What to include in your CIO CV.

A guide to showcasing your expertise, business acumen, and personal impact.

Writing a CIO’s CV is both an art and a science. Your technical skills need to be deep and strong—but it must also position you as a strategic leader who understands business, is good with people and confidently drives business change. Phew.

I always ask my clients to treat their CV like a strategic business document that your board will read—make it clear who you are and what you stand for, answer the questions they’ll no doubt have, and paint a clear picture of the future by illustrating achievements of the past.

To stand out, focus on what you’ve achieved, how you’ve led change, and the lasting impact you’ve had on the business.

Here’s a guide to the key elements every CIO CV should include.

A sharp executive intro.

You don’t want to sound like every other IT leader. You want to sound like you. Forget about 6 paragraphs outlining your career story—create a sharp introductory statement, fewer than 10 lines deep, that introduces you and the value you bring in a concise and direct way.

Want to sound like everyone else? Start with “Seasoned IT leader with 25 years’ experience…”

Want to create an intro that gets read with interest? Be authentic and write as if you are talking directly to the person reading your profile. Reflect on the value you bring, what your colleagues and bosses have said about what you bring to the table. And shine a light on the areas you’re most passionate or accomplished in, aligning your expertise with what is most valued in a CIO.

It’s a good time to mention your expertise and experience around cybersecurity, risk and compliance. Just a mention mind, you can go into detail in your CV.

Your technical brilliance

Your experience is unique to you and it tells a strong story—whether you know your way around network infrastructure, data analytics, cloud computing, database migrations, cybersecurity strategies, or all of the above, make sure it’s clear and pops off the page.

Don’t make your reader work to figure out what your foundations are built from.

2. Clear tales of transformation.

So many CVs end up being a list of ‘what I did’ with zero context. Your leadership story isn’t just about the what, it’s about the how.

Take a moment to jot down some memories and you’ll realise just how many great stories you have to tell. Think about the biggest shifts you’ve made in the businesses you’ve worked for:

• What was the problem you faced?

• Where did you start?

• And most importantly, where did you end up?

Highlight major transformations, such as leading digitalisation, optimising I infrastructure, or overseeing large-scale system migrations. But remember, it’s not just about the end result. Frame it as a journey—show how your leadership guided the organisation from challenge to success.

Think about the legacy you left: Did you implement a new strategy that delivered a competitive advantage? Did you lead the business through a major transformation? Did you deliver measurable improvements in operational efficiency or automation? That’s the type of story you want to tell (in a concise way, of course!).

3. Solid metrics and outcomes.

Your achievements speak louder than your job description.

In a world where a lot of exec CVs sound the same, metrics tell the reader that you are who you say you are. They help tell your story.

A “saved 35% in operational costs” tells quite a different story to “delivered operational savings”.

I always tell my clients: if you can’t back up your impact with numbers or a clear outcome, then it didn’t happen. I’m only half-joking: if there’s no detail that makes it yours, then it truly doesn’t count because it could be on anyone’s CV. It always comes back to the story.

• How many people did you lead through these changes?

• What was the value added to the business?

• Did your efforts result in improved ROI or cost savings?

Every achievement should have a starting point (the challenge) and an end point (the outcome). Think of it as your hero’s journey: What was the transformation? Use metrics to quantify that success. Whether it’s revenue growth, improved customer satisfaction, or increased operational efficiency, be clear on what your leadership drove.

For example, “Led a digital transformation that resulted in a 30% reduction in operational costs over 18 months, while improving customer satisfaction scores by 25%.”

4. Strategy and leadership wins.

Remember those glazed eyes in the boardroom when you try to explain a critical IT program and realise halfway through that you’ve gone too hard on the techie deets and they don’t really know what you’re saying?

I see that all the time in CIO CVs. Remember you’re not talking to your team, you’re talking to business leaders who may or may not understand the technical minutiae of your achievements.

Make sure you show that you clearly understand what’s on the minds of business leaders and boards. They want to know that you’ve secured board buy-in for major programs, developed and executed comprehensive IT strategies aligned with business objectives, and that you understand future technology trends.

5. Governance, risk, and compliance.

GRC is firmly in your camp. Why? Because it’s on the minds of all CEOs and boards. And to be taken seriously as their business partner, you need to make it abundantly clear that you’re not just a techie—you’re a leader.

So you want to show that you understand risk, cybersecurity, ISO, and any other risk and compliance frameworks that are needed for your industry or expertise, by outlining key achievements in this area.

I always suggest including at least one solid GRC-related achievement in each of your roles, more if you can. This could be as simple as stating that you led the business through ISO accreditation.

Tip: Think of your CV as a business case or board paper—the language should reflect that you're making decisions that impact the overall success of the business, not just the IT department.

6. Cybersecurity.

This is a no-brainer these days but so often forgotten in senior-level CVs.

Clearly highlight your experience in managing cybersecurity risks, implementing security protocols, business continuity, and ensuring data protection. 

Your future employer needs to know that you take this very seriously and know how to prevent and manage crises.

7. Emerging technology & future-focus.

You know you’re expected to stay ahead of the curve, identifying emerging technologies and leading innovation. But it’s more than showing buzzwords like AI or cloud transformation.

Instead, incorporate these future-focused elements in a way that shows you’re thinking strategically—and executing on that vision. For example:

• Led the implementation of a cloud-first strategy, migrating 50% of the business’s infrastructure within 12 months.

• Initiated an AI-driven automation project that reduced operational costs by 20% and freed up resources for strategic growth.

Frame your innovations within the context of business value to show you’re deeply attuned to what drives the business forward, not just innovation for innovation’s sake.

6. Show me the money.

Delivering within financial constraints is arguably the most challenging part of your role as an IT leader—

• juggling today’s performance and stability needs with tomorrow’s innovations and transformations while…

• helping the business stay secure and competitive, and

• navigating the expensive headaches that are legacy systems, shadow IT, delayed projects, while

• constantly being asked to prove ROI and value to your stakeholders.

It’s an eye-watering combo and this makes it all the more strategically critical in your CV. This is your chance to show your proficiency in managing IT budgets, resource allocation, keeping costs under control (or even better, saving the business money), and delivering projects within financial constraints. 

7. Show you’ve got good chat.

I’m being flippant here, but while there might be an assumption that other C-suiters know how to lead people and teams, as a CIO, the assumption is often the opposite.

Use your CV to show that you’re a leader who knows how to manage people, lead teams with empathy and clarity, resource projects, and build relationships with stakeholders, the board and the business.

Another way to look at it is to show you confidently sell in bold initiatives and guide the business through complex change or issues.

Thought-starters:

• How many teams did you lead through digital transformation?

• Did you manage geographically dispersed teams?

• Did you overcome internal challenges such as resistance to change, difficult vendors, or legacy systems?

• How did you engage the board or the business to drive major change?

Describe how you navigated obstacles, built relationships, and influenced others to drive success. Did you manage to overcome resistance from key stakeholders? Highlight that resilience and people management skill.

And always give credit to the teams you worked with—showing humility and collaboration makes you a stronger leader in the eyes of potential employers.

8. Words from the exec—not tech—playbook .

Your CV is a strategic document so keep your audience in mind.

Yes, your CV is likely to be read first by a recruiter, but that recruiter needs to sell you to their client—your future boss. So make this an easy job for them. Speak their language—use terms and metrics they care about, and focus on the business outcomes of your technical expertise.

A successful CIO CV doesn’t just list what you’ve done—it tells a compelling story of leadership, transformation, and strategic growth. Show them how you can bridge the gap between technology and business success.

9. Back up the stories with value-adds.

You’d be amazed how many CIO CVs I come across that don’t include a record of key training or development—not just technology-focused, but leadership focused.

Does it really matter if you have a certificate when you’ve led major transformations? Yes and no. As a leader you’re pretty much off the tools by now, but I would argue that adding in a few extras just continues to help tell the story of you.

No—if you haven’t done extra training or courses, then of course it doesn’t matter (unless it matters to you).

Yes—if you’ve done the training, and it’s relevant and meaningful, then absolutely include it.

Here are some other things that are almost always left out:

• Volunteering and contributions to the community

• Speaking and presenting engagements

• Media mentions

• Awards.

If you’ve achieved in any of these areas and consider them relevant and meaningful to future you, then absolutely include it. This information tells your reader that you have a rich and diverse background, your commit to technology or leadership extends outside of the workplace, and that development is important to you.

But keep it concise and direct, and don’t be afraid to leave things out if they’re not relevant or happened 15 years ago.

Let’s wrap this up…

As a CIO (or CDO or CTO), your CV should demonstrate you’re a business leader who can drive change, make bold decisions, and deliver results.

By highlighting your impact through storytelling, backing it up with metrics, and framing your leadership within the context of business value, you’ll position yourself as the type of strategic leader that today’s organisations need.

My absolute advice is to treat your CV like a strategic document that a CEO will be reading, rather than a personal record of everything you’ve ever done. Keeping your reader and purpose in mind as you write will make it so much easier to know what to put in, what to leave out, and how to say it.

Ready to take your CV to the next level? Let’s get started.