ve learnt in one month virtual training.

“I started this training simply looking for a way forward for my business but I have unlocked secrets that are life changing not just in my business but in all aspects of life. I am so grateful for this rare opportunity, and I can’t wait to be a part of the cohort 2.”


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StarNews, Global Black Economic Forum Launch Business Competition In Partnership with MTN & USAID

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Africa’s leading video streaming platform, StarNews Mobile and the Global Black Economic Forum (GBEF), have announced a call for applications for the launch of their Business Competition in Lagos, Nigeria.

Held in partnership with MTN and United Nations Agency for International Development (USAID), the initiative will empower Nigeria’s most promising businesses that are classified as Small-Medium Enterprises (SMEs) with invaluable investment and partnership opportunities from the USA.

Held over 10 weeks between April 8th to June 14th, hosted exclusively on the StarNews Biz Channel on the StarNews platform, this competition offers a platform for emerging entrepreneurs to showcase their ventures and gain national visibility.

With subscribers voting for their favourite candidates, the top 20 contestants will seize the spotlight and make their mark on the business landscape.

The StarNews Business Competition in partnership with GBEF delivers a unique opportunity for thriving Nigerian SMEs to access mentoring, funding, partnerships and socio-economic development tools through the Global Black Economic Forum.

With the prospect of securing cash prizes through StarNews worth up to NGN5,000,000, getting access to StarNews’s network of investors and the opportunity to gain national visibility by having their business on the StarNews web platform.

The top three winners will also receive coaching from GBEF’s Academy for Advancing Excellence and become part of GBEF’s ecosystem of global leaders committed to social and economic justice across the Black Diaspora.

Previous speakers at GBEF convenings from the entertainment sector include Wyclef Jean (Haitian Musician & Activist), Debra Lee (Former CEO of Black Entertainment Television – BET) and Ceci Kurzman (Founder of Nexus Management Group). Applications will close on April 5th 2024.

Speaking on the competition’s launch, Guy Kamgaing, Founder and CEO at StarNews Mobile, says “The StarNews Business Competition is a passion project close to our hearts at StarNews Mobile.

It’s about discovering the most promising business entrepreneurs and creators in Nigeria, opening up global opportunities for them and providing them with the resources and tools to achieve their goals.

By partnering with MTN, USAID and GBEF, we want to be a platform of empowerment for these SMEs by helping them give back to the communities that are supporting them.”

According to the US Embassy and Consulate for Nigeria, over 80% of Nigerian startups are incorporated in the United States and more than 60% of venture capital funding in Nigerian startups accounted for by the US.

In 2023 alone, Nigerian startups raised a total of $398mn however, this signalled a 66% funding decline compared to 2022 due to the global economic downturn, reinforcing the massive need for a fresh injection of capital and business support for Nigeria’s emerging SMEs.

Alphonso David, President and CEO of the Global Black Economic Forum notes that, “Our partnership with StarNews Mobile is a critical resource as we continue to build the collective strength of entrepreneurship across the Diaspora.

“Building a sustainable ecosystem of Black entrepreneurs in the United States and across the African continent is essential to create a future that makes economic opportunity and economic freedom a reality for all.”

A sister company to ESSENCE, GBEF advances its work by convening global summits and conferences, bringing together world leaders, business leaders, entrepreneurs, celebrities and civic leaders to address the most challenging problems facing our communities.

GBEF’s Academy for Advancing Excellence facilitates workforce and leadership development strategy, addressing the talent pipeline & employee lifecycle, providing leadership development & coaching, and conducting institutional assessments & research.

GBEF also develops and implements economic and social justice policy recommendations with partners ranging from civil and human rights organisations to government entities and corporations that advocate for economic opportunity, social justice, and health equity through thought leadership, advocacy and litigation.

Launched in 2017, StarNews Mobile empowers African content creators with the unique opportunity to monetize their work through a subscription model, boasting over 4 million subscribers and a thriving community of more than 120 content creators.

With a strong presence across six countries including Cameroon, Nigeria, Côte D’Ivoire, Congo, Benin and Ghana, the platform has also established key partnerships with major telecom operators such as MTN and Orange.

To-date, StarNews Mobile has secured over $8mn in funding with its most recent raise – a $3mn pre-Series A funding round in October 2023 – led by Janngo Capital with participation from French football players Aurélien Tchouaméni, Jules Koundé and Mike Maignan.

 


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Companies Invest More than $100,000 Yearly to Upskill their Cybersecurity Teams – Study Reveals

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Over 70% of businesses pay more than USD $100,000 for additional training annually to keep skills of their cybersecurity employees up to date, a recent global Kaspersky study has revealed.

However, the surveyed companies also highlighted that there was a lack of relevant courses covering new challenging spheres in the educational market and stated that training does not always bring them the expected result.

In its recent study ‘The portrait of the modern Information Security professional’, Kaspersky examined the topic of the global cybersecurity staff shortage, analysing the exact reasons businesses lack cybersecurity experts, and identifying the ways they evaluate and upskill their cybersecurity workforce¹.

According to the research, companies are investing significant amounts in upskilling their cybersecurity teams: 43% of organisations globally say they usually spend between $100,000 and $200,000 per year on information security courses, while 31% even invest over $200,000 for training programs. The remaining 26% state they usually pay less than $100,000 for educational initiatives².

However, cybersecurity practitioners also note that the educational market is struggling to keep up with the rapidly changing industry and fail to deliver the necessary training programs on time.

Survey results for the Middle East, Turkiye, Africa (META) region shows that the scarcity of courses covering new challenging spheres (48%) was the main problem for those searching for cybersecurity training.

50% of respondents from the META region also stated that trainees tend to forget what they learned because they had no opportunity to apply newly acquired knowledge, therefore the courses were useless to them.

The need for special training pre-requisites such as coding and advanced mathematics, which were not specified at the pre-registration stage were also problematic for 37% of practitioners from the META region.

“With a constantly evolving threat landscape, businesses should continually improve the skills of their cybersecurity personnel in order to be well prepared for sophisticated cyberattacks.

“Developing high-profile specialists within the company and building internal expertise can be an effective strategy for organisations that aim to retain existing employees and allow them to grow professionally, instead of constantly hunting for new candidates and checking their professional backgrounds and practical skills.

“For organisations served by Managed Service Providers it is also important to maintain a pretty high level of expertise internally and use the same language when discussing the scope of services and Service Level Agreement with them,” comments Veniamin Levtsov, VP, Center of Corporate Business Expertise at Kaspersky.


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