Excellent IT Leadership

DAY 1

Introduction to Excellent IT Leadership

The course starts with introductions and confirmation of delegate objectives.

• What makes an IT leader?
• The five key IT leadership skills

Personal Leadership

Daniel Goleman’s model of emotional intelligence emphasises personal leadership — our ability to understand ourselves and achieve our best.

• How CIOs optimize time and activity
• Secrets of successful CIOs
• Leadership opportunities for IT professionals
• Building and maintaining reputation
• Developing a personal brand

Team Leadership

Our “world class IT” model has been 5 years in the making, and identifies three stages in the development of top performing IT teams:

• The 3 tiers of high performing IT teams
• Team essentials
• Creating the right team spirit
• Organising IT teams for optimum results
• Selecting and motivating top IT talent
• Developing staff in real time
• Maximizing performance

DAY 2

Peer Leadership – Leadership Profiles

Day 2 uses two leadership models to help IT managers identify their leadership and management style and use it to best effect.The first model looks at how we make decisions and assimilate information, and is a highly effective tool for improving team effectiveness and building influence.The second model looks at
leadership archetypes and gives additional insight into our motivations and applies it to improve effectiveness when working with other managers.

• Styles of leadership
• How we make decisions
• The archetype model
• Styles of leadership
• Understanding your own leadership profile
• Recognizing different leadership types
• Influencing strategies for the different leadership styles

DAY 3

Peer Leadership – Corporate Politics

IT is at the heart of all business and has a key role to
play in many of the key corporate and political decisions. Using the work from day 2, we look at how to build
strong business relationships in the business and
increase our circle of influence.

• Corporate politics — the inside track
• A political game
• A model for political success
• Case study ‘The Runaway Project’
  

  Peer Leadership – Building Influence

  We review the effect of corporate politics on IT success, using guidelines from Dr Robina Chatham’s book, “Corporate Politics for IT Managers.” Delegates learn specific techniques to raise their profile and personal brand.

• Developing successful political networks
• Raising your political profile
• Assessing political power and leverage
• Techniques for building influence
• Becoming a ‘network kingpin’ for your company

• DAY 4

  Technology & Innovation Leadership

  IT leaders need to be at the forefront of technical innovation. Day 4 takes delegates through the technology innovation process, with techniques for fostering creativity, developing ideas and plotting technology vision.

  • The process of innovation
  • Creating the conditions and urgency for innovation
  • The creative mindset
  • The innovation workshop — fostering innovation
  • Identifying problems and creating ideas
  • The importance of technology in innovation
  • Selecting the best innovation ideas
  • Lanterns to the future — creating technology vision
  • Case study ‘Innovating in industry’

  Corporate Leadership

  This module focuses on corporate leadership and the high level role of senior IT executives. It is based on research and interviews with CIOs and technology leaders from around the world.

  • IT leaders at board level — what CEOs look for in their CIOs
  • The changing role of the CIO
  • Skills for the new Chief Digital Officer
  • The responsibilities of IT corporate leadership
  • A (video) role model for corporate IT leadership

  DAY 5

  IT to Business Alignment — Reality

  Our IT to business alignment model is a proven process for delivering business results and enhancing the perception of IT.

  • A process model for IT to business alignment
  • Alignment through good governance
  • Technology governance structures
  • Using governance to improve KPI results
  • Case examples of governance models

  IT to Business Alignment — Perception

  • Alignment through people
  • Managing and enhancing IT perception
  • The importance of IT’s brand
  • Aligning reality and perception
  • Bringing it all together — a business alignment game

  Course Close

  • An action list for the future
  • IT Leaders network
  • Wrap up (typically 3 p.m)