Welcome to Ribard, a strong industrial company that produces equipment for trucks and coaches. A family-owned business that grew through hard work, with factories, know-how passed down through generations, and loyal customers across Europe.
For decades, the continent was enough : profits were strong, people were hired, and modernization came in small steps. Then the market slowed. Market shares froze, competition became organized, and growth opportunities here grew scarce. Optimization was possible, yes. But to grow, one had to look elsewhere.
That was when the family holding made a decision it had postponed for a long time: to open up the capital. Not to make a quick move, but to finance a real leap. The goal was clear : international expansion. To build factories in Asia and North America, to enter the most promising markets, to secure supply chains, to get closer to customers and local logistics networks. A transformation that was not just about the executive committee: it involved the very future of the company. Its survival, even.
The new shareholder is an American investment fund, which took a 40% stake. The family remains majority at 51%: it keeps control and the culture. The fund, on the other hand, brings the fuel and… the clock. It wants returns, fast. It thinks in terms of “capex, ramp-up, payback”, it looks at margins, cash, speed of execution. It pushes for sharp decisions, firm schedules, milestones that are met. Governance adapts: a tighter board, denser reporting, faster arbitration.
Very quickly, one thing became clear to both sides of the table: to succeed in this shift, key resources were needed that had not been there before. Not just project managers or integrators. A leader was required, someone able to align factories, systems, AI, data, cybersecurity, suppliers, and bring the business teams on board. A transformation CIO.
It was in this context that Benoît appeared. A headhunting firm had spotted him, with a “bankable” profile: a mixed background in consulting, then program management in a large group. He knows how to speak about performance, delivery, change management, scaled agility, and he has already worked in multicultural environments.
The firm painted a clear picture for him: “You are going to transform a business model, not just redo an ERP.” They spoke of Manufacturing 4.0, AI, agility. They mentioned factory sensors, MES, traceability, digital twins, data to optimize production and maintenance, setting up a more responsive supply chain, and improving the customer experience. All the keywords that light up the eyes of any serious professional… provided there is the scope and the means.
A few weeks later it was the CEO who welcomed him, a vigorous and determined man in his fifties, with a fair a mount of charisma. He did not beat around the bush :
Benoît listened, asked questions, and framed the discussion. He saw the potential: a solid company, reliable products, a clear ambition, and a transformation where IT was not a support function but a lever. He was told about prioritizing international expansion, standardizing what needed to be standardized, equipping decision-making with data, and securing the information system against growing risks. He was promised a clear mandate, strong sponsorship, and direct access to decision-makers.
At the end of the process, the equation seemed workable: a clear business vision, dedicated resources, and tighter governance. Above all, a mission that felt right: to make technology a multiplier of growth. He accepted. It was a great step in his career, he celebrated his appointment, he had truly reached a new level.
Three months later, it was Benoît’s first day. He walked into the wood-paneled lobby of headquarters, under the watchful eyes of the founders’ portraits. On the table, a badge and a laptop still wrapped in plastic. In his agenda, the first meetings: CEO, finance, operations, industrial teams, then a tour of the sites. International expansion in sight. Benoît took a breath. The stage was set. The transformation was about to begin.
Four months later
But only four months later, the reality was very different from what he had imagined. In fact, Benoît had inherited a situation far more complicated than expected.
- The OPEX budget had already blown up. In fact, there was no real consolidated budget at all, only a patchwork of scattered expenses.
- The company was running on 7 different ERPs, inherited from acquisitions. An unmanageable mosaic that blocked any ambition of scalability.
- The team was friendly, but the CTO and the CISO were not up to the task. As soon as microservices or Zero Trust were mentioned, silence fell. They were lost.
- Work was done in business silos, everything was custom-built each time, and the technical debt was immense.
- Meetings were… peculiar. People came unprepared, spoke about topics as they came to mind, with no supporting material.
- As for project methodology, it was close to nonexistent. External vendors carried everything, and it was their metrics and their reports that served as the compass.
- The few internal talents (mostly developers) were asking to switch to freelance status or threatening to leave.
- As for cyber risk, it did not seem to be under control at all.
Benoît understood the scale of the misunderstanding. He had been recruited to lead digital transformation, drive international expansion, speak about AI and innovation. But before planting the flag in Asia, he would first need… to lay down serious foundations.
Benoît’s dilemmas
Faced with all these challenges, Benoît felt lost, standing before a puzzle for which he had not yet found all the pieces. So, where should he begin ?
Should his priority be to put in place the fundamentals of a real IT department ?
- A consolidated, clear, and defensible budget.
- An IT leadership committee that prepares its meetings, coming in with numbers, supporting materials, and facts.
- Recruitments to replace the CTO and the CISO.
In short, rebuild a solid house. But by investing time in laying the foundations, wouldn’t he risk drifting too far from the business ?
Because in this kind of transformation, the business expects quick proof. The famous “quick win.” The small project that, in just a few months, eases a CFO’s reporting, an industrial director’s production, or a supply chain director’s forecasting. It is this kind of victory that gives a new CIO credibility.
Yes, but how can he achieve that quick win if the fundamentals are not in place? How can he launch a visible project without a clear budget, solid skills, and proper governance? And what if instead of a quick win, he delivered nothing more than an epic fail?
The dilemma is cruel.
- Should he try to impress quickly, at the risk of patching things up on an unstable foundation?
- Or should he reform in depth, at the cost of months (or even years) without tangible results for the business?
And then there is the question of transparency.
- Should he present this reality as it is to the CEO? Say clearly that the situation is worse than expected, that IT does not have the means to match its ambitions, that the announced timelines make no sense ?
- Isn’t there a risk that the CEO, or worse still the family and the fund, might see him as a defeatist CIO, a man looking for excuses before having delivered anything ?
And what should he say to the teams ?
- They are willing, quite friendly, but some are not up to the task. Should he say it bluntly? Risk breaking the dynamic, damaging trust, creating stress ?
- Or should he pretend to believe that everything will be fine, at the cost of a collective illusion ?
Every day, Benoît weighed the pros and cons. He swung between lucidity and diplomacy, between urgency and patience.
In reality, his dilemma is the same as that of many CIOs :
- Should he chase quick wins to win over the business, even if it means sacrificing the long term ?
- Or build a deep reform, at the risk of being seen as a slow and abstract manager ?
- Should he tell the shareholders and the teams the unvarnished truth, or smooth things over to protect the momentum of the transformation ?
Many questions, no obvious answers. And that is, without doubt, the real weight of the role: not technical expertise, but the solitude of choices.
Long reflections
These questions never left Benoît. They followed him through his days, but also into his evenings, sometimes into his nights, like a constant background noise. That feeling of having to decide quickly, while every option seemed like a gamble.
He often thought back to the image of a sandcastle.
Each time he believed he was laying a solid brick (a process, a budget, a hire), a wave came to erode it. An overlooked expense, a failed meeting, or a sudden departure. Everything seemed fragile and unstable.
His indecision was not weakness, but the reflection of a complex situation. In every scenario, he saw as many risks as opportunities. Move too fast, and he might stumble. Move too slowly, and he might lose the support of the shareholders. He weighed and reweighed, reviewed his notes, drafted emails only to cross them out ten times before sending.
And this stress did not stay at the office. It crept into everything else: during dinner, while putting his phone away, at the moment of falling asleep.
Conclusion
Benoît’s reality is that of many CIOs: a role presented as strategic and forward-looking, but one that quickly turns into an unstable balance between short term and long term, truth and diplomacy, ambition and reality.
The complexity of the job is not only technical, it is also human, political, and at times existential. And in the end, perhaps the most outdated belief of all is thinking that a CIO can still face it all… alone.
About the author
Ismail has 15 years of experience in IT and digital consulting. He spent nearly 7 years at Gartner. He has supported innovative startups in their growth strategy and worked with CIOs of large groups on their digital transformation. In 2021, Ismail founded Hubadviser to help CIOs challenge their vision with top-level experts.