Good CFO-CIO Teams Drive Better Digital Funding Outcomes

CFOs and CIOs need to speak the same language to have productive digital investment conversations. Many do not.

Seventy-eight percent of CFOs plan to maintain or increase enterprisewide digital investments in the next two years — despite planning cost reductions if inflation persists. At the same time, global IT spending will likely keep rising. This seemingly rosy outlook for digital spend doesn’t mean, however, that you will find it easy to get the CFO to fund your specific digital initiatives. Gartner research shows that only 30% of CFO-CIO relationships can be described as strong digital partnerships — capable of outperforming their peers in financial management practices that are unique to funding digital.

Drill down on actions for leaders as recession threatens:

• Keys to Digital Strategy and Technologies for IT leaders

• Actions for CFOs and other corporate leaders

Good CFO-CIO teams drive better digital funding outcomes

Strong CFO-CIO relationships are:

• 51% more likely to easily find funding for digital initiatives

• 39% more likely to keep digital spending in line with the budget plan

• 18% more likely to achieve the intended business outcomes

“Digital funding is smoother when CFO-CIO relationships are business-centric and collegial,'' says Randeep Rathindran, Vice President, Research, at Gartner. “That means the CFO relies on their CIO as a business strategist, rather than as a budget owner, and the relationship is marked by mutual respect for one another’s insights and abilities.”

“Organisations have a lot more tools and digital capabilities at their disposal than they did during the financial crisis of 2008-2009", says Sanil Solanki, Managing Vice President at Gartner. "A recession offers organisations the opportunity to experiment with disruptive innovations and to redefine the next decade. The CFO-CIO relationship is key in ensuring these innovations are given appropriate funding and the appropriate risk appetite is set in order to leverage digital against today’s economic headwinds and set up for a healthier future."

Read the full article at Gartner here.