How to Lead a Winning Innovation Strategy Within Your Organization with Ultimate Kronos Group CDO Scott Howitt

On the tenth episode of Enterprise Software Innovators, hosts Evan Reiser (Abnormal Security) and Saam Motamedi (Greylock Partners) talk with Scott Howitt, CDO at Ultimate Kronos Group. Scott has been a CIO, CTO, CISO, and CDO across several industries during his career, giving him a unique perspective into the world of deploying technological initiatives at large companies. Today, Scott joins the show to discuss how CIOs and CDOs can become ‘chief bridge builders’ within organizations to optimize business outcomes, create a culture of innovation, and evaluate startups to form great partnerships.

Quick hits from Scott:

On CIOs speaking multiple languages: “As techies, we're really good at not having much respect for people who don't understand all the techno jargon that we use, guess what? The CFO is thinking the same thing when you don't understand EBITDA and how revenue is recognized and what ARR is and what PEPM is. You need to be like a UN translator. You have to know multiple different languages to be a successful executive."

On CIOs understanding the business: “Sometimes, you're way up above the business, doing a strategic plan, but occasionally, you’ve got to dive down and get exactly where the troops are and understand what they're doing. I think too often technologists are like, ‘Hey, I'm just a technologist. I don't need to understand the business.’ You have no purpose in life if it were not for the business, and too often, technologists forget that they're here to support the business, not the other way around.”

On how CIOs and CDOs can evaluate startups to form great partnerships: "Look at who's on their board, who's investing in them. But then, go ahead and have a dialogue too. My thing with all the vendors is it needs to be the CEO, the CTO, or the Chief Product Officer. Otherwise, I don't want to talk to him because I want to get the heartbeat of where this company is going, what's your vision, what's your exit strategy, all those things. Because if it's a partnership, let's not worry about the price. It is the last thing I get to. It's how we would come together and work together if we formed a partnership. And it should be a partnership, not a vendor-consumer relationship.”

Recent book recommendations: 

• The Phoenix Project by Gene Kim, Kevin Behr, and George Spafford
• Hue 1968: A Turning Point of the American War in Vietnam by Mark Bowden

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Enterprise Software Innovators is produced by Josh Meer and Luke Reiser.