Comments on: A new voice in the blogging firmament – Abbie Lundberg of CIO http://www.fastforwardblog.com/2007/11/21/a-new-voice-in-the-blogging-firmament-abbie-lundberg-of-cio/ Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:29:35 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Jim McGee http://www.fastforwardblog.com/2007/11/21/a-new-voice-in-the-blogging-firmament-abbie-lundberg-of-cio/comment-page-1/#comment-99296 Jim McGee Fri, 23 Nov 2007 14:28:58 +0000 http://www.fastforwardblog.com/2007/11/21/a-new-voice-in-the-blogging-firmament-abbie-lundberg-of-cio/#comment-99296 Abbie calls it a good "bullshit detector." I tend to think of it as having a good design sense for how to balance between the state of the art and the state of the possible. As an engineer, Van Horne somewhere developed an appreciation for how his technologies imposed limits and created opportunities that went beyond more generic knowledge about managing people or budgets. Abbie calls it a good “bullshit detector.” I tend to think of it as having a good design sense for how to balance between the state of the art and the state of the possible.

As an engineer, Van Horne somewhere developed an appreciation for how his technologies imposed limits and created opportunities that went beyond more generic knowledge about managing people or budgets.

]]> By: Rob Paterson http://www.fastforwardblog.com/2007/11/21/a-new-voice-in-the-blogging-firmament-abbie-lundberg-of-cio/comment-page-1/#comment-98120 Rob Paterson Thu, 22 Nov 2007 15:44:04 +0000 http://www.fastforwardblog.com/2007/11/21/a-new-voice-in-the-blogging-firmament-abbie-lundberg-of-cio/#comment-98120 For me it depends on how we understand the statement about having a "deep understanding of technology" means. Most IT departments are obsessed with the idea of central control. Most geeks are obsessed with tools. A deep understanding of how IT serves is what I would look for. How it affects the pace, the risks and the opportunities of the enterprise - does it wall up the enterprise or does it allow the enterprise to interact with the world? Did Van Horne have to know a lot about how steam engines worked, or did he have to know how rail would affect the world as he built the CP railway. He was an engineer - so when folks talked to him about gradients, bridges or tunnels or track - he understood. But what made him world class was how he used the rights to the land around the tracks and used hotels as hubs and how he linked the railway to the Atlantic shipping and how he advertised in Europe and how he understood how the railway would energise a new form of economy that was no longer all local. So my ideal CIO would be Cornelius Van Horne, the chief engineer of the CP railway For me it depends on how we understand the statement about having a “deep understanding of technology” means.

Most IT departments are obsessed with the idea of central control. Most geeks are obsessed with tools.

A deep understanding of how IT serves is what I would look for. How it affects the pace, the risks and the opportunities of the enterprise – does it wall up the enterprise or does it allow the enterprise to interact with the world?

Did Van Horne have to know a lot about how steam engines worked, or did he have to know how rail would affect the world as he built the CP railway. He was an engineer – so when folks talked to him about gradients, bridges or tunnels or track – he understood. But what made him world class was how he used the rights to the land around the tracks and used hotels as hubs and how he linked the railway to the Atlantic shipping and how he advertised in Europe and how he understood how the railway would energise a new form of economy that was no longer all local.

So my ideal CIO would be Cornelius Van Horne, the chief engineer of the CP railway

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