Oversimplified, but true as far as it goes

Paul Ingevaldson has an interesting piece in Computerworld this week, "CEOs: Think Through your CIO Choice," that merit some discussion. In it, he makes the obvious suggestion that choosing a CIO that fits with the firm's needs will make for a longer and more fruitful relationship on both sides.

As my title suggests, Ingevaldson simplifies things a bit too much for my tastes by dividing CIOs into two camps. The first of these is the activist CIO, who in effect says, "Do it my way; no highway option," and expects the organization to agree to his approach. The other type is the collaborative CIO, who seeks to build consensus with other executives and stakeholders to define systems goals.