The Critical Competencies of Successful Senior IT Leaders - A Field Study

This research investigates what skills, behaviors and traits characterize an effective senior leader within information technology (IT) organizations. We explore specifically IT executives (a leader of leaders) who report directly to the Chief Information Officer. We conducted a qualitative study by interviewing 36 IT professionals using 360? approach to distill which competencies define an effective IT leader. We draw upon emotional and social competencies index (ESCI) as a means to code for existing social leadership competencies and conduct an open thematic analysis to discover new themes related to technical leadership. Seven well established ESCI competencies and four competencies related to technical domain leadership, Technical Credibility, Relate to Technical People, Guide and Deliver Technology Solutions, and Technical Aptitude, are identified as key factors that promote effective IT leadership. Our analysis suggests that a heretofore unknown blend of competencies forms necessary and sufficient condition for leadership effectiveness within IT domain