| | April-May 20178Season of Change for CIOs in Higher Education By Loretta Early, CIO and VP, University of Oklahoma"How are you doing?" seems a simple question, but increasingly this question is followed by, "Loretta, is it difficult to be a CIO in Higher Education these days?" And it's easy to understand why someone would ask this question. Pick up any industry periodical and you can find numerous articles that would lead you to believe that it is a very tough time to be a CIO, perhaps particularly in Higher Ed, with oversight from a concerned public, regulation, and the pressure to "do more with less". While these pressures are real, there is a brighter, hopefulside to the story that is less publicized, which is the sense of fulfillment that comes from serving at an institution of Higher Learning. Many think that higher education is very different from other industries. And in many important ways, it is. But there are many similarities. Successful Higher Education CIOs share with other successful industry CIOs a passion, a dedication to the people they lead and serve, and the opportunity to work with an inspirational leader with clarity of purpose. Our President, recently recognized for 50 years of public service, embodies and continuously communicates our clarity of purpose--to provide the best educational experience for our students. I feel very blessed that I get to focus every day on what I care very passionately about--encouraging and enabling students to learn, helping them on their life's journey, caring for their safety and well-being, and preparing them to serve as future global citizens. This passion is what drives many to serve in Higher Education--and that is exactly as it should be. When we recruit new OU IT team members, in addition to checking for the requisite technical and business skills for the job, we ask candidates to describe a current issue facing higher education and how IT can help respond to that issue. Our ideal candidate wants to grow as an IT professional, but also wants to serve higher education as a role model for our students. This approach has impacted how we recruit new team members, improve our staff retention, and increase productivity. 2017 is a particularly unique time to work in Education. We are as a nation and as an economy entering yet another period of transformation with rapid growth in connectivity, data and applications. Workers worry about job losses from globalization and immigration, but let's face it; workers are also being displaced by technology including such emerging IN MY OPINIONtechnologies as robots, driverless cars, block chain, and artificial intelligence (AI). I think the key to success is to be on the right side of this displacement, taking advantage of the opportunity in disruption. We must seek ways that technology can move us forward as a nation without leaving anyone behind. Any introspection on how to accomplish this quickly, leads us back to education. How have prior generations emerged from similar periods of dislocation caused by agricultural and industrial revolutions? Every time it has been through the power of education--meaning all forms of secondary education from the vo-techs and career centers to the leading research institutions; all will play pivotal roles in preparing the next generation workforce. To properly and responsibly serve this next generation of students, we in Higher Education cannot be passive or static; instead we must Loretta Early
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