I’ll start with what might pass for a joke. How do you tell a CDO from a CIO?

It’s easy, just ask them, “Are you a Chief Data Officer?” The CIO will answer, “No, but I wish I was” where the CDO will respond, “Why do you ask?”

That joke is usually told about psychologists and psychiatrists, but it’s also true that many CIOs, given the choice, would become Chief Data Officers. Or, more likely, simply add CDO responsibilities to everything else they do, perhaps with the addition of a few “Office of the CDO” staffers.

I am thinking about this because of a recent conversation with MIT’s Richard Wang, who runs their CDO research and information quality programs. SiliconANGLE is working with him and others on the MIT CDOIQ Symposium, which we will live stream July 23 and 24. (Here is a link to last years’ coverage).

CIO as CDO is a Bad Idea

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Wang told me that many CIOs would like to add CDO responsibilities to their portfolios, but that it’s usually — maybe always — a bad idea. Wang says CIOs already have too much on their plates to do the CDO role properly.

I’d add that CDO and CIO are very different jobs. The CIO’s primary task is to keep critical systems — like the CEO’s email and core apps — working 24/7. The CIO is also the caretaker of corporate data and likely has control of development resources, too. CIO tends to be a technical job rather than a strategic one.

The CDO role, admittedly the more sexy of the two, is not a technical job but a business function. While both jobs require technical knowledge, CDOs are not generalists and must also deeply understand the business in ways not required of a CIO.

“It is very important that the CDO and CIO work together,” Wang told me, saying that if the two executives don’t get along it can create huge turf wars and other problems.

It is also a bad idea for the CDO to be placed under the CIO in the company food chain. Both jobs, Wang told me, are critical and the CDO should not work in the CIO’s shadow. More than the CIO, the CDO will be working closely with other C-level executives to develop new information-based innovations.

Last year’s CDOIQ Symposium discussed the rise of the CDO, with arguments made for the addition of a CDO in any organization that relies on quantities of data in operations or for revenue purposes.

Mario Faria, Big Data Technology Advisor at Technology Partner Network of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, went so far as to say, “When you bring in a CFO, do you make a business case to bring your CFO?” Faria believes that the importance of the role should be clear, based on the need to create value from the treasure troves of data many companies already possess.

Faria also believes that the CDO should not report to the CIO as “Data should be a business issue, not a technical issue.”

Who the CDO reports to will vary, based on the company’s primary business and where the best uses can be made of CDO functions. That may or may not make the CDO a direct report to the CEO.

Regardless, the CDO must be able to communicate effectively with the entire executive team since CDO duties include evangelizing new data initiatives that may threaten the status quo.

Who works for the CDO?

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While there is no single answer suitable for all organizations, Wang recommends starting with a small CDO operation. This might mean five people: The CDO, three CDO assistants and an administrative assistant to keep things moving. The assistants will be from the next-generation of IT folks, who are able to combine data and business skills to solve problems and create opportunities.

I asked Wang whether the CDO should also own the database staff and developers that currently reside in IT. Wang said moving those people into the CDO office it isn’t necessary if the CDO and CIO coexist peaceably.

If it seems like the CDO function is still sorting itself out, you’re right. The job is also different in various industries. Government, military and the financial industry have been early adopters, recognizing the value better data usage and management can bring to their organizations.

What do you think about the differences between CIO and CDO? How should the CDO function be staffed and how can conflicts be avoided? I’d love to hear your ideas.

photo: HaPe_Gera via photopin cc