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Interview
What Is the CIO's Job, Anyway?
8/16/2007
HUFF: I definitely agree with Richard. I would suggest that, with the ubiquity of technology throughout the institution, our constituency demands that the CIO have a prominent place at the strategy table. Students expect a level of technology support in the classroom, all over campus, and wherever they are when they are engaged in activities related to class work and learning.
Thus, the place of the CIO at the strategy table is not because the CIO has visions of grandeur, rather, it is because the students expect and demand that technology be a part of their overall plan for matriculation and post-graduation.
I submit that any institution that does not include technology leadership at the highest level of strategic planning will not be competitive with today's iPod student society. That also includes students who have families to feed and who are currently in the work force. They are looking for that marketable edge to better themselves. Technology is certainly not the sole answer, but it's a necessary part of a sound strategy to address their needs.
CALHOUN: Things are changing so rapidly these days. I enjoyed the e-mail exchange, got in touch with you, you agreed to be interviewed, and in the interim you've changed jobs. Where are you now and what are you doing?
HUFF: I am serving as a project director with Oracle, in charge of ensuring large ERP systems are properly implemented at various institutions.
CALHOUN: It's nice to know that someone in that kind of role has had your learning experiences and has your big-picture perspective on technology and the higher education institution.
Thanks, Dennis.
About the author: Terry Calhoun is Director of Communications and Publications for the Society
for College and University Planning (SCUP). You can contact him through CT's IT Trends forum by clicking here. View more articles by Terry Calhoun.
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