Essential reading for IT professionals with aspirations toward the top IT spot, and for sitting CIOs looking to refine their mobile, social and cloud strategies and knowledge The definitive work on how to achieve leadership success in IT, Straight to the Top, Second Edition reveals how the role of the CIO is changing due to major trends associated with consumer and enterprise products and technologies driving new mobile solutions in today's organizations; cloud computing and the move away from controlled / internally managed data centers to pay as you use and elastic cloud infrastructure and application services; and the impact social media is having on today's complex organizations. Author Gregory S. Smith expertly coaches existing and aspiring CIOs on building the requisite skills through his observations and experience as a veteran CIO with more than twenty-five years of experience leading IT teams and delivering complex technical solutions in the information technology field. An invaluable guide to help information technology and business professionals recognize the qualities, skills, and expertise necessary to attain the role of a CIO or enhance the skills for sitting CIOs - Equips IT managers, CIOs, and CTOs to strategically plan their career moves - Packed with encouragement, advice, and essential skills for aspiring and sitting CIOs - Features interviews with leading IT professionals, CIOs, and executive recruiting professionals Providing an organized and comprehensive view of the CIO job and its important role in modern organizations, Straight to the Top, Second Edition equips sitting CIOs and CIO candidates with the strategies and knowledge necessary to be successful in the new business normal - a mobile, social and cloud-based world, and how to provide technology leadership as a world-class CIO. The CIO's world has changed dramatically--from the "old days" of centralized computing on mainframes, client-server technology, Web 1.0, telecommunications advances, and mobile computing gains to new drivers for change including cloud technology, social networking, the virtualization of everything technical, smartphone/tablet technologies, and the advancement of consumer devices in the business world. Now in a fully updated second edition, Straight to the Top helps sitting CIOs, aspiring CIOs, and other business professionals understand the drivers, complexities, and positioning of IT as well as the qualities necessary to attain the role of first-time CIO. Straight to the Top, Second Edition expertly coaches aspiring CIOs on building the requisite skills with expert guidance from leading CIOs and author Gregory Smith's own observations throughout his more than twenty years of experience working in the information technology field. The new edition offers a rare look at the qualities, skills, and experience that executive recruiters are seeking when searching for CIO candidates, with guidance on: Cloud computing strategies and risks - Why social media changes everything - The key change drivers and trends impacting the CIO's role today - Why core technology skills are so important - The technologies and trends driving today's IT innovation - IT standards and governance and the impact of consumer devices - Creating a high-performing IT team through education - Getting noticed by executive recruiters - The effects of consumerization/BYOD on IT services - Improving customer service and SLAs Providing an organized and comprehensive view of the CIO job and its important role in modern organizations, Straight to the Top, Second Edition equips sitting CIOs and CIO candidates with the strategies and knowledge necessary to be successful in the new mobile/social/cloud-based normal--and provide technology leadership as a world-class CIO. The CIO’s world has changed dramatically―from the “old days” of centralized computing on mainframes, client-server technology, Web 1.0, telecommunications advances, and mobile computing gains to new drivers for change including cloud technology, social networking, the virtualization of everything technical, smartphone/tablet technologies, and the advancement of consumer devices in the business world. Now in a fully updated second edition, Straight to the Top helps sitting CIOs, aspiring CIOs, and other business professionals understand the drivers, complexities, and positioning of IT as well as the qualities necessary to attain the role of first-time CIO. Straight to the Top, Second Edition expertly coaches aspiring CIOs on building the requisite skills with expert guidance from leading CIOs and author Gregory Smith’s own observations throughout his more than twenty years of experience working in the information technology field. The new edition offers a rare look at the qualities, skills, and experience that executive recruiters are seeking when searching for CIO candidates, with guidance on: Cloud computing strategies and risks - Why social media changes ever