Whether they like it or not, it’s incumbent on CIOs to help lead their businesses through the purple haze of the new economy. Heaven knows there are lots of guides for hire and hundreds of assorted gurus with opinions on e-business innovation, marketing, business model disruption and more. We’ve tried to simplify things by assembling a guide to the most well-known and pedigreed pundits and asking them for some quick-hit advice, plus pointers for more in-depth investigation.

Thomas H. Davenport

Knowledge management, e-commerce, reengineering and enterprise systems

Claim to Fame

Davenport has written two best-selling books and many articles on reengineering and knowledge management. He is often one of the earliest pundits to write and speak about hot IT-oriented topics, such as reengineering and the role of the chief knowledge officer. He started two think tanks at major consulting companies and is a prolific writer and university lecturer.

Words of Wisdom for Today’s Business Executives

"The most valuable resource in the new economy is neither technology nor information, but rather human attention. Managers and professionals of all types should be thinking about how their own attention is best allocated and how to capture the attention of their colleagues, their customers and their business partners. The key markets in the future will be those in which attention is bought and sold. It’s an attention economy, and those who succeed in it will be those who know how to manage attention."

Q&A

What are some common misconceptions about e-business?

Davenport: By far, the most common misconception is that success at some IT-related business objective can be achieved through the use of IT alone. Instead, success almost always derives from the human aspects of an initiative.

What is the biggest change the Internet has brought to business?

The Internet has been astounding in the breadth of the business change it has wrought. Almost every business transaction can now be done in part over the Internet. We’ve recently learned, however, that the depth of change is less than anticipated. Only a few industries have been transformed by the Internet, and the volume of business is slow to take off. It’s not frictionless commerce, but it is still amazing.

Curriculum Vitae

Directs the Andersen Consulting Institute for Strategic Change

Teaches management and IT at Babson College, where he is a distinguished scholar in residence

Teaches management and IT at Dartmouth College’s Tuck School of Business

Member of CIO’s editorial advisory board

Writes the "Davenport On..." column for CIO

Writes the "Higher Order" column for Darwin