Infocomm TechnologySoftware and Applications

Chief Technology Officer

The Chief Technology Officer oversees all technical aspects of the organisation and partners with key stakeholders within the business to evaluate new IT opportunities and use them as an enabler for growth. He/She approves the deployment of new technologies to enhance or develop new services and products offerings. He devises and implements long-term strategies focused on both current and new technology that can help an organisation go to market more effectively and in turn increase revenue through technological enhancements. He is an inspiring leader with a futuristic mind-set with an ability to drive innovative enhancements in the organisation. He is able to foresee connections across diverse areas and influence key stakeholder decisions.

What Does a Chief Technology Officer Do?

Key Responsibilities & Tasks

Establish technology strategy

  • Develop enterprise wide digital strategy
  • Develop a technology roadmap to align to the organisation’s overall strategy and growth plans
  • Influence strategic decisions on future business initiatives related to technology
  • Provide leadership in identifying, assessing and managing technology needs within an organisation
  • Advise senior leadership on business opportunities arising from technology developments

Develop technology solutions

  • Provide leadership in the design and development of major technical initiatives
  • Guide the final decisions on the feasibility of use of a technology solution for business implementation

Manage portfolio of technology solutions

  • Govern the integration of all solutions to ensure smooth and efficient flow of information within the organisation
  • Set objectives for IT investments, projects, services and activities to meet current and future business needs

Enable innovation to improve organisation's goal

  • Act as a Technology Evangelist to explore and adopt appropriate technology
  • Foster an environment conducive to innovation and technological change
  • Set the direction for research as well as a framework for measuring innovation research outcomes
  • Evaluate new approaches to redesign IT systems or optimise performance, quality and speed of services and/or products

Manage stakeholders

  • Build strategic relationships and alliances with stakeholders
  • Manage critical internal and external stakeholders changes in needs and priorities
  • Inspire stakeholders to pursue the organisation's technology vision
  • Drive technology alignment with the organisation's business needs

Manage people and organisation

  • Review operational strategies, policies and targets across teams and projects
  • Develop strategies for resource planning and utilisation
  • Review the utilisation of resources
  • Oversee the development of learning roadmaps for teams and functions
  • Establish performance indicators to benchmark effectiveness of learning and development programmes against best practices
  • Implement succession planning initiatives for key management positions
  • Advise stakeholders toward reaching compromises and agreeing on expectations

Do You Have the Skills for This Role?

A Chief Technology Officer needs 4 core competencies. Here's what's required and at what level.

Must-Have Skills (Advanced)

Developing People

Advanced

Interacting with Others

Customer Orientation

Advanced

Interacting with Others

Transdisciplinary Thinking

Advanced

Thinking Critically

Communication

Advanced

Interacting with Others

SkillsFuture Skill Levels

3 levels
1

Basic

Recognise and understand fundamental concepts. Apply skills in routine situations with guidance.

2

Intermediate

Apply skills in varied situations independently. Analyse problems and adapt approaches as needed.

3

Advanced

Lead and innovate in complex situations. Evaluate strategies, guide teams, and drive improvements.

Technical Skills & Competencies (TSC) Levels

6 levels
1

Follow

Carry out routine tasks under close supervision. Follow established procedures and guidelines.

2

Assist

Perform tasks with some independence. Assist in non-routine situations and apply established techniques.

3

Apply

Apply skills and knowledge independently in varied situations. Analyse problems and adapt approaches.

4

Analyse

Analyse complex situations and develop solutions. Guide and mentor junior colleagues.

5

Strategise

Set strategic direction and drive innovation. Evaluate trade-offs and make high-impact decisions.

6

Transform

Lead industry transformation. Establish standards, shape policy, and provide expert advisory.

Technical Skills & Competencies

A Chief Technology Officer requires 24 technical skills at specific proficiency levels.

Budgeting

Level 6

Business Finance

Endorse organisational financial and treasury management policies, systems, budgets and plans

Business Agility

Level 6

Business and Project Management

Establish policies that enable adaptability and foster a culture of business agility in the organisation

Business Continuity

Level 6

Business and Project Management

Define the optimal business continuity strategy and objectives for business continuity and contingency plans

Business Risk Management

Level 6

Business and Project Management

Anticipate emerging threats and potential risks, and define the overarching risk management strategy for the business

Change Management

Level 6

Business and Project Management

Establish the organisation's change management strategy, define key success indicators, and inspire shared commitment to the change

Emerging Technology Synthesis

Level 6

Business and Project Management

Establish an emerging technology strategy and spearhead organisational norms to synthesise and leverage new technologies and trends to propel business growth

Enterprise Architecture

Level 6

Design and Architecture

Envision and lead the development of a future-ready enterprise architecture, and strategically manage resources and capabilities to sustain the evolution of the business

IT Strategy

Level 6

Strategy Planning and Implementation

Establish future vision and key priorities for the IT organisation based on a projection of industry trends and developments

Learning and Development

Level 6

People Development

Mentor successors, support organisational learning and develop and engage employees to develop a strong organisational base

Organisational Analysis

Level 6

Strategy Planning and Implementation

Synergise organisational analysis, reviewing and evaluating findings and communicating findings to relevant stakeholders as well as advising on improvements for the organisation

Organisational Design

Level 6

Design and Architecture

Align organisational design with business needs and priorities

Partnership Management

Level 6

Stakeholder and Contract Management

Inspire direction and define key imperatives for inter-organisational partnerships, leading negotiations with senior leaders and on an international scale

Performance Management

Level 6

Operations and User Support

Chart direction on key performance indicators of ICT infrastructure and develop a strategy to enable achievement to achieve long term business requirements

Portfolio Management

Level 6

Business and Project Management

Establish a strategy and future roadmap for managing IT portfolio and investments and make critical IT investment decisions for the business

Product Management

Level 6

Business and Project Management

Re-define thinking and inspire the conceptualisation of new and innovative products that create significant industry impact

Quality Standards

Level 6

Governance and Compliance

Review organisation’s quality guidelines against emerging trends and industry best practices, ensuring alignment with company values and objectives

Solution Architecture

Level 6

Design and Architecture

Synthesise new trends and developments in or beyond the Infocomm Technology (ICT) industry, and lead the development of innovative and ground-breaking solutions that have significant industry impact

Software Design

Level 6

Design and Architecture

Inspire new and innovative software design ideas, and align design principles and parameters with current and future needs

Stakeholder Management

Level 6

Stakeholder and Contract Management

Establish the overall vision for the alignment of organisation's and stakeholders' objectives, co-creating shared goals and strategic initiatives with senior stakeholders.

Strategy Planning

Level 6

Business and Project Management

Build actionable organisation strategy plans and policies that are forward-looking, anticipate strategic risks and focus on bottom line results

Sustainability Management

Level 6

Business and Project Management

Establish an organisation-wide sustainability strategy and introduce new, innovative practices and technologies to optimise energy and resource efficiency

System Integration

Level 6

Development and Implementation

Establish an integration strategy and a clear vision for an integrated ICT architectural design.

Networking

Level 5

Business Development

Implementing strategies to capitalise on new business opportunities

People and Performance Management

Level 5

People Development

Establish organisation-wide performance management strategies

European Skills Framework

ESCO

Skills and knowledge areas required for this occupation based on European classification.

Career Paths from Chief Technology Officer

Explore related roles in Infocomm Technology that share similar skill requirements.

Will AI Threaten Your Job?

74
Low riskHigh RiskHigh risk

Most at risk

software components suppliersbusiness intelligencemanage budgets

Most resilient

build business relationshipsinternet governancelead technology development of an organisation
View full AI disruption analysis →

Quick Facts

TrackSoftware and Applications
Core Skills4
Technical Skills24
Key Tasks24

Is Chief Technology Officer right for you?

Take the free 10-minute Career Portrait to see which career direction fits your motivations and strengths.

More in Infocomm Technology

Explore all career paths in the Infocomm Technology sector.

View all Infocomm Technology roles
Check Your Readiness