As AI continues to evolve and reshape business landscapes, the role of the Chief Information Officer (CIO) is undergoing a significant transformation, according to IDC, a global market intelligence firm.

Once primarily focused on operational excellence, IDC explained, CIOs must now adapt to become orchestrators of business value, steering their organisations through AI-powered innovations. 

The firm stressed that the pressure is mounting for CIOs to leverage AI to drive business outcomes, creating both challenges and opportunities.

Technology has long been seen as an enabler for businesses, but today, it is at the heart of how organisations function, compete, and deliver value. 

As such, CIOs must harness AI to drive meaningful business results. 

While many CIOs remain focused on traditional IT and related metrics, they risk limiting their ability to foster broader business success. 

Closing this gap requires a fundamental shift, one that was initially part of broader digitalisation strategies but is now accelerated by the demand for AI-driven value creation.

To successfully lead organisations into an AI-powered future, CIOs must focus on six critical imperatives.

The firm mentioned that rapidly evolving AI regulations present a significant challenge for businesses. 

According to IDC’s FutureScape: Worldwide CIO Agenda 2025 Predictions – Asia/Pacific (Excluding Japan) Implications report, 50 per cent of the top 1000 organisations in Asia will struggle with divergent regulatory changes and compliance standards by 2025. 

CIOs must proactively address this by developing agile compliance frameworks to adapt to regulatory shifts and enable innovation.

IDC’s 2024 CIO Sentiment Survey found that 41 per cent of organisations in the Asia/Pacific region are already focusing on establishing data governance policies for AI and GenAI usage. 

By 2025, IDC predicts that 70 per cent of organisations will formalise AI governance policies to manage ethical, privacy, and brand risks, aligning AI governance with strategic business objectives.

IDC’s survey reveals that modernising IT infrastructure is the top strategic priority for 37 per cent of CIOs in the Asia/Pacific region. 

Technical debt—outdated systems, inefficient processes, and legacy code—slows innovation and hinders the adoption of new technologies like AI. 

IDC predicts that by 2025, 40 per cent of CIOs will lead initiatives to address technical debt, enabling their organisations to rapidly adopt new technologies, including AI.

Tackling technical debt will allow organisations to remove barriers to AI adoption, accelerating innovation and improving business agility.

While AI adoption has moved from niche to mainstream, many organisations are still stuck in pilot projects, unable to move beyond proof-of-concept phases. 

IDC’s 2024 Future Enterprise Resiliency and Spending (FERS) Survey found that organisations in Asia/Pacific conducted an average of 24 GenAI pilots in the past year, but only three progressed to production. 

IDC predicts that by 2026, over one-third of organisations will still be trapped in the experimental phase, hindering growth and exposing them to ethical and regulatory risks.

CIOs must become orchestrators of business value by collaborating with other executives to transform AI pilots into practical, enterprise-wide applications. 

Leading the creation of strategic AI roadmaps will allow CIOs to maximise the benefits of AI while ensuring responsible deployment.

As cybersecurity threats become increasingly sophisticated, CIOs must take a proactive role in safeguarding their organisations. 

IDC predicts that by 2026, 50 per cent of CIOs will broaden their security strategies to incorporate AI and machine learning, enhancing both threat detection and response times.

AI-driven cybersecurity solutions can significantly reduce risks to operations and reputation, positioning organisations as leaders in cybersecurity resilience.

Sustainability is now a core business priority, and technology investments play a crucial role in achieving environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals. 

IDC forecasts that by 2027, 50 per cent of CIOs will be accountable for embedding sustainability into every technology project. 

By aligning technology investments with sustainability objectives, CIOs can help improve their organisations’ reputation and gain a competitive edge.

The company also said that the rapid adoption of AI technologies has highlighted the digital skills shortage. 

To address this, over 45 per cent of organisations in the Asia/Pacific region are empowering non-IT staff with more development responsibilities. 

IDC predicts that by 2028, 50 per cent of the top 1000 organisations in Asia will use cutting-edge tools, such as low-code/no-code platforms, to close the AI skills gap.

These platforms allow non-technical employees to build and manage applications, enhancing business agility while reducing reliance on specialised talent.

As AI continues to transform business processes, the role of the CIO will expand beyond technology facilitation to include leadership in governance, cybersecurity, regulatory compliance, skills development, and technical debt management. 

CIOs who embrace these responsibilities will not only drive business value but will also shape their organisations’ futures in the AI-driven era.