The biggest challenge today's chief technology officers face is the head-snapping speed that changes are happening in the industry.
Why it helps CTOs to be 'a kind of evangelist'
Continental Chief Technology Officer Gilles Mabire says it's a challenge to get executives who have been successful doing things one way to believe there is an even better solution.
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It helps a CTO to be "a kind of evangelist," Conti tech boss Gilles Mabire said.
"You always need to question whether what is right today will be right tomorrow," Continental CTO Gilles Mabire said.
"You have to understand the change, accept it and drive that change into the organization at a similar speed," Continental CTO Gilles Mabire told Automotive News Europe.
He said that it really helps to be "a kind of evangelist" because a CTO has to get executives who have been successful doing things one way to believe there is an even better solution.
"This requires a lot of communication and convincing," said the 50-year-old native of France, who has been with Continental since 2006. "Therefore, you need to find the right method of communication."
To get buy-in for game-changing transitions to software-defined vehicles and a world where artificial intelligence takes over daunting tasks, a today's CTOs also need another key trait: resilience.
"The second important component of the job is not to compromise on the final vision you want to achieve," Mabire said.
When asked what makes the job unique, Mabire said: "You always need to question whether what is right today will be right tomorrow and accept that change is part of the mission."
