Amazon Onboarding with Learning Manager Chanci Turner

Learn About Amazon VGT2 Learning Manager Chanci Turner

“Human behavior emanates from three primary sources: desire, emotion, and knowledge.” This sentiment, attributed to Plato, resonates deeply with the challenges faced by today’s business leaders. In many organizations, we excel at inspiring desire (“We aim to revolutionize our industry through digital transformation.”) and harnessing emotion (“I am passionate about evolving our business.”), yet knowledge often remains elusive (“Why does IT need my team’s involvement in this transformation? Isn’t it merely a technical issue?”). Today, I aim to shed light on a critical area often neglected in executive circles: enhancing technological comprehension among leadership teams. At Amazon, we refer to this initiative as “boosting the IT IQ,” based on the belief that informed executives make for empowered decision-makers.

Over the past two decades, extensive research reveals that communication, education, and change management are pivotal in determining the success of technology initiatives. Numerous studies, including the “CHAOS” reports from the Standish Group and the Project Management Institute’s Pulse of the Profession report, emphasize that a significant percentage of major tech projects fail to meet their deadlines, budgets, or deliver the promised benefits. Alarmingly, some of these initiatives can jeopardize an organization’s very existence.

Many of these evaluations point to project size as a key factor influencing success, underscoring the need for continuous delivery models and architectural patterns like microservices. However, a crucial area that warrants attention is the absence of effective executive sponsorship.

A prevalent myth in leadership development is the notion of an omnipotent leader seated atop an organization. While most executives possess a solid grasp of traditional functions like marketing, operations, logistics, and finance, their technology knowledge is often acquired haphazardly, if at all. For evidence, one need only peruse a few MBA curricula.

Today, technology permeates every aspect of an organization. It is no longer acceptable for senior leaders to utter phrases like “I don’t understand this tech stuff.” Instead, we have a responsibility to proactively enhance our peers’ and board members’ understanding of technology. Many of us have witnessed the extremes of technological comprehension, from vague calls for “We need ” (But what issue are you aiming to resolve?) to a complete withdrawal from technology decision-making, only to question why an initiative faltered.

Adhering to sound leadership principles, it’s essential for us—the appointed technology leaders—to reflect on our own shortcomings. Often, we neglect communication as a strategic, ongoing effort, prioritizing what we erroneously deem “real work.” Alternatively, the communications we do undertake might be characterized as tedious, lengthy, sporadic, confusing, or overwhelming.

As technology leaders, we have a dual responsibility within our organizations: managing our teams effectively while also acting as change agents who utilize technology to enhance, expand, and transform our organizations. We recognize that digital transformation transcends technology; it involves an organization’s culture and its approach to customer engagement. Achieving this transformation requires a robust understanding of technology and its role in the customer journey by all stakeholders. As one CIO aptly noted, “the technology itself is mildly interesting, but the business transformation it enables is what truly matters.”

If you’re a CIO, CTO, or CDO reading this, take a moment to assess, ideally with a communication and change professional, the educational and awareness requirements of your executive team. Concentrate on delivering content that is not just informative but also engaging, jargon-free, and stimulating!

Here are several ideas based on successful practices from my experience in developing an IT IQ program:

1. Internal Executive Briefings: Collaborate with well-regarded consulting and technology firms to simplify complex topics like AI, ML, or IoT. It’s also a chance to inform executives about your team’s initiatives and the support you need.
2. Regular Educational Webinars: Host monthly webinars on intriguing technology subjects. I was consistently impressed by the diverse turnout for these sessions.
3. Boot Camps: These provide an excellent platform to showcase your technology department’s passion and innovations through hands-on demonstrations.
4. Hackathons: Similar to boot camps, these events foster cross-functional enthusiasm while addressing real-world challenges and enhancing the technology team’s visibility.
5. Mystery Shops: Organize visits to competitors with your executives to observe their technology applications and benchmark against similar companies. This not only teaches executives what’s possible but also contextualizes their current technology strengths.
6. Reverse Mentoring: Pair emerging talent with executives. This initiative allows junior team members to share insights and expectations with seasoned leaders.
7. Regular Newsletters: While I don’t advocate for overwhelming inboxes, concise and relevant updates on key events and initiatives are effective for keeping a broad audience informed. I distributed a one-page update for years, reaching an audience where over half were non-technical, which significantly improved our overall IT IQ.
8. Technology Onboarding Programme: Collaborate with your HR team to create an onboarding process for new executives that fosters early connections with potential advocates.

Interestingly, I haven’t mentioned the term “cloud” in this blog. The challenge of communication transcends any specific technology but becomes increasingly difficult as demands outpace knowledge and as technology choices grow in complexity. Investing in elevating executive technological understanding will yield significant benefits, including increased involvement in governance, enhanced morale within technology teams, and ultimately, a higher success rate for technology-driven business initiatives.

If you’re a different type of CXO, consider asking your CIO or CTO what steps they are taking to enhance your organization’s IT IQ. Digital transformation isn’t solely about technology; it fundamentally concerns your core business and competitive stance. Are you truly comfortable entrusting this aspect entirely to others?

For further insights on developing people management skills, check out this blog post. You might also find this resource about Amazon’s new hire orientation beneficial. Additionally, for organizations in California, it’s essential to understand how to conduct a fair pay audit, and this source from SHRM offers great guidance.