It always excites me when I hear of all the different ways CIOs are using technology either to innovate or to reshape their businesses. Save a couple million, make a couple million—that’s what you tell me almost on a daily basis. All of these efforts should be applauded, and it’s our job at CIO to report on your successes and failures as you do the heavy lifting of business transformation. But, I have to be honest with you: Nothing compares to what I learned a few weeks ago on a visit to The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. CHOP is one of the preeminent pediatric hospitals in the nation. Its business is helping sick children get well, and it’s impossible to assign ROI and TCO metrics to that kind of value proposition. I was there because I had heard of a program in which CHOP installed thin-client computers in every room in the oncology ward. Tim Conners, manager of desktop engineering; John Donohue, health system director of technology solutions; Ellen M. Tracy, director of oncology and radiology nursing; and Charlie Enicks, senior VP and CIO, made the decision. And it was based on care, not cost. When a kid is stuck in a room fighting for his life, there’s only so much TV he can watch and so many books he can read. But a computer can help him explore the world, study his disease, communicate with friends, play games, do homework, connect with society. Can you determine the ROI of enabling these sick children to dream and to escape the daily grind of battling cancer? It’s big. That’s enough analysis. It’s easy to get caught up in numbers. Bits, bytes, speeds, feeds, ROI, TCO, balanced budgets. It’s your job as CIOs to understand these metrics. But on that day at CHOP, it was refreshing to forget the numbers and see sick children smiling—all because of a computer. To me, that’s truly transformational. Michael Friedenberg is CIO’s President and CEO mfriedenberg@cio.com Related content brandpost Sponsored by Freshworks When your AI chatbots mess up AI ‘hallucinations’ present significant business risks, but new types of guardrails can keep them from doing serious damage By Paul Gillin Dec 08, 2023 4 mins Generative AI brandpost Sponsored by Dell New research: How IT leaders drive business benefits by accelerating device refresh strategies Security leaders have particular concerns that older devices are more vulnerable to increasingly sophisticated cyber attacks. By Laura McEwan Dec 08, 2023 3 mins Infrastructure Management case study Toyota transforms IT service desk with gen AI To help promote insourcing and quality control, Toyota Motor North America is leveraging generative AI for HR and IT service desk requests. By Thor Olavsrud Dec 08, 2023 7 mins Employee Experience Generative AI ICT Partners feature CSM certification: Costs, requirements, and all you need to know The Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) certification sets the standard for establishing Scrum theory, developing practical applications and rules, and leading teams and stakeholders through the development process. By Moira Alexander Dec 08, 2023 8 mins Certifications IT Skills Project Management Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe