On April 3rd, 2025, CIONET hosted its highly anticipated CIONEXT 21 online conference, tackling the provocative question: "The End of IT Leadership? Why Every Technology Leader Must Be a Business Leader." Led by moderator Hendrik Deckers, powered by Fujitsu, the event brought together a panel of distinguished experts from across Europe to discuss the evolving role of technology leadership in today's dynamic business landscape.
If you missed the conference, the panel discussion is available here.
Hendrik Deckers kicked off the session by highlighting the changing ground beneath leadership. With technology becoming increasingly pervasive, IT leaders are moving from a position of control to one of enablement. The focus is shifting towards business acumen, speed, agility, continuous delivery, strategic partnerships, human-centricity, and tangible ROI. But is this only half the story? Do business leaders also need to enhance their technology understanding? This was the core question that drove the 90-minute discussion.
Meet the Panellists
The panel featured a wealth of experience from various sectors:
- Aaron Stafford: Group Senior Director, Global Security, Cloud Infrastructure & ERP Operations, ASICS Technology (Netherlands)
- John Walsh: VP, CTO Fujitsu Services Europe (Ireland)
- José Antonio López: Group CIO, TOUS (Spain)
- Sharon Prior: Experienced CIO (previously at Heathrow, GSK, The Post Office, etc.) (UK)
- Tom Tanghe: General Manager ITC EMEA, Daikin Europe NV (Belgium)
Each panellist shared their unique perspective, offering a wealth of insights that highlighted the critical and inevitable convergence of technology and business leadership. They explored the complexities of how technology leaders must evolve beyond their traditional roles, adopting a broader business mindset to drive innovation and growth. This convergence is not merely a trend but a fundamental shift in how organisations operate, requiring leaders to blend technical expertise with strategic business acumen. The discussions emphasised the importance of this integration, as it enables organisations to remain competitive in an ever-changing market landscape.
Here are 7 key points learned from the conference:
- The role of the IT leader is evolving from a purely technical focus to a business-centric one. IT leaders need to understand the organisation's goals, customer needs, and the entire value chain to be effective. As Aaron Stafford stated, without this understanding, a technologist is just "the techo from downstairs."
- Technology is increasingly integral to the core business of many companies. As Aaron also pointed out, for ASICS Technology, "the business is technology." This convergence necessitates that IT leadership and business leadership become more aligned.
- While IT leadership is not "dead," its nature has fundamentally changed. John Walsh emphasised that technologists still need technical expertise but must also be teachers, students, and understand areas like data privacy (GDPR). The core skills remain, but the application and context are shifting.
- Enterprise architecture plays a crucial role in enabling business agility and innovation within a secure and compliant framework. Sharon Prior highlighted the need for enterprise architects to shift from gatekeepers to strategic enablers by creating clear, trusted, and empowering guardrails.
- Data management is a key differentiator and requires a coordinated approach. Jose Antonio emphasised the importance of central coordination of data while also empowering business units with data management skills to ensure consistent understanding and usage of information.
- Strategic partnerships with external vendors are vital for speed, scale, and specialised expertise. Sharon stressed the difference between a vendor and a strategic partner, where the latter co-creates, challenges thinking, and is invested in the long-term outcome.
- Bridging the tech literacy gap in non-IT leadership is crucial for effective collaboration and strategic alignment. Tom Tanghe discussed the challenges of this gap and the importance of regular communication, innovation teams that bridge business problems with IT solutions, and focusing on value creation rather than just technology implementation.
Prior to the CIONEXT conference, Hendrik conducted Leadership Deep Dives interviews with panellists to gather preliminary perspectives on the evolving leadership landscape. Key takeaways emerging from these interviews include:
- José Antonio López (TOUS): Technology is a differentiator, business connection is crucial, and passion is required.
- Sharon Prior: Need for enterprise architecture, convergence of IT and business, and business acumen for IT professionals.
- John Walsh (Fujitsu Europe): CIO needs dual expertise, importance of soft skills (listening), and lifelong learning & adaptability.
- Tom Tanghe (Daikin Europe): Leadership convergence (two-way street), focus on the present & near future, and embrace challenges for growth.
- Aaron Stafford (ASICS Technology): IT as an essential business partner, understand the core business, and embrace the process & imperfection.
Closing Remarks
John Walsh summarised the discussion, stating that effective leadership today demands fluency in both technology and business domains. Technology leaders must be business strategists, and business leaders must possess sufficient technology literacy. It’s not an “end” for either, but a necessary and powerful convergence.
Hendrik Deckers thanked the outstanding panel and the teams at Fujitsu and CIONET for making the event a success. A special thank you was extended to Emma Chatwin and Ben Chapman from Fujitsu, and Anna, Alicja, Ewelina, Ines, Bartosz, and Valentine from CIONET.
CIONEXT 21 provided valuable insights into the evolving landscape of technology leadership, emphasising the critical need for convergence between technology and business acumen. The discussion left attendees with much to ponder as they navigate the future of leadership in a technology-driven world.