Thyken, CIO at the natural and organic food company SunOpta Inc., serves on the board of directors at two private companies -- Summit Brewing Co., a craft brewer, and engineering firm Braun Intertec.
The board positions do indeed require additional work -- sometimes as much as 20 hours a week, he said. Yet, Thyken said the rewards of a board appointment are well worth the extra responsibilities and time commitment.
"So much of the CIO's day-to-day work is tactical, detail-oriented. Board work forces you to think longer term, more strategically about business," he said.
The number of CIO board appointments has increased in recent years, as corporate boards become more focused on the technology-related topics that drive and impact business today, according to recruiters and researchers [see sidebar] who track trends among corporate boards.
Mike ThykenMike Thyken
Although hard statistics on the trend are hard to come by -- and the available data suggest the number of CIOs on boards remains small -- experts agreed that more companies are seeking CIOs for their prowess in technology and the IT budget as well as their experience in governance and change management.
"All the indicators suggest that the topic of technology has increased as a board topic because of the additional scrutiny and accountability expected on the topic by boards. And sometimes the skill set they want is right in that sweet spot of CIO," said Holly Morris, a former CIO and current board member at NIIT Technologies Ltd., an Indian IT outsourcing company.
Holly MorrisHolly Morris
CIOs, in turn, enjoy several benefits from securing a board appointment, Morris said.
They can learn about emerging technologies (particularly if they're on the board of a tech company) and new use cases for existing technologies (particularly if they're on a board at a company known for innovative strategy). They also gain more insight into running and growing a business (not just an IT department).
"It does give you a perspective that's difficult to get any other way, and that can be valuable in your current career, no doubt about that," she added.
Making a difference
But Morris and others also said that board work has a broader, overarching appeal that speaks to the board's very mission. "It's the ability to have an impact," Morris said.
That's part of what drew former IT executive Virginia Gambale.
Virginia GambaleVirginia Gambale
"For me, it was the ultimate ability to drive change and help companies succeed," Gambale said. "It all starts and stops with the board. The direction and success of a company is directly dependent on the quality and performance of the board of directors and the management team."
Gambale first sat on product advisory boards for emerging companies and advisory boards at established companies while working as a CIO. She got her first corporate board appointment after moving from CIO at a financial institution to partner at a venture capital and private equity firm in 1999.
Now managing partner at Azimuth Partners, a strategic advisor firm she founded in 2003, Gambale currently serves on the boards of three public companies -- JetBlue Airways, First Derivatives and Dundee Corp.
