Alex Alexander leads a double life.
As the recently named CIO and VP of CTG, an international IT solutions firm, he devotes much of his time to overseeing the US$350 million company's aggressive internal IS programâ€"one that's designed to promote growth while bringing about cost savings.
Frequently, however, Alexander slips into an entirely differently roleâ€"that of super salesman and consultant. Wearing his sales hat, Alexander, accompanied by a CTG account representative, flies all over the world to meet with clients and prospective clients. "Being a CIO in a company that sells technology services can be a help on the sales side," says Alexander. "CIOs shouldn't just be internally focused. Talking to clients and prospective clients is exactly one of the roles they should take on."
Alexander has a solid track record as a CIO, having held top technology jobs at a major retailing and automotive company before joining CTG. Yet the sales role is still new to him. Even so, he's proven a quick study. Only last month, as an example, he and three other CIOsâ€"one from another IT services firm, the others IS chiefs at an IT security outfit and a telecom vendorâ€"got together to bid on an RFP for an eight-figure project.
"We put together a first-draft business plan and a Power Point presentation for the potential client," says Alexander. "As a consortium, we're in a much stronger position than if we went in individually. We'd provide the client with one-stop shopping. The synergies are going to be exponential."
At the time of this writing, CTG hadn't closed on the deal yet, but as a salesman and consultant, Alexander has already proven a major asset to his employer, giving CTG access to CIOs and other C-level executives in prospective Fortune 1000 clients. Similarly, a small but growing number of other IT solutions providers, consultancies and integrators have recognised that bringing a CIO aboard to interact with clients can make the difference between securing and keeping new business, and drawing a big goose egg.
"Having an ex-CIO deal with clients plays into the trend of identifying with the client's needs rather than simply saying, 'This is what we offer,'" says Alden Cushman, VP of research at Kennedy Information. "Telling the client you're bringing in the former CIO of Revlon or Merck to help deal with his internal difficulties can give you a real leg up."
