CIOs: The New Business Strategists in the Digital World

With organisations faced with growing pressure to scale efficiently, respond faster to disruption, and deliver meaningful business outcomes, the role of Chief Information Officers has become increasingly strategic. In a landscape defined by rapid digitisation, evolving customer expectations, and intensifying competition, CIOs are now responsible not just for keeping systems running, but for shaping the direction of the business.

Against this backdrop, SeamlessHR, Africa’s leading end-to-end HR technology company, brought together more than 50 CIOs and senior technology leaders from Kenya’s most influential businesses for a strategic roundtable at the Pullman Hotel in Nairobi. The event created a platform for CIOs to interrogate their evolving mandate and explore practical strategies for driving enterprise-wide transformation.

Themed “CIOs at the Forefront: Accelerating Enterprise Transformation and Performance,” the session examined how technology leaders are moving beyond legacy infrastructure and siloed systems to build more adaptive, integrated, and performance-led organisations. From data strategy to innovation management, the discussions underscored the urgency for businesses to reimagine how technology is leveraged at scale.

In his keynote address, Ambassador Philip Thigo, Special Envoy on Technology for Kenya, emphasised the strategic convergence between national policy and private sector innovation. “We’re entering a critical phase in Kenya’s digital journey, one where CIOs must step up as shapers of economic progress. If we’re to achieve meaningful transformation across the country, the thinking in the boardroom must connect to the country’s digital ambition.”

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That ambition, however, requires more than vision. It demands the right systems, tools, and digital infrastructure to power execution. To turn strategy into sustained impact, organisations need streamlined systems, reliable data, and the right digital infrastructure to power every decision.

Building on this, Deji Lana, Chief Technology Officer and Co-founder of SeamlessHR, highlighted the need for simplicity and coherence. “Technology should clarify, not complicate. When systems talk to each other and leaders can trust the data in front of them, decision-making becomes sharper, faster, and more strategic. That’s the real edge today’s CIO must deliver in today’s business landscape.”

A panel session featuring Gilbert Mutai, Chief Information Officer, Car & General Group; Jacinta Kamemba, Global Director of Digitization, VisionFund International; Geoffrey Gitagia, CIO, Avenue Healthcare; MK Balaji, Chief Revenue Officer, SeamlessHR; and Deji Lana of SeamlessHR, explored how CIOs are stepping up as business growth enablers, balancing business continuity with innovation, and driving new levers of efficiency, and long-term competitiveness.

MK Balaji, Chief Revenue Officer, SeamlessHR, noted that the role of a CIO is no longer to keep the lights on. It is to lead transformation, empower every team with insight, and build platforms that anticipate tomorrow’s challenges today.

The roundtable concluded with a shared recognition of the pivotal role CIOs in Kenya are playing in shaping enterprise transformation. As businesses lean more heavily on technology to drive efficiency, and long-term growth, SeamlessHR says it remains committed to equipping technology leaders with the tools, insights, and partnerships they need to lead from the front.

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