For Robert Norris, CIO at Pinnacol Assurance, being involved in strategic business decisions is more than a component of his role as the company's IT leader—it's also part of his job title.

Norris, who's served as Pinnacol's CIO for 13 years, added the title vice president of strategic development about five years ago. The two roles are a natural fit for someone who considers his affinity for planning a key skill.

“The principal function of my strategic development role is to facilitate strategic planning throughout the organization, which gives me a pretty deep understanding of where the company is going, how we're going to get there, and what challenges we might face along the way,” Norris says. “I use that deep understanding to drive IT strategy, so everything we do in IT is explicitly and directly linked to business strategy.”