“There is an important consequence of this increasing focus on customer data and customer experience, says David Mathison, a New York-based executive search specialist and founder of the CDO Club, a networking organisation for chief digital officers and others in related roles.

An understanding of data analysis techniques and approaches is now a must-have skill for anyone with ambitions to lead their company’s digital transformation strategy, he says.

“There are plenty of data out there and not enough insight – and that’s broadly true across companies, non-profit organisations and government agencies,” says Mr Mathison.

That is not to say that those in charge of starting new digital channels need to be highly technical, “big data” specialists, he stresses: they typically have an insights and analytics team to provide that expertise.

But they must have a very firm grasp of what their data are telling them, “because, after all, that’s where competitive advantage really lies”.

January 7, 2014: “Essentially, the CDO skillset is entrepreneurial. It’s not really about technology tools or marketing savvy, but about being able to run a bridal dress business, grow revenues and cut costs. It’s about demonstrable experience of successfully handling profit/loss responsibility,” Mathison explains.

“CDO to CEO is starting to look like a much faster career track than CIO to CEO. Why wouldn’t a smart technology leader want to get involved?”

“The number of CDOs has been doubling every year since MTV hired Jason Hirschhorn as the first digital CDO in 2005, said David Mathison, founder of The CDO Club, whose recently released CDO Talent Map examines the history of the CDO role and the makeup of current and former digital chiefs. Mathison predicts the number of CDOs will increase from 488 in 2013 to 1,000 or more this year.”

January 3, 2014: According to Mathison, “To start the New Year off right, the most important thing a new CDO can do is to craft and deliver the digital strategy. This should be a cross-departmental blueprint with input from all key stakeholders. It must include achievable and realistic goals; identification of the tools, resources, capital and team necessary to achieve those goals; a clear definition of roles and responsibilities; and key performance indicators (KPIs) for measuring your team’s performance against the goals. Once this is complete, the strategy should be clearly communicated to all involved.”

December 4, 2013: “Mathison says Chief Digital Officers can be found in every industry now. He also notes that despite the title implications, the CDO position is a business focused post, not a technical one. These people – if they are successful – will probably be running the show in three to five years. I’ve been surprised at how quickly it’s happening, Mathison predicts.”

“Mathison says Chief Digital Officers can be found in every industry now. He also notes that despite the title implications, the CDO position is a business focused post, not a technical one.”

November 13, 2013: “David Mathison, founder of the Chief Digital Officer Club, recently told the MIT Sloan Management Review that there will still be only 500 CDOs worldwide by the end of the year, although that is a big rise from the 75 or so that existed in 2011.”

November 7, 2013: “The CDO position, Mathison added, is increasingly the fast-track to the CEO seat. In 2013 alone, he said, more than seven CDOs became CEO, and more than four CDOs joined public boards. Considering there are not many CDOs around, that is a very impressive statistic, and reflects the importance of digital in business, education and our culture, Mathison said.”

November 1, 2013: “When you look at their backgrounds and skill sets, they’re coming up from entrepreneurial and managerial backgrounds, Mathison says. These people — if they are successful — will probably be running the show in three to five years. I’ve been surprised at how quickly it’s happening.”

October 11, 2013:DATA MANAGER: Pensi che il Vecchio Continente sia pronto per l’introduzione di questi professionisti? DAVID MATHISON: “Assolutamente, sì. Dall’inizio del 2013 a oggi, ci sono stati 177 nuovi assunti con il ruolo di CDO, cioè una media di uno al giorno. Settantacinque di questi erano in Europa, con una crescita che riguarda soprattutto Bulgaria, Repubblica Ceca, Danimarca, Finlandia, Francia, Germania, Olanda, Italia (con in testa le città di Milano, Roma e Monza), Serbia, Spagna, Svezia, Svizzera e Regno Unito (dove Londra ha il maggior numero di CDO in Europa).”