Whether dubbed chief information officer, director of information technology, vice president of information services or head of data processing, the information technology officer’s role is changing in the beverage world, as it is in other businesses.

No longer deemed merely a support function, information systems lie at the heart of virtually every key business process and operation for most companies today.  From order processing to inventory and warehouse management systems, from purchasing to truck loading, route reconciliation and labor management, the CIO and his staff provide the platforms that keep the whole enterprise humming.

Complicating this mission for many CIOs are increasingly frequent mergers and acquisitions, which provide complex challenges in the need to meld and unify disparate information processing systems and pools of data, to support the kind of truly integrated operations that allow companies to take full advantage of the economies of scale and broadened capabilities that growth by acquisition offers.

In addition to this internal focus, in the new age of e-commerce CIOs are increasingly involved in myriad outward-facing activities on behalf of their companies, too.  These range from steering an organization’s participation in broad industry initiatives like global data synchronization, to electronic data interchange (EDI) and other forms of one-on-one data exchange with trading partners up and down the supply chain, to the firm’s presence on the World Wide Web.

Moreover, chief executives are looking harder at technology these days to provide not just improved efficiencies, but also significant strategic and competitive advantages in the marketplace. So beyond their traditional focus on enabling smooth day-to-day operations, CIOs are increasingly being called on to contribute to long-term, big-picture strategic deliberations.

In this environment, it’s not surprising that CIOs are expanding their role as key decision makers in the sphere of supply chain operations.

One IT professional who has noted the change is Mike Adams, vice president of information technology and supply chain for Dallas-based Glazer’s Family of Companies.

“I’ve been CIO here for 10 years, and in just the past four or five years I’ve seen a great deal of movement in my role.  I’m now one of the senior members of management, and I get to participate in all the decision-making that goes into the organization,” he comments.

Underscoring the key nature of information’s role in operations, Adams also recently assumed responsibility for supply chain at Glazer’s.

“This greater role for CIOs is definitely a trend in the beverage industry,” he observes, adding that in the broader business world, corporations are even beginning to see former CIOs move up into the ranks of COOs and CEOs.

“In our organization specifically, the fit with supply chain made sense, because supply chain is so process-oriented, and technology plays such a big role in securing supply chain efficiencies,” Adams continues. “So it was a very natural progression for me to take over responsibility for that area.”

As the CIO’s role evolves, several observers point out, the skill set required for success as a corporation’s information technology leader also is expanding.

As a result better communication skills—the ability to talk in business terms, rather than tech-speak, to CEOs and corporate colleagues—is becoming an important core competency for IT managers.

From Beverage World July 15, 2008