Briefing at a Glance

  • Technology leaders have ranked "aligning IT strategy with business goals" as the CIO's most important responsibility, displacing "managing cybersecurity" from the top spot in 2025. This finding comes from the "CIO 2026 Outlook" report released by Experis, a technology services firm that surveyed 1,900 CIOs and other technology leaders on how they are navigating technological change and future-of-work trends.
  • Amid the ongoing evolution of the role, AI investment has become a focus for IT executives: more than half of respondents reported positive returns on AI investments and considered their organizations' investment levels appropriate. However, nearly one-third of respondents believe their companies are overinvesting in the technology.
  • Kye Mitchell, president of Experis U.S., said in a statement that during this period of transformation, leaders who treat technology as a business leadership function supported by complementary investments will succeed. She noted: "CIOs are being asked to lead AI transformation, drive growth, boost productivity, and manage risk, all while facing a severe talent shortage."

Deep Insights

Enterprise technology leaders are balancing shifting responsibilities with talent acquisition challenges while striving to demonstrate the financial viability of their technology initiatives.

The report found that technology leaders feel multiple pressures: the need to make timely decisions, manage cybersecurity risks, and remain competitive through new technologies. Nearly half of respondents said the biggest obstacle facing CIOs is keeping pace with the rate of change. A survey conducted by Writer in April found that 61% of technology leaders worry they could lose their jobs if they fail to properly navigate technological transformation.

As the alignment of technology initiatives with business outcomes grows in importance in the C-suite, 61% of CIOs said they believe their peers do not fully understand the CIO role, up from 49% last year.

"Many CIOs are currently in a balancing act," Mitchell said in an emailed statement to CIO Dive. "On one hand, there is immense pressure to invest in AI and keep pace with innovation; on the other, boards and executive teams are increasingly questioning where business value comes from."

The report also found that despite adoption plans, many organizations are not adequately addressing talent needs within their teams. Experis noted that fewer enterprises are running emerging-talent development programs than last year, and IT leaders are more inclined to fill open positions through external hiring rather than internal promotion.

Mitchell told CIO Dive that in an era when technology leaders need to justify the value of their AI and IT spending, CIOs should avoid AI for AI's sake. She said it is easy to get caught up in excitement and competition, but without training people and clarifying the business problem, it is a waste.

"AI has enormous potential," Mitchell said, "but the organizations achieving the highest ROI are those that align technology investments with clear business priorities and help employees adopt new ways of working."