We have reached the ultimate cross-roads in technology adoption – businesses are either stepping up and investing in the future, or stepping aside and enabling themselves to fall behind.

The first thing tech-driven organisations need is tech-driven leaders; individuals who aren’t afraid to put new ideas into action, and who pride themselves in their ability to lead the pack instead of following in the footsteps of others. 

Here are the top five roles on our list for 2019:

Chief Revenue Officer (CRO)

“You can’t be an expert in everything,” say the naysayers – but in a business environment where the goal-posts are constantly changing, that’s precisely what organisations need from their leaders.

Born and bred in the illustrious Silicon Valley, the role of Chief Revenue Officer is designed to capitalise on new revenue opportunities by bringing together the traditional sales, marketing, finance and product team functions.

The CRO must be able to break down silos and invest in a more fluid approach to revenue growth in order to create the best possible customer experience – and drive growth, obviously. 

Chief Behaviour Officer (CBO)

Data may be the new oil – but possessing the know-how to take that data and form meaningful and actionable conclusions is where the real gold is hidden. 

Operating as the advocate for the human at the centre of every policy and programme, the Chief Behaviour Officer has a background in behavioural science, close connections to the academic community, and a strong understanding of business and customer challenges.

Seamlessly mixing art and science together, the CBO maps out the customer or employee journey by analysing human behaviour and decision-making (the art), then making use of data science and analytics resources (the science) to identify measurable outcomes.

Chief Data Officer (CDO) 

I know we mentioned that data is the new oil – but did we mention that more than 90% of the world’s data was created in the last two years?  

To securely manage this data, and to make sure your organisation is leveraging it to its full potential (within all legal parameters), the Chief Data Officer guides the organisation in its technology adoption and training to properly store and distribute it. 

The CIO of an organisation manages the systems that run a business, but the CDO manages the data that runs the business – they produce decision ready data to other executives to improve cycle times and performance. 

Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) 

With all the new data regulations now in place across the EU, it’s easy to get caught up in how your organisation handles its own data – but what are you doing to stop that data from getting into the wrong hands?

The Chief Information Security Officer is responsible for establishing and maintaining the enterprise vision, strategy and programme to ensure information assets and technologies are adequately protected.

This involves creating and implementing an information security strategy that protects the organisation's employees, data, infrastructures and assets from cyber-criminals.

Chief Risk Officer (CRO)

While this role might not be entirely shiny and new, in our highly uncertain and rapidly-changing times, it’s become a necessity to have someone seated on the board who can provide advice on potential risks – queue the Chief Risk Officer. 

But on an even more practical scale, in our post-GDPR world the Chief Risk Officer proves particularly useful in ensuring that all customer and employee data is safe and secure. 

On a day-to-day basis, the Chief Risk Officer is tasked with identifying, analysing, and mitigating the risk of events that could threaten your company.

To find out more key trends impacting the C-suite, read our recent interview with Stu on the latest executive search trends, or visit our Insights page.