THE BIG LEAP FOR SMALL BUSINESSES: TOWARDS GREATER EFFICIENCY

The big leap for ETIs: towards greater efficiency!

"Every event is an opportunity. The CIO must know how to seize it."

At the 6ᵉ edition of Ready For IT in Monaco, the round table dedicated to “ETIs' big leap: towards greater efficiency” brought together Christophe Caillet, Production Manager - ARS Île-de-France and Sébastien Drouin, CEO - XV DSI, moderated by cybersecurity expert Véronique Loquet. Together, they shared their vision of a CIO who has become a strategic orchestra conductor, capable of aligning technology, business and performance, at the service of a concrete and continuous transformation of ETIs.

Increasingly versatile CIOs in small and medium-sized businesses

Once confined to infrastructure management, the CIO is now seen as a true strategic partner. In SMIs, it's no longer just a matter of maintaining technology, but of managing operational efficiency and supporting digital transformation.

“We do more with less, but above all, we do it better”.

emphasizes Christophe Caillet, reminding us how essential agility, pragmatism and a firm grounding in reality have become.

In an environment where every technological decision has a direct impact on performance, today's CIO must master business challenges, ensure technical coherence and know how to dialogue with all stakeholders, from COMEX to users.

"The CIO cuts across the entire company. He can break down silos and align objectives." - Sébastien Drouin Versatility has become a real asset in structures with often limited resources.

Co-construction, agility, efficiency

Efficiency is no longer a long-term promise: it's built in stages. Identifying visible “quick wins”, co-constructing with business units, adjusting trajectories in real time... this is the new grammar of the CIO. And this presupposes an ability to communicate, to get teams on board, but also to recognize when a direction is not the right one.

"We're no longer pushing a solution, we're responding to a need. And if what we're doing isn't working, we start afresh."

A posture based on proximity, listening, and the desire to involve the whole company in the dynamic of change.

Cybersecurity, a component of performance

Often perceived as a hindrance, cybersecurity is now becoming a lever for efficiency. Far from the “Fort Knox” myth, it's all about building protection in proportion to the risk, while maintaining the fluidity necessary for innovation.

"Security is not an obstacle. It's an opportunity if it's properly explained." - Christophe Caillet The CIO's role here is central: to create a shared culture of security, without slowing down business, while strengthening the company's resilience.

Finally, the “big leap” for small and medium-sized businesses is above all that of their CIOs. From technicians, they become strategists, catalysts of efficiency. This new role requires vision, listening and teaching. "Even a failure is an opportunity to learn. And, above all, a conviction: technology is not an end in itself, but a means of creating lasting value.