"Setting an example is not the main means of influencing another; it is the only means." -- Albert Einstein

The role of the public-sector CIO is in decline.

Why? Because CIOs have not struck a proper balance between leadership and management. Most CIOs spend their time managing when leadership should consume 80 percent of their efforts. Hampered by a lack of leadership training, an unwillingness to take risks and simply not knowing when to lead, most CIOs today fall back on their managerial role to get them through.

To shift the balance back, public-sector CIOs must understand the behavioral difference between leadership and management. Although both involve getting people to do something purposeful in an organization, there is a critical difference. Management is based on authority. Managers can give an organization direction because they hold a position of power, and public-sector CIOs have the authority to guide the activities of the IT organization in their jurisdiction.

Leadership, on the other hand, is based on influence. CIOs who lead can direct the organization because they convince people certain activities are the right thing to do, and people want to follow that kind of guidance. The public CIO must exercise influence inside and outside the organization to ensure the right things are done for government and citizens.

Good CIOs act as both leaders and managers. But knowing when to behave as leader and when to act as manager -- especially in the complex world of government IT -- isn't easy. By breaking down the major responsibilities of public-sector CIOs and understanding the differences between leader and manager for each of those responsibilities, IT executives can bring a balance to their jobs that will enhance and solidify their role.


IT Assessments: Opportunities and Threats
CIOs must analyze the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats facing their jurisdictions. When assessing strengths and weaknesses, CIOs look internally at government functions. For opportunities and threats, CIOs look externally at environmental factors to take advantage of or solve. These assessments are crucial to staying viable in our constantly changing environment.

The management side of IT assessment focuses on building strengths while eradicating weaknesses. Val Ovesen earned the informal title of "Pied Piper of the Dissidents" when he was Utah's state tax commissioner because he encouraged risk-taking among workers there. "I would go into a work area and stand up on a chair or desk, and I would call everyone's attention with a little bugle," he said. "Then I would talk about someone in the organization that had taken a chance, whether that person had succeeded or not." By highlighting examples of risk-taking, Ovesen encouraged people to take chances and built up the commission's risk-taking strengths.

When it comes to leadership, however, CIOs must identify and capitalize on an organization's opportunities while identifying and addressing threats, such as smaller IT budgets and security concerns, in the environment. This outwardly focused endeavor calls for CIOs to stay abreast of the latest technologies and their applications, learn from the best -- and worst -- practices of other organizations, monitor the political environment, and understand the needs of the citizens and other governmental organizations they serve.


Governance: Building the Right Board
The state of Washington's Department of Information Services (DIS) has received both national and international recognition for developing and sustaining IT and digital government services. Much of that success can be attributed to the department's effective IT governance model.

The DIS Information Services Board is both engaged and viable, and its membership closely mirrors what we consider an ideal public-sector IT board: the elected leader's chief of staff as chair, with all lines of business represented and the CIO serving as a board member. The governance board should set enterprise priorities and