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What CIOs Really Want in 2026.
And how marketers can meet them there.
Yasmien Mereb
Senior Manager, Research
To capture and convert high-value decision makers like Chief Information Officers (CIOs), B2B tech marketers are always looking for more stand-out messaging that connects with CIOs on their terms – messaging that’s based on insights that can only come from reading current market signals at scale.
Our intelligence comes directly from the front lines of B2B tech marketing. At Just Global, we combine our own research with live data points across on-going campaigns to inform marketing strategies for every client. Here’s a taste of the trends that are likely to dominate in 2026:
Some of what worries CIOs will look familiar
CIOs are under pressure as revenue and IT budgets struggle to keep up with inflation. They want to do more with less, shifting their focus from traditional IT management to modernizing infrastructure, creating IT strategies, and delivering measurable business outcomes.
Talent shortages, inflation and uncertain returns on investment (ROI) on tech investments are the top challenges keeping CIOs up at night, with over half citing talent gaps as the number one inhibitor to innovation. According to CIO.com, this is the number 1 inhibitor for CIO strategic and innovative tasks.
The AI effect
Generative AI (GenAI) has become a game-changer for IT budgets. Thanks to GenAI, nearly two thirds of organizations (65%) expect IT budgets to increase:
CIOs are doubling down on productivity, revenue growth and organizational culture transformation, with GenAI and automation seen as critical enablers to scale team capacity and deliver faster data-driven innovation. In terms of deployments, about 43% of CIOs have already deployed AI and low-code/no-code development platforms.
Productivity and speed
Revenue growth
CEOs expect to see significant digital-driven improvements in their financials, especially with all the promises around the potential of GenAI
Organizational change
Change management is a big part of the CIO remit today as organizational culture hinders IT-related changes. Employees are struggling to adapt digitally, especially against a backdrop of continued social, geopolitical and economic disruptions.
CIOs are looking for insights on the behavioral changes that will help employees to do their best work and remain adaptable. Gartner’s from/to/because or FTB model is one useful method that helps identify next steps. What can influence the decision is showing how digital transformation can positively impact the whole organization. Once the nay-sayers see what’s in it for them, they are usually not opposed to it.
CIOs are seeking to address issues related to constantly evolving threats in particular. The specter of ransomware and heightened attention from board-level stakeholders is a constant worry.
What might shift
CIOs are used to working alone, making crucial decisions on implementations by themselves. But what if more heads are better than one?
- With digital delivery increasingly being distributed outside of IT departments in order to accelerate digital transformation, digital expertise is no longer held only by the IT team. In fact, digital initiatives co-led by CIOs and other CxOs outperform those led by CIOs alone. Despite this, many CIOs remain reluctant to collaborate, leading to duplicated efforts and inconsistent customer experiences.
- We also seen a new CxO enter the chat – the Chief Artificial Intelligence (AI) Officer. Reporting to the CIO, CAIOs will evaluate use cases and manage the risks that come with AI implementation, freeing the CIO to focus more strategically on the bigger picture.
The bottom line is that CIOs are being pulled in conflicting directions. They need to find the right balance between immediate business results and strategic, long-term change. It’s a huge opportunity for marketers who can speak their language.
Need a sharper view of what matters to CIOs right now?
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