Study after study reports that most organizations are not achieving the expected returns and business outcomes from increased investment in digital technologies.

In this episode, Joe and Martin talk with Pablo Ciano, CEO of DHL eCommerce, about the role of business leaders in (not) getting value from IT or digital investments.

Pablo has a background in business, was appointed as CIO, and is now CEO. What did he learn from having been on both sides of the business-IT divide? And what can you learn from that experience? If anything, what do business leaders need to know about IT? What do they need to do differently when it comes to digital?

Pablo Ciano on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pablo-ciano/

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Links to resources mentioned:

• Key arguments are based on Why it’s safe to bet that most companies will not benefit from AI investments by Mocker and Peppard in California Management Review Insight
• Joe mentions Judo Bank, which doesn’t own or operate its own IT systems. More information in How Everything-as-a-Service enabled Judo to become a billion-dollar bank without owning IT by Breidbach et al. in MIS Quarterly Executive.
• Staple yourself to an order by Shapiro, Rangan, and Sviokla on understanding your company’s processes by following a customer order (it’s an old one, but still very relevant!) in Harvard Business Review
• The transformation of DHL Express is written up by Mocker, Ross, and Ciano in, DHL Express: Implementing and Maintaining a Global Process Standard, published by the MIT Center for Information Systems Research
• The concept of an operating model is explained by Ross in Forget Strategy: Focus IT on Your Operating Model from the MIT Center for Information Systems Research

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Doing Digital Differently is a podcast for leaders, changemakers, and curious minds who believe that digital transformation isn’t just about adopting new technologies — it’s about rethinking how we work, lead, and create value in a rapidly changing world.

Doing Digital Differently is produced in association with MIS Quarterly Executive, your source of practical insights for digital leaders. https://www.linkedin.com/company/mis-quarterly-executive

Joe Peppard: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-peppard-5868513/

Martin Mocker: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martin-mocker/

Podcast License CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

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