This study that we launched on CTOs
helped us find two things.
The first thing is that the CTO job
is a relatively young job,
a young function in many companies.
That is something today that is really booming.
And 75% of companies are aware that this is a must,
mainly because now transformations are becoming usual life,
and you have almost never-ending transformations in organisations.
So this was the first finding.
The second finding is that change management is a key aspect.
100% of respondents to our survey
say that change management is the weakness of their transformation,
and if they had to do their transformation again,
they would start with change management,
not when starting the execution,
but from Day 1, before even launching the transformation.
The types of transformation for which we need CTOs
are transformations needing to deliver large results,
for example -18% in costs,
or +20% in sales.
In a very short time,
that means with quick impacts in twelve, eighteen months,
and of course with the end of the transformation,
it can last two to three years, but not more than that.
At the same time, those types of transformations
need the involvement of different kinds of functions
so you need a CTO because you need
to embark the whole organisation.
One of the key success factors
is to have a very regular relationship between the CTO and the CEO.
So in successful transformations,
the CTO and CEO meet very regularly,
sometimes even daily,
to solve all the problems.
But the trap, or the pitfall not to enter into
is that the CTO should not work only with the CEO,
but with the whole executive committee.
The traits of a Chief Transformation Officer are threefold.
The first one is to be structured.
That means classical project management skills.
The second skill is to be able to deep dive and be a problem solver,
that means to be adaptable.
And finally the third one, last but not least,
and that is often lacking,
is to be empathic and to have the soft skills
that will embark the organisation.