5 underappreciated skills for leading digital transformation
In 2006 I got my first job in IT, running a support team and a software testing team. I didn’t have a technology background; in fact, I changed majors from computer science to math after just one semester of college. I would sit in team meetings and nod along as projects were described and software development plans were made. And then, immediately following, I would grab a trusted friend, head to a private office, and get them to explain it all to me.
People who advanced in IT in 2006 were those who understood all about the bits and bytes, network speed and databases, storage arrays and HTML – all the things that were foreign to me.
As the years passed, I recognized that while the technical skills were important, they weren’t all that was needed to be successful. I saw more and more examples of people who were experts in their technical fields but just weren’t able to effectively lead a team, influence business partners, or deliver critical projects. I began calling upon those non-technical skills and started to advance to more senior IT leadership roles.
Fast-forward to 2019 – I’m still in IT, and while I’ve improved my technical acumen, I use my non-technical skills daily. I have a masters in college student development and counseling and am a trained business and executive coach. The skills I learned in these programs and through my years in leadership roles, both inside and outside of IT, have been invaluable as IT evolves and digital transformation becomes the norm.
Practicing and perfecting the skills listed below will help IT leaders gain influence both inside IT and across the business, and take digital transformation to the next level.
Much has been written over the years about emotional intelligence. The advice primarily focuses on having a clear understanding of yourself, your emotions, and what motivates you. However, understanding not only yourself but also all the “players” in various situations has become more and more important.
Using social intelligence to read people’s reactions, understand non-verbal queues, engage all team members, and listen actively are necessary to make traction on key digital transformation initiatives across the company. Honing and using these skills allows IT leaders to avoid problems, engage the team, and ultimately keep things moving in the right direction.
Because technology is not solely in the realm of IT anymore and technology decisions involve people across the business, you will need to get more people on board with changes and transformation. Using reason and data alone won’t get the job done. Research shows that listening to stories puts your whole brain to work, not just the verbal processing portion.
