As a Chief Information Officer (CIO), you lead your organization through a transformative digital landscape. What should you prioritize, and most importantly, what are your CIO peers focusing on? We believe understanding the strategic priorities of the CIO community will help you align your focus areas effectively.

At Jade Global, through our 1:1 advisory sessions and consolidated interactions during our CIO events and client engagements, we’ve observed several key challenges that resonate with CIOs globally. Our deep understanding of these pain points, combined with insights from industry data and reports—reveals the areas that CIOs are prioritizing to lead their organizations into 2025 successfully.

CIOs’ Toughest Challenges
The toughest challenges arise because CIOs today operate within a rapidly evolving technology environment, and their role has transformed from a focus solely on technology to strategic leadership. They are strategic thinkers who are to concentrate on long-term vision and the integration of IT with business goals. They are change agents, risk managers, and talent developers who are also committed to upskilling and fostering a workforce prepared for the future.

1. Deriving Business Value from AI
AI is no longer just a buzzword; it’s at the core of digital transformation. According to Gartner, 92% of CIOs expect AI to be fully integrated into their organizations by 2025. However, nearly half of those already using AI are struggling to quantify its business value.

The challenge lies in building an AI strategy that doesn’t just explore innovative use cases but also delivers tangible, measurable results. CIOs must focus on deploying scalable AI models that align with their broader business objectives.

How Jade Can Help
At Jade Global, we bring AI to life. To help you democratize your innovation and accelerate business outcomes, we have built 12+ enterprise-grade AI solutions. Powered by advanced technologies like Oracle, NetSuite, and Boomi, our AI solutions take the heavy lifting off your plate, streamlining processes and automating workflows to propel your organization into the AI-powered future.

Build Your Own Model
Craft and train custom Gen AI models tailored to your specific domain data.

Fine-Tune a Model
Enhance existing Gen AI models through additional training on your unique data sets.

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2. Data Control and Governance
Jae Evans, global CIO at Oracle, highlights the critical need for effective data governance: “As a large enterprise, we manage substantial amounts of data from various sources... Utilizing technologies like generative AI and analytics can help us make data both more insightful and readily accessible.” Data and analytics are pivotal in driving business innovation, yet many CIOs still face challenges in aligning data strategies with overall business priorities. Nick Kramer, leader of applied solutions at SSA & Company, anticipates that despite the hype surrounding generative AI, its adoption will remain slow. The most innovative CIOs will prioritize data management and governance, recognizing the need for high-quality data curation and establishing data literacy.

Jade Global is at the forefront of building AI-powered analytics solutions, such as Finance Assist AI for financial data and SCM Insight AI for supply chain data. Our team of analytics experts is proficient in leading platforms like Oracle Analytics, Microsoft Power BI, Google Cloud Platform, Tableau, and Snowflake. Check out what Thomas Bakewell, CIO at National Insurance Alliance (NIA), has to say about our solutions.

3.Cybersecurity
With cybercrime projected to cost over $8 trillion by 2025, cybersecurity remains a pressing concern for CIOs. The rapid shift to remote and hybrid work models has only broadened the attack surface, and sophisticated threats require more advanced defenses.

Juan Orlandini, CTO for North America at Insight Enterprises, cautions, “We are currently experiencing a cybersecurity crisis... Attackers are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and one misstep can allow them access.” Stephen Ross from S-RM indicates that as cyber threats grow more complex, CIOs must push for higher cybersecurity budgets to safeguard their organizations, expressing concern that the average cybersecurity budget in the U.S. only increased by 1%.

4. Demonstrating IT’s Business Value
Despite being at the forefront of digital transformation, many CIOs still face difficulties in articulating the value of their technology investments to the C-suite. According to Gartner, 81% of organizations have not fully realized their digital transformation goals, which places increasing pressure on CIOs to justify IT budgets. Orla Daly, CIO at Skillsoft, remarks, “CIOs and IT leaders need to grasp how innovation can disrupt the business from both internal and external viewpoints.” Tilak Doddapaneni of Publicis Sapient stresses the necessity for collaboration between CIOs and business teams to explore the potential of generative AI and construct viable business cases for its adoption.

5. Closing the Skills Gap
The demand for specialized IT skills continues to outpace supply, particularly in areas like AI, cloud computing, and cybersecurity. Sixty-nine percent of CIOs plan to upskill or reskill their employees in 2024, highlighting the growing challenge of talent retention and development. Gaudy Jandron, CIO at US Signal, states, “CIOs need to think creatively... In addition to sourcing talent, they must collaborate with business leaders to create programs that enable all employees to adjust to new working methods.” John King from Lotis Blue Consulting notes that without significant reskilling efforts, technology investments might fail to yield returns.

As organizations continue to compete for the best tech talent, we at Jade Global have helped organizations build the right kind of It infrastructure necessary for creating environments where employees can thrive and grow.

The Path Forward for CIOs
As a CIO, you are at the forefront of driving change in a rapidly evolving digital landscape. By focusing on key areas—AI strategy, data and analytics, cybersecurity, business value, and talent management—you can ensure your organization is well-equipped to navigate the challenges of 2024 and beyond.

Having the right digital transformation partner gives you the confidence to execute your plans seamlessly. Jade Global, with its two decades of expertise, has been a growth enabler for fast-growing enterprises, helping them deliver delightful human experiences via technology. As a trusted IT partner, Jade Global offers comprehensive services across multiple technology platforms, including advisory, implementation, integration, testing, and managed services.

What sets Jade Global apart is its commitment to the highest quality standards, including CMMI® Maturity Level 5 and ISO 27001 certification, as well as compliance with HIPAA. For 13 consecutive years, Jade Global has been recognized as one of the Inc. 500’s fastest-growing companies, proving its dedication to delivering scalable and effective solutions.

Leveraging a rich partner ecosystem with key players like Oracle, NetSuite, Salesforce, Microsoft, Boomi, and ServiceNow, Jade Global ensures tailored solutions that can help you meet your strategic goals. Whether you are scaling up AI capabilities, optimizing data strategies, or navigating cybersecurity risks, Jade Global is the strategic partner you need to accelerate your digital transformation journey and achieve sustainable growth.