CREATING SUSTAINABLE SUCCESS

In the last two to three years, we’ve seen how regional enterprises implemented new technologies and processes to improve business operations and add value to customers. The adoption of digital technologies has sped up as organisations rethink how they use technology, people, and processes to create new business models and new revenue streams. This month, we hosted the fifth edition of the CXO 50 Awards, which have become a gold standard for IT innovation and business transformation.

While going through a barrage of nominations, our team zeroed in on a common theme across all these nominations – today, IT leaders are responsible for business strategy and identifying new competitive differentiation opportunities. Last year was indeed turbulent, but it was exciting for IT leaders because technology has evolved as the biggest business enabler. It is hard to imagine any business that is not digital today, and this came to the fore at the panel discussion that I moderated at the awards event. Digital transformation could be a never-ending process, and it is not something that CIOs can drive by just themselves. CIOs must partner with other C-suite colleagues and develop a shared vision to accelerate innovation.

Regarding emerging technologies, the panelists unanimously agreed the cloud has become the cornerstone of digital transformation initiatives and expect increased adoption of automation technologies in enterprises. With digital technologies being embedded into all aspects of a business, the CIO’s biggest challenge this year is aligning IT with business and building resilience against the backdrop of a gloomy global economic outlook. Another area is sustainability, which has opened up new opportunities for tech leaders to take a leading role and manage their organisations’ journey to sustainable business tech. In this edition, you will read about sustainable IT and why you should care, especially as the UAE gears up to host the next United Nations Climate Change Conference edition.