Things that go 'blip' in the night - CEOs' use of technology - Technology & the CEO: State of the Art

Chief Executive, The, Feb 15, 1998 by Meryl Davids

Got a PC on your desk? A laptop in your briefcase? A cell phone cradled in your palm? Are you surfing the Not every chance you get? Sending e-mails to everyone up and down your supply chain? Keep it up, and someday you my even be able to talk with your CIO!

Things that go "beep," "blip," and "brrrring" can drive a CEO crazier than a gyrating stock market. Systems crash; reams of e-mail messages clutter the mailbox; cell phones go dead.

But oh, how they love the convenience! Not long ago, it was easy to find a majority of CEOs personally eschewing technology in favor of such old-fashioned tools as a paper and pen. Today, though, it seems many have discovered the joys of electronics - even as they struggle mightily to master all the gizmos. We recently checked in with six CEOs to get a sense of how well they each have mastered the technology game - and how far they feel they still have to go. If you've been fearing taking the plunge, maybe their experiences will embolden you.

"IN DANGER OF BEING A NERD"

David F. D'Alessandro, President and COO, John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Co.

If you're looking for David F. D'Alessandro at 3 o'clock in the morning, you might find him on the Internet. Since he doesn't need much sleep, D'Alessandro finds that hour to be the perfect time to surf the Web. "You never get a busy signal, and it's a lot faster," he laughs. These days, the president and COO of the Boston-based life insurance giant does a good portion of his shopping on-line; he has just, in fact, purchased a cashmere sweater from Scotland, 10 pounds of Kona coffee from Hawaii, and a set of golf clubs for when he eventually takes up the game - all at a 30 to 50 percent discount, compared to retail stores. He also uses his on-line connection to read the major newspapers, which come up at midnight. "My teenage son says I'm on the computer so much I'm in danger of becoming a nerd," he says.

While D'Alessandro admits that in the past few years he has become a Webmeister simply for the enjoyment of it, he also sees how important this sort of mastery is for him as president of an $8.8 billion colossus. "You have to be enthused about on-line activity to be open to the proposals that are coming in, including a $9 million one for the electronic commerce of life insurance," he says. "My familiarity and comfort helps me tell my people that they had better have a product to sell on the Internet soon for two-thirds the cost, because if you can do it for coffee, there is no reason you can't do it for insurance, too."

Surprisingly, the 47-year-old D'Alessandro doesn't have a computer in his office. Having that modem and keyboard nearby would prove distracting, he claims. "I'd want to look up all kinds of personal stuff that I shouldn't want to look up. This way I can focus on what I get paid for." He also refuses to be hooked up to e-mail, so people will be forced to come in and "have a conversation."

When he travels, D'Alessandro does take his laptop with him, primarily for its Internet accessibility -this time for business. "I can run a check on the chairman of a company before I have cocktails with him. It's easier than having to hunt for the latest Wall Street Journal." He also accesses company reports through his laptop, cutting down on the material that once had to be faxed.

As far as his IT staff is concerned, D'Alessandro -who learned to type in journalism school and first became familiar with computers during his 10 years at Control Data -would rather be thought of as a nincompoop than a nerd. "I never pretend around the senior technology people here that I know anything, because then they go into this Star Trek talk, racheting up the conversation with their own vocabulary to levels that I can't understand. I prefer to let them think of me as a simpleton," he says. Let's hope none of them spot him hanging 10 on the Web at 3 A.M.!

"A SHORTFALL AND A CHALLENGE"

John S. Chalsty, Chairman and CEO, Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette

Ten years ago, John Chalsty decided it was time to dive headlong into computers. He bought a PC, read the manual, and started pecking away (his "somewhat slow" typing is still a minor drawback). "With all technologies, you learn mostly by doing," Chalsty says. "Every day that you work the computer, you learn."

Chalsty has been working it pretty much every day since, to the point where he believes he is now "facile enough" with his growing cache of machines. That includes home and office PCs, a laptop, and a hand-held Palm Pilot-brand organizer. The 64-year-old head of the New York-based securities and investment banking firm comfortably uses these computers to plug into his company's intranet and otherwise access corporate financial information, as well as to respond to e-mail messages. The home PC sees additional action writing the family's checks, playing CD-ROMs with the grandchildren, and indulging Chalsty's fascination with the Library of Congress's Web site. ("It's just extraordinary. You can find information on almost anything!" he enthuses.) The Pilot, which he has carried with him like a security blanket in the year-plus since its release, easily connects to the office computer, keeping him up-to-date on both his daily schedule and his list of contacts.