Brian P. Watson

China is one of the world’s oldest, most dominant civilizations. Yet, it remains shrouded in mystery, walled off from the rest of the world and a victim of ancient stereotypes. The Beijing Olympics offered China a chance to reopen its doors. For American CIOs and business leaders, it’s a chance to ponder China’s future in […]

Several hyped technologies are ready for showtime, but others are years off, according to Gartner’s new Hype Cycle on emerging technologies. First, a look at the technologies Gartner says are two to five years from mainstream adoption, along with our analysis based on recent CIO Insight Research:   Green IT–Our research finds Green IT programs on […]

Looking back, Bob Culver sees the post-Gulf War years as a pivotal time in the way the world engaged in environmental issues. Simply put, the United States became a nation fueled on gas-guzzling SUVs, while Europe moved to curb its energy consumption. Today, Europe is far ahead of the United States in terms of environmentally […]

IT chiefs are expanding their roles and gaining more clout than ever before, according to CIO Insight‘s 2008 CIO Role study, with influence over everything from business process improvement to IT spending and vendor selection. But CIOs’ responsibilities remain limited when it comes to many other crucial business decisions. In specific areas–such as choosing markets […]

Looking for some instructive, inspiring books to read? The Society of Information Management has a few suggestions. Each year, SIM releases a list of must-read books for aspiring IT leaders. The choices, though, might surprise you–and if you’re looking for books on IT, look elsewhere. Instead, SIM’s list offers a mix of top works on […]

You can’t blame CIOs for their skepticism around the first iPhone launch. Sure, Apple’s marketing prowess left just about everyone wanting one, but Apple was clearly gunning for the consumer market. For IT executives, there was little excitement–a closed network, no outside applications, etc. If anything, there was stress, specifically in explaining to their Apple-loving […]

Median salaries for top-paid IT executives, middle managers and staff at large firms edged up only slightly in the past 12 months, and pay for IT pros at small- to mid-sized firms rose even less, according to IT management consulting firm Janco Associates’ mid-year IT compensation study. A few positions at large firms (with gross […]

From pagers to cell phones to smart phones, on-the-go tools help boost productivity and improve customer service. But it’s not all fluffy white clouds for IT: Executives are losing sleep over mobile compliance, integration and security concerns. In a recent CIO Insight survey, IT pros said the rise in mobility has not, for the most […]

For months, conflicting economic projections, rising gas prices, ripple effects from fallout in the financial sector and other variables have left businesses struggling for answers. Will the economy get worse before it gets better? No one knows. All the while, CIOs and their teams have been waiting for the axe to fall on their projects, […]

Corporate America, beware: They’re coming. Previously known as members of the Third World, handfuls of developing economies are turning the tables on the developed worlds of North America, Western Europe and Japan, churning out businesses that seek global competition–not just traditional outsourcing contracts. Businesses from India, China and many other less developed nations are stepping […]

Think midtier firms are behind the times? Think again. CIO Insight‘s 2008 Mobility Survey finds that small and midsize businesses actually deploy advanced mobile technologies at a higher rate than their bigger siblings. Smart phones, for example, are more common in midtier firms and now outnumber cell phones in the companies we surveyed. And older […]

It’s nearly impossible for business executives to approve investments on technologies that haven’t yet proven their value elsewhere, but that problem will go away soon, says Scott Anthony, president of Innosight, a strategic consulting firm. In the meantime, CIOs and their teams need to focus on the tangible, immediate advantages emerging technologies can bring to […]