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CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Jan. 24, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The MIT Sloan CIO Symposium seeks nominations for the 10th Annual MIT Sloan CIO Leadership Award, with the winner and finalists to be recognized at the Symposium,"The CIO Adventure: Now, Next and…Beyond," on May 24, 2017, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Over the past decade, the Award has recognized Chief Information Officers (CIOs) who lead their organizations to deliver exemplary levels of business value through innovative use of IT. The online application can be found at http://www.mitcio.com/award.

Nominees must hold the title of Chief Information Officer (CIO) or equivalent, and must be the highest-level IT leader in the organization. Applicants, including self-nominations, are welcome from for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, and will be assessed on a common set of criteria. The award judges include CIOs, industry thought leaders and MIT Sloan-affiliated professionals.

The Award draws applicants from a wide diversity of industries and backgrounds. Past leadership award winners and their companies have received significant attention and recognition as a result of the award. Recent award winners include:

• David Neitz, CIO, CDM Smith (2016)
• Michael Nilles, CIO, Schindler Group & CEO Schindler Digital Business AG (2015)
• Thaddeus Arroyo, CIO, AT&T Services, Inc. (2014)

"On behalf of CDM Smith, I am incredibly honored to have won the MIT Sloan CIO Leadership Award in 2016," said David Neitz, CIO, CDM Smith. "The award is truly a testament to the efforts of our business technology team and the business partners who diligently collaborate to deliver exceptional results for our clients." 

Judging Criteria
Key characteristics of CIO leadership include:

• Exceptional Communicator – Articulates a vision for strategic business value from IT and works across the organization to build partnership around this vision. Focuses communications on value and innovation, not technology. Helps all IT staff to understand the business and speak the language of business leaders.
• Recognized IT Leader ("Cheap Information Officer") – Clearly demonstrates value-for-money in the management of core IT services by providing the right services at the right price and the right level of quality. Recognized among peers as an effective leader of the IT unit.
• Driver of Business Value ("Chief Improvement Officer") – Understands the business and needs of the CEO, CFO, Line-of-Business heads and other senior executives. Ensures clear focus on potential and realized value in all IT initiatives. Incorporates IT into business decision-making by participating in key strategic conversations, suggesting innovative uses of IT, and managing risk.
• Trusted Partner ("CIO-Plus") – Exercises authority beyond IT itself. Considered a trusted member of the senior executive team, not just a technology leader. Suggests innovative uses of IT to transform the business – and successfully executes the changes. May receive additional non-IT responsibilities such as Chief Operating Officer or VP of Strategy, or strategic temporary roles such as Head of M&A integration.

These criteria are adapted from the award-winning book The Real Business of IT: How CIOs Create and Communicate Value, which draws extensively upon research conducted at MIT Sloan.

"Over the past decade, we have been impressed by the outpouring of exceptional applicants, as evidenced by the outstanding caliber of our past winners and finalists," said Dr. George Westerman of MIT's Initiative on the Digital Economy, Co-Chair of the Award Program. "I am humbled to have the opportunity to engage with and learn from such visionary and accomplished leaders, and look forward to the flurry of 2017 applications."

The winner will be publicly announced during the 14^th Annual MIT CIO Symposium on May 24, 2017. Finalists will be announced in late April and will be formally recognized at a private event the evening of May 23. The deadline for submissions is March 1, 2017 at 11:59 p.m. ET.  The online application can be found at http://www.mitcio.com/award, or please contact award@mitcio.com with any questions about the application process.

About the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium
The MIT Sloan CIO Symposium is the premier global conference for CIOs and digital business executives to become more effective leaders. In one day, CIOs and senior IT executives explore enterprise technology innovations, business practices and receive actionable information that enables them to meet the challenges of today and the future. The Symposium offers a unique learning environment by bringing together the academic thought leadership of MIT with the in-the-trenches experience of leading, global CIOs and industry experts. The MIT Sloan CIO Symposium is organized and developed by the MIT Sloan Boston Alumni Association, the MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy (IDE), and the MIT Sloan Center for Information Systems Research (CISR). For more information and to register for this year's Symposium, visit www.mitcio.com.

Editor's Note:
Journalists interested in a press credentials should contact Caroline Legg (caroline@warnerpr.com or 978-255-4488), Warner Communications.

Media Contact:
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SOURCE MIT Sloan CIO Symposium