Netskope has published new global research underscoring that CEO and CIO (Chief Information Officer) alignment plays a crucial role in the path to strategic AI adoption. While organisational enthusiasm for the promise of AI is seeing CIOs take on broader, more strategic responsibilities, many are seeking stronger support from their CEO to move quickly in achieving these objectives.
The findings, published in a new report, Crucial Conversations: How to Achieve CIO-CEO Alignment in the Era of AI, show that 39% of CIOs consider themselves to be misaligned with their CEOs on decision-making, while around a third (31%) admit they’re not confident they know what their CEO wants from them. The result of this disconnect is that 34% do not feel empowered by their CEO to make long-term IT strategy decisions.
This separation is happening at a time when the role of CIO is expanding into new territory: 34% of CIOs say they are now significantly more involved in strategic priorities beyond IT than in the past. At least one in three CIOs are being asked to lead on critical business initiatives that unlock the value of AI, including human capital planning, digital innovation, and operational resilience in increasingly volatile markets.
Other findings from the research include:
- While just over a third of CIOs believe their business is investing enough in modernising IT infrastructure, 41% say investment needs to increase. One in four CIOs (26%) say it’s difficult to get buy-in from their CEO on modernisation and transformation strategies.
- CEOs are looking for CIOs to strike a careful balance: drive innovation and AI adoption, while controlling cost and risk. In particular, CEOs expect CIOs to be measured in their approach: focusing on business outcomes over hype, and ensuring that emerging technologies like AI are deployed responsibly. CIOs are being tasked with identifying use cases, driving cost savings, and ensuring governance and ethics are built in from the outset.
- CIOs are now increasingly involved in workforce strategy, particularly in relation to the growing use of AI. Many are now playing a key role in overseeing the performance and governance of AI agents supplementing a human workforce, with implications for productivity, skills development, and ethical standards across the business.
- CIOs themselves are aware of this shift: 37% of CIOs say that technology expertise is now less important than business strategy and stakeholder management for the role of the CIO.
You can read the full report here.
