The Transformational CIO: Leadership and Innovation Strategies for IT Executives in a Rapidly Changing World

Keeping It Simple

Just a few days before we sent the manuscript for The Transformational CIO to our editor at Wiley, we had the opportunity to interview Patrick Toole, the CIO of IBM. Although I was tempted to save Pat's interview for my next book, his input and insight were so valuable that I felt they had to be included in this book. I hope you'll agree that I made the right choice.

I caught up with Pat at the IBM offices in North Castle, a picturesque town of 12,000 in a section of Westchester County that still resembles a primeval forest. Pat has worked at IBM since 1984. Several years ago, his father retired from IBM. In many respects, Pat seems like the epitome of a traditional “IBMer.” But appearances can be deceiving. In reality, Pat represents the future of IBM—and in many respects, he also represents the future of IT leadership.

“It's all about the business,” says Pat. “At the end of the day, we're driven by outcomes. For IT, what matters most are business results. And not just this quarter's business results, but the next quarter and the next year and the next five years. That's what drives us. It's in our DNA.”

Pat also represents a new evolutionary stage in the IBM organizational structure. Until as recently as January 2009, IBM had multiple CIOs. “Historically, every business unit had its own CIO,” Pat explains. “At one point, we had 128 CIOs in the company!”

But Sam Palmisano had other ideas. As IBM's chairman, CEO, and president, Sam knew that IBM had to become ...