About Sebastien Louyot
CIO of Altavia
Sebastien Louyot has over 25 years of experience in IT, with a career shaped by roles as CTO and CIO. He played a key role in establishing the IT department at Doctolib before joining Altavia, a French mid-sized company, to support its digital transformation. His expertise spans IT architecture, technological innovation, and the implementation of digital strategies that drive business growth.
At Hubadviser, we regularly interview senior CIOs to gather their first-hand experience and perspectives on the major transformations shaping the IT function. In this interview, we chose to focus on a topic that lies at the heart of the profession: the transformation of IT organizations.
We had the privilege of speaking with Sébastien Louyot, Chief Information Officer at Altavia and former CIO at Doctolib. He shares an unfiltered perspective on IT transformation: why it should be undertaken, how it should be structured, and the key lessons for CIOs facing profound transformation challenges.
We invite you to discover his insights below.
Hello Sebastien, why transform an IT organization ?
An IT organization needs to be transformed when it is no longer aligned with the company’s strategic trajectory.
The real question is not “Does the IT organization work today?” but rather “Will it be able to support the company in three to five years?”
At Doctolib, the IT organization had to support an unpredictable hypergrowth, significantly accelerated by the COVID crisis. The challenge was to scale up capabilities: resilience, scalability, and operational performance. The IT organization had to both keep pace with and support this growth, while also leveraging the financial resources made available through record fundraising rounds to finance the transformation.
At Altavia, the challenge is different. We are talking about a long-established company launching new business models, with very strong stakes around data and CRM. The transformation is more complex because the organization must transition toward new business lines without stopping the historical ones. At the same time, financial discipline is critical: the company must transform while continuing to operate, which is costly. As a result, trade-offs are more complex.
In both cases, however, IT transformation is a direct consequence of a strategic shift. Without this explicit link to the business, IT transformation becomes a disconnected, abstract exercise.
Are you the same CIO at Altavia as you were at Doctolib?
I am the same person, but I do not perform the same role. The CIO is not a standardized function; it is a context-driven role.
In a highly digital-native environment like Doctolib, the CIO acts as an accelerator. In a more traditional organization like Altavia, the CIO must also be a transition architect, capable of managing the existing landscape while preparing the future.
The approaches that worked at Doctolib cannot simply be applied at Altavia; doing so would be disconnected from reality. This is a common pitfall to avoid: trying to replicate, at all costs, models that have worked elsewhere instead of adapting them to the context.
The CIO’s key competency is therefore not primarily technical. It lies in the ability to read the context, adjust one’s posture, and orchestrate different transformation rhythms.
How can an IT organization be transformed effectively?
First, an important clarification : transforming an IT organization is about changing its operating model, not its organizational chart. It is entirely possible to overhaul an org chart without changing anything in practice.
With that in mind, transformation should start by defining the capabilities the IT organization must deliver to the business :
speed, reliability, security, innovation capacity, and scalability.
Transformation then needs to take place simultaneously across three dimensions:
- Organization : clear role definitions, the right balance between governance and execution, and end-to-end accountability.
- Culture : autonomy, high standards, and transparency. A high-performing IT organization is one where teams are accountable, not merely executing tasks.
- Methods and tools : clear roadmaps, incremental transformation, and explicit trade-offs.
Changing structure alone, without addressing culture and decision-making mechanisms, does not lead to sustainable impact.
We understand that business drives IT transformation. But can this transformation also be driven by technology, particularly AI ?
Once again, it depends on the business (laughs). If, at the highest level of the organization, AI is positioned as a strategic priority, then yes, IT will need to transform, for several reasons.
First, in terms of the relationship between IT and the business : AI challenges the IT organization’s historical monopoly over technology delivery.
Business teams can now design, test, and deploy solutions without systematically going through IT.
In response, there are two options :
- either IT tries to regain control and loses;
- or it repositions itself as the architect of the framework, and gains influence.
AI pushes IT to evolve from a producer role toward one of regulator, integrator, and guarantor of overall coherence.
Second, regarding technology choices : How can an IT organization that is itself technologically behind be a driving force in supporting the business ? IT must also transform, both organizationally and technologically, to gain modernity and effectively support business teams. Without this, IT lacks credibility.
That said, I want to emphasize one point : IT cannot lead an AI transformation on its own without strong business sponsorship. In the absence of that support, it is better to slow down and wait.
Which roles become critical in this new context ?
IT organizations need profiles capable of managing complexity, not just technology.
Key roles include :
- Enterprise Architects, to maintain overall coherence in a decentralized environment;
- Data and AI platform leaders, to industrialize usage without centralizing it;
- Profiles focused on AI governance, security, and compliance;
- Managers able to orchestrate internal ecosystems, particularly around citizen developers.
The IT organization becomes a platform of capabilities, not a project factory.
What role does external consulting play in an IT transformation context ?
In a transformation context, it is very rare, if not illusory, to have all the required capabilities in-house.
Transformation often requires moving fast on highly specialized topics such as data, cybersecurity, ERP, architecture, and change management. These are areas where the IT organization may not have the necessary skills, or not at the required level of maturity.
At certain critical moments, we had to rely very heavily on external expertise. At one point, up to 70% of the IT workforce was made up of consultants. This figure can raise concerns, particularly from a finance perspective, and therefore needs to be explained, acknowledged, and actively managed.
The key is to establish a clear framework :
- yes, this is normal during a transformation phase;
- yes, it is under control;
- and no, it is not a sustainable long-term model.
External support should be viewed as a temporary accelerator, not a permanent crutch.
For me, two principles are non-negotiable :
- Knowledge transfer: external consultants must support, train, and upskill internal teams;
- A clear internalization roadmap : an IT organization cannot operate long-term with a majority of external resources. It is neither economically sustainable nor healthy in terms of control and ownership.
That said, in a phase of deep transformation, external consulting is indispensable, provided it is designed as a strategic lever, not merely as additional delivery capacity.
Which mindsets or approaches have become obsolete for a CIO today ?
An IT organization that approves everything, centralizes everything, and slows everything down is doomed. Likewise, a CIO who focuses solely on technology, without a deep understanding of business challenges, loses legitimacy.
In the age of AI, the CIO’s value lies in the ability to arbitrate, structure, and secure, not in executing everything personally.
Do you have any advice for a CIO who wants to transform their organization ?
Transforming an IT organization is first and foremost about leadership and organization. It requires strong leadership and the ability to clearly explain where you are going, why you are going there, why it matters, and which core values guide the journey. This clarity is essential to generate enthusiasm and buy-in.
But transforming an IT organization also means changing the operating model. It requires an organization, governance, methods, and processes aligned with the overall vision.
Without a clear IT Operating Model, transformation remains purely declarative.
A final word : what do you think of Hubadviser?
A CIO needs to stay connected to what is happening outside the organization in order to perform effectively internally. The role is constantly evolving and requires continuous self-challenge.
This is why Hubadviser is a relevant and valuable partner for CIOs.
