The Kindness of Strangers
Nov/09/09 21:17
I have been conducting technology-oriented qualitative research for over 20 years and I can honestly say that CIO Peer Research has been the most fun experience of all.
The reason is the people, specifically the CIOs and senior IT executives that I get to interview. While I have certainly interviewed many heads of IT in the past, I’ve not done so in as concentrated a manner as this and what I’ve discovered is that as a group, they’re quite wonderful!
Of course, there is some self selection going on. These CIOs and senior IT execs agreed to be interviewed, so they’re already amenable to taking time from their busy days. Also, one has to assume that they derive some measure of enjoyment from it and therefore are inclined to be agreeable.
But the degree to which our panel members proved to be truly delightful, wholly engaged, and obviously happy to share, well, I must admit I was surprised. For a group of people who are inherently busy, I never really felt rushed to complete an interview. And the thoughtful consideration that attended most responses was quite impressive.
The interviews carried out for CIO Success Factors represented, in many cases, the first time I had spoken with given execs. But a casual observer would not have been able to tell. There was such an easy rapport with nearly all the panel members that it really felt like, from my side, that we were picking up from where we last left off, though there were no such points of previous interaction!
What became clear is that the cream really does rise to the top. Not only are our panel members sharp, they’re also incredibly nice. As CIO Success Factors points out time and again, people skills are essential to career advancement. And the time I’ve spent with these top execs bears that out.
I want to close by giving my heartfelt thanks to all the panel members of CIO Peer Research who participated in this study and an earlier study we conducted in July. It has been great fun for me and I look forward to many future conversations.
The reason is the people, specifically the CIOs and senior IT executives that I get to interview. While I have certainly interviewed many heads of IT in the past, I’ve not done so in as concentrated a manner as this and what I’ve discovered is that as a group, they’re quite wonderful!
Of course, there is some self selection going on. These CIOs and senior IT execs agreed to be interviewed, so they’re already amenable to taking time from their busy days. Also, one has to assume that they derive some measure of enjoyment from it and therefore are inclined to be agreeable.
But the degree to which our panel members proved to be truly delightful, wholly engaged, and obviously happy to share, well, I must admit I was surprised. For a group of people who are inherently busy, I never really felt rushed to complete an interview. And the thoughtful consideration that attended most responses was quite impressive.
The interviews carried out for CIO Success Factors represented, in many cases, the first time I had spoken with given execs. But a casual observer would not have been able to tell. There was such an easy rapport with nearly all the panel members that it really felt like, from my side, that we were picking up from where we last left off, though there were no such points of previous interaction!
What became clear is that the cream really does rise to the top. Not only are our panel members sharp, they’re also incredibly nice. As CIO Success Factors points out time and again, people skills are essential to career advancement. And the time I’ve spent with these top execs bears that out.
I want to close by giving my heartfelt thanks to all the panel members of CIO Peer Research who participated in this study and an earlier study we conducted in July. It has been great fun for me and I look forward to many future conversations.
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