I've been in my new position about 7 weeks now. Last week, I went to a conference where I ran into an old friend, a CIO at another institution, and he gave me three pieces of great advice. So good, that I thought they were worth sharing.
Helen the engager vs. Helen the decisionmaker.
My friend, let's call him John, because that's actually his name, reminded me that in my prior role, when I met with people, I wasn't necessarily expected to give an answer or make a decision on the spot. I could always say "let me check with the CIO". Now when I meet with people, they're expecting a decision. This can sometimes get in the way of engaging with people. So he advises me to think of what role I would like to take during that interaction. If I'm there to engage, think of myself as Helen the Engager, and defer a decision to later when I'm Helen the Decisionmaker (or the Decider, depending on your point of view). So I need to let people know that I'll get back to them later after I've had some time to think about it, rather than make a decision on the spot, just because it's expected. It is important, of course, to actually get back with them with a decision in a timely fashion. I think I've been doing well in this area, usually taking the time to reflect. But his advice reminds me to clarify it for my colleagues who really want to see me make the decision right there.
Own your calendar. When you're new, everyone wants to get some time with you. John reminded me that it's really important to own my own calendar - don't let others, whether it's my team, the Deans, Faculty or some other group - take control of my schedule. It's important to make sure that there's time to focus on the things that are priorities. So be ready to say no to some meetings, or to schedule them further out. This has always been hard for me. I see my role largely to engage the campus community and my staff, so being available to those constituencies is really important. But John is right, I have to have some control over my own schedule or I just won't make progress on the things that are true priorities.
It's lonely at the top! Relationships are important, and peer relationships are especially important. This is a group where you seek advice, bounce ideas around and sometimes just commisserate about the way things are. We learn a lot during conversations with our peers. When you're in the CIO role, you have no peers inside your organization, so you need to look outside to find this group, and that's important. Sometimes it's your peers on campus - other leaders at a similar level to yourself. But it's also really important to reach out to other CIOs. The great thing about our CIO community is we are willing to engage with each other and to support each other. Take advantage of that and make time for peer networking. While still owning your celndar, of course!
