When I was to interview for the CIO position of my last company, it just so happened the Board of Directors Meeting was taking place that week. The CEO asked me if I would meet with the Board of Directors, and I welcomed the opportunity.
The interview began with a few of the typical questions you get in an interview and then there was a great question, “Tell us why you will be a good fit for our company.”
I gave them a short list of accomplishments in a similar business and then made a comment I don’t believe they expected:
“If you are looking for a technical manager who focuses on technology, I’m not your guy, , , but if you are looking for someone who can quantify business needs and issues and focus IT resources to address them and to deliver business value for the company with your IT investment, that’s who I am.”
There were a few other questions and later that night I received a phone call with an offer to join the company.
The CEO told me later that one of the things that impressed them was how open and forthcoming I was about what they were getting with me and the fact I was not a technology expert was a good thing. The CIO I replaced was a technology focused manager and they could never understand what she was working on or why she was spending money in certain areas.
ITLever™ 