This brings to mind the thinking of the late James Freedman, former president of Dartmouth College. He once wrote that American college students were rich in idealism and altruism but poor in role models. "They are not so much indifferent to idealism as uninspired by their elders," he said. The same situation appears to be true in IT shops around the world.

What do I read into the survey results? That IT leadership has to be inspirational -- it has to be bigger than life and much bigger than make-the-numbers-this-quarter whack-a-mole.

Some CIOs have figured this out and are ready to ride with the CIO Posse. (Some background: The CIO Posse is what a group of CIO emeriti call themselves. They are regular participants in the CIO Boot Camp, a program focused on upgrading the leadership skills of those who would lead IT in their corporations.) We asked the CIO Posse what their biggest surprise was when they first sat in the CIO hot seat. To a person, they said it was the shock of realizing that "I had to be bigger than me." They had to be bigger than Tom (Mantz, formerly of Praxair), Bruce (Barnes, formerly of Nationwide Financial Services), Ken (Harris, formerly of Pepsi, Nike and The Gap), or Anita (Ward, formerly of Safelite AutoGlass). They had to take on the persona of a leader. They had to become bigger than life, recognizing that everything they said or did -- every gesture, word and facial expression -- sent a message and set a tone.

The days of the CIO as your best pal are over. It is time to lead!

Thornton A. May is a longtime industry observer, management consultant and commentator. Contact him at thorntonamay@aol.com.