1. Chief Digital Officers (CDOs) are establishing themselves as new executives at the top management level of companies that go through a digital transformation. To help managers understand how CDOs can be successfully installed and why CDOs have been established in the first place, we present six case studies of CDOs and describe how they fulfill their positions. Based on these cases, we derive two main factors that drive the employment of CDOs: high market pressures to digitally transform and the complexity of coordinating digital transformation activities across the company. We also identify three role types that CDOs primarily exhibit (the Entrepreneur, the Digital Evangelist and the Coordinator) and five types of skills and competencies CDOs should have.

2. Agenda The Emergence of Chief Digital Officers
Six Cases Illustrating the CDO Role
The Three Role Types
Key CDO Skills and Competencies
Lessons Learned

3. The Emergence of Chief Digital Officers
Companies struggle to embrace new opportunities presented by new digital technologies
63% of executives find “the pace of technology change in their organization is too slow”
Until recently chief information officers (CIOs) were held responsible for digital transformation
CIOs expected to move from pure technologists to business strategists
New responsibilities placing pressures on CIOs
CIOs have difficulty embracing the new responsibilities

4. The Emergence of Chief Digital Officers
Digital transformation
Using new technologies: social media, mobile access, analytics, or embedded devices
Involves company-wide digital transformation strategy which addresses company opportunities and risks that originate from digital technologies
Responsibilities associated with digital transformation have high level of complexity
Too intense for just one senior executive to manage
Companies establishing new position at top management
Chief Digital Officer (CDO)
Employed to make digital transformation a strategic priority in their company
First CDO was at MTV Networks in 2005
CDOs forecasted to reach 2,000 worldwide by 2015
One of fastest-growing C-level positions

5. What is a Chief Digital Officer?
CDO Role – to orchestrate the digital transformation of a company
Supports top management in formulating and executing a dedicated digital transformation strategy
Aims to bring company to forefront of the digital evolution taking place
Have wider role than heads of individual digital business units
Fosters cross-functional collaboration

6. Comparison of CDO and Other CxO Positions
Chief Digital Officer
Chief Information Officer
Chief Data Officer
Chief Innovation Officer
Chief Strategy Officer
Key Responsibilities
Digital mobilization of whole company
Initiation of digital initiatives
Company-wide collaboration
Strategic IT deployment
IT support
Data management
Data analytics
Structured corporate innovation
No specific focus on the digital sphere
Management of strategy process
Strategy execution
Strategic Perspective
Digital Transformation Strategy
IT Strategy
Data Strategy
Innovation Strategy
Corporate Strategy
Specialist Role
Digital Transformer of the Company
Strategic IT Specialist
Data Specialist
Corporate Innovation Specialist
Corporate Strategist

7. Agenda The Emergence of Chief Digital Officers
Six Cases Illustrating the CDO Role
The Three Role Types
Key CDO Skills and Competencies
Lessons Learned

8. Six Cases Illustrating the CDO Role
Six companies that employ a CDO are used to illustrate how CDOs perform their roles in a range of industries
Industries: Retail, tourism, education, market research, financial services, and publishing
Each case identifies the:
Scope of the digital transformation
Reason for creating the CDO role
Positioning of the CIO and CDO
CDO tasks
Cooperation with CIO

9. Overview of Six Case Organizations
Industry
Revenues [in €] per Year
Employees
Positioning of the CDO
Most Senior IT Executive 1
Retail
20-30bn.
60-70K
Group-level
Chief Information Officer 2
Tourism
1-5bn.
1-5K
Subsidiary-level 3
Education
500mn-1bn
Chief Technology Officer 4
Market Research mn
500-1,000 5
Financial Services
Head of IT 6
Publishing
1-100mn
CDO*

10. Overview of Case Study Findings
Case 1:
Retail
Case 2:
Tourism
Case 3:
Education
Case 4:
Market
Research
Case 5:
Financial
Services
Case 6: Publishing
Focus of
Digital Transformation
Enhancing customer experience
Growing the online and mobile business
Introducing sophisticated e-learning courses
Optimizing customer solutions
Enhancing customer service
Fostering e- business
Task Focus
of CDO
Digital innovation
Integration of online and traditional business
Development of digital business model and digital products
Support of market managers
Introduction of digital tools and devices
Increase of digital revenues
Relationship Between CDO and Most
Senior
IT Executive
Close collaboration:
CDO takes charge of strategy
CIO takes charge of IT implementation
Close collaboration and iterative requirements definition:
CDO takes business perspective
CIO takes IT perspective
CDO delegates technical aspects to the CTO at group level
CDO has additional software developers
CDO takes customer perspective
CIO delivers correspond-ing IT
CDO focuses on communica-tional tasks
CIO takes on technology perspective
CDO assumes both roles

11. Agenda The Emergence of Chief Digital Officers
Six Cases Illustrating the CDO Role
The Three Role Types
Key CDO Skills and Competencies
Lessons Learned

12. Three Role Types of CDOs
Entrepreneur Role
Explore IT-enables innovations
Initiate and design the shift of company to becoming digitally empowered
Digital Evangelist Role
Convince the workforce across all departments and hierarchy to pull together
Communicate digital strategies across company and departmental boundaries
Coordinator Role
Stimulate immense changes necessary to execute companies’ digital strategy
Coordinate different functional business areas to achieve alignment

13. Primary CDO Role Type by Case Company
Entrepreneur
Digital Evangelist
Coordinator
Case 1 (Retail)
Case 3 (Education)
Case 4 (Market Research)
Case 5 (Financial Services)
Case 2 (Tourism)
Case 6 (Publishing)

14. Agenda The Emergence of Chief Digital Officers
Six Cases Illustrating the CDO Role
The Three Role Types
Key CDO Skills and Competencies
Lessons Learned

15. Key CDO Skills and Competencies
Understand IT applications and underlying infrastructures and knowledge on how they can be upgraded and modified
IT Competency
Posses business acumen including specific know-how on strategy, transformation and change management
Change Management Skills
Convince internal decision makers and employees of the need to digitally transform and demonstrate the benefits that will come from the transformation
Inspiring Skills
Use visionary thinking to look past existing strategies and previous procedures and envision he digital future of company
Digital Pioneering Skills
Be resilient to complete the digital transformation journey which will require substantial changes to the company
Resilience

16. Most Important Skills and Competencies by CDO Role Type
Entrepreneur
Digital Evangelist
Coordinator
Digital Pioneering Skills
Inspiring Skills
Change Management Skills
Resilience
IT Competency

17. Agenda The Emergence of Chief Digital Officers
Six Cases Illustrating the CDO Role
The Three Role Types
Key CDO Skills and Competencies
Lessons Learned

18. Lessons learned
Lesson 1: Top Management Should Ensure CDOs Have Sufficient Authority
Lesson 2: CDOs Should Hone the Skills Required for their Primary CDO Role(s) and Address the Challenges Caused by Internal Resistance
Lesson 3: Appointment of a CDO Offers Opportunities for the CIO
Lesson 4: CDO Positions May Be a Temporary Phenomenon