Gartner predicts that by 2015, about a quarter of all companies will have created a new seat at the senior executive table–the Chief Digital Officer. Gartner’s prediction is based on the major transformation underway as companies are digitizing both their sources of revenue as well as their services.

The research group said this is happening because “organizations are digitizing segments of business, such as moving marketing spend from analog to digital, or digitizing the research and development budget.”  Also, Gartner says, organizations are digitizing how they service their clients, in order to drive higher client retention. Thirdly, it says, they are turning digitization into new revenue streams. As a result, of these changes, every budget is becoming an IT budget, and the Chief Digital Officer is becoming a logical addition to business leadership.

I had not heard much about the Chief Digital Officer until I read about Gartner’s prediction. But, the more I’ve thought about it, the more I like the concept. Chief Digital Officer succinctly captures the future direction of the CIO role.