Finding a CEO with the perfect blend of knowledge can be difficult. One strategy to make this easier is to carefully consider which skills are the most important to your business, and focus on honing those in the candidate that you choose.
This is suggested in a piece for CIO that focuses on Marc Franciosa, the CIO of Praxair, who describes the way he uses "blending" to promote technological skills. The key is appealing to the areas of a person's expertise, and orienting them so they realize how understanding a certain tech function will be beneficial to their work.
Franciosa says that ultimately, this leads to a better understanding of the business' greater mission.
"All of these people now have a greater appreciation for the connection between IT and business processes and in the end are integral to driving business results," he said of successfully "blended" employees. "And they can build great relationships as a result. They become advocates for the IT organization."
When embarking on an executive search, consider whether your organization could benefit from a CEO who either already fits this description or can foster it among your employees. In a 2012 piece for the Ivey Business Journal, researchers presented a checklist for what knowledge and skills an "IT-savvy CEO" should have.
The article suggests ways to use IT to an executive's personal advantage but doesn't specify a particular field of IT. That leaves space for the head of the company to supply their own interest and focus from their CEO experience. Following this list, the IT-savvy CEO can attend meetings, promote IT adoption and invest in training no matter what their particular knowledge is.
In seeking a blended executive, any business can proceed with the executive recruitment process in a way that feels tailored to its success.
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