Gunjan Doshi

I enjoyed reading The art of influence by Allan Holmes in the CIO magazine. Here are some of my learnings:

• Influential leaders are experts on the subject: To have influence, it is not enough to be able to just explain IT in simple terms, but a leader needs to be an expert on the subject at hand and its relationship to the business.
• Influential leaders do not limit themselves by their boundaries: Scott Heintzeman, CIO of Carlson Marketing exemplifies this by making it his responsibility to work on areas where he thinks he can help the company improve, even if it is outside his boundary of control.
• Influential leader try to remain objective by presenting facts: Peter Walton, CIO with the global energy company Hess, knew that simply stating his opinion would not convince anyone that outsourcing to a single company is a blunder. Instead, he put together a presentation detailing the latest expert opinions and case studies on outsourcing and delivering it to those managers in charge of the project.
• Influential leaders adapt their style to others’ learning style: According to Partners Health Care System CIO John Glaser, everyone learns differently, and that successful communication requires more than not speaking IT jargon. It requires knowing your audience and tailoring your message accordingly.
• Influential leaders involve people early on: According to Sue Powers, CIO for Worldspan, getting people involved early by talking and listening to them helps overcome objections, improve decision and win everybody on board.”

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