The role of the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) has become central to every firm’s ability to survive, and thrive, in the digital age. Today’s technology leaders are expected to drive innovation, safeguard against cyber threats, orchestrate digital transformations, enable hybrid workforces, and manage costs – all while adapting to rapidly evolving technologies. In many ways, it’s a mission impossible.
Mission impossible – being a CIO/CTO in 2025
One of the greatest tensions in the role is balancing innovation and operational stability. The CEO demands bold digital initiatives, the CFO insists on cost savings, and the COO expects zero downtime. CIOs and CTOs are expected flawlessly execute today’s technologies while anticipating and deploying tomorrow’s. Move too slowly and they’re seen as blockers. Move too fast and they risk costly missteps or security breaches. It’s a precarious tightrope – often invisible until something goes wrong. The result is a growing expectation debt: the widening gap between what stakeholders believe is possible and what is realistically achievable.
This challenge is compounded by the scarcity of skilled talent, escalating cyber threats, and mounting pressure to demonstrate ROI in ever-shorter timeframes. Many CIOs and CTOs feel like they’re chasing a horizon that only keeps moving.
Success isn’t about delivering the latest shiny tool – it’s about creating the conditions for secure, sustainable, and purposeful innovation.
To set our tech leaders up for success, we need to do more than recalibrate expectations. We must embed technology leadership into the strategic fabric of the business. CIOs and CTOs need a seat at the table — not just to execute strategy but to help define it. Technology literacy must increase across the c-suite and board to enable smarter, grounded decision-making. Critically, companies must create room for failure – not every pilot will scale, and that’s okay.
Tech leaders cannot be futurists and firefighters, visionaries and custodians, magicians and budget managers – without the right structures, support, and understanding to succeed.
The CIO/CTO role is not impossible – but it is unsustainable if we continue to ask the impossible. Empowering them as strategic partners, change agents, and guides through the complexity of modern technology may be the most important tech transformation a company can undertake.
