Expanding Your Influence Through Advisory Roles

Not every organisation needs or can afford a full time CIO or senior technology executive, but many still need access to executive level thinking. This is where advisory roles come in.

An advisory role is different from fractional or interim leadership. You are not carrying operational responsibility and you are not embedded in the day to day. Instead, you provide strategic guidance on a periodic or ad hoc basis. That might be through monthly or quarterly board sessions, executive coaching, or specialist consultation on critical programs.

For example, you may advise a board on cyber strategy or technology risk. You may coach a CIO through a complex transformation program. Or you may help a CEO understand how AI and digital disruption will reshape their operating model and industry landscape.

The value of advisory work is that it allows you to extend your impact without the operational load. You are leveraging decades of experience, but doing so through questions, insight, and strategic framing rather than daily execution.

Advisory roles are also a powerful way to future proof your career. They build credibility with boards, demonstrate your ability to think and contribute at governance level, and often act as stepping stones into non executive director opportunities.

So if you are thinking about broadening your career, do not underestimate the power of advisory work. It is one of the most effective ways to influence at the highest levels while maintaining control of your time, energy, and portfolio.