Ashish Thakur, CIO, Cummins India on what boards really expect from technology in 2026
As enterprises move from digital transformation to decision transformation, CIOs are under growing pressure to prove measurable business outcomes from technology investments. In this conversation with CIO&Leader, Ashish Thakur unpacks how board expectations have shifted from cloud adoption and pilots to revenue impact, resilience, and decision quality in an AI-first enterprise. He explains why use-case-driven AI, integrated digital cores, and outcome-linked metrics now define CIO credibility and why boards must move from passive oversight to shared risk ownership to unlock real transformation.
CIO&Leader: In 2026, what are the top business outcomes businesses expect from technology, and how have those expectations shifted over the past three years?
Ashish Thakur: Over the past three years, technological expectations have evolved significantly. Businesses have shifted from foundational transformation like cloud migration and remote work enablement, to leveraging technology as a revenue driver. Autonomous systems, AI-assisted processes, and real-time predictive capabilities such as scenario planning, demand sensing, and supplier risk modelling have become essential. The focus is now on pre-empting disruptions rather than reacting to them. Customers demand faster innovation cycles, personalized products, and agile market response. Integration across PLM (Product Lifecycle Management), ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), and MES (Manufacturing Execution System) is imperative, enabling seamless workflows from design, simulation, commissioning and service. CIOs must prioritize use-case-driven AI adoption, ensuring technology delivers measurable value, beyond just tools and systems.
CIO&Leader: How are CIOs demonstrating measurable value from digital, AI, and transformation investments to the board, and which metrics truly matter today?
Ashish Thakur: CIOs today are increasingly expected to demonstrate measurable value from digital, AI, and transformation investments, shifting the conversation from mere technology adoption to clear business impact. Boards and investors now prioritize ROI that aligns with strategic goals and tangible outcomes. To address this, CIOs are linking technology investments directly to core business KPIs, enabling a clear correlation between tech initiatives and business performance. They are also leveraging frameworks such as OKRs (Objectives & Key Results) and Value Stream Mapping to track and showcase progress against strategic objectives. Benchmarking against industry standards further builds credibility by contextualizing performance.
Additionally, storytelling with data has become a critical skill for CIOs, as they must present their narratives in a way that highlights business value achieved, rather than focusing solely on the technology itself. This approach ensures technological initiatives are not viewed as abstract concepts but as drivers of measurable business success.
Leaders must shift focus from counting AI initiatives to ensuring AI enhances decision quality. The priority now is to use AI to drive smarter, faster, and more responsible decisions, while managing risks such as bias, opacity, and overreliance.” ~ Ashish Thakur
CIO&Leader: Where do expectations align with reality, and where do execution complexity and trade-offs create the biggest challenges on the ground?
Ashish Thakur: Reality sets in when technology moves from concept to deployment, since success relies not just on implementation, but on adoption and effective change management. Success hinges on shared responsibility between business leaders and CIOs with clear ownership and predefined success criteria guiding initiatives. These criteria provide a framework for consistent execution and progress tracking. A significant challenge lies in understanding business process complexity. Many initiatives & projects fail because teams underestimate real-world scenarios and exceptions. It’s often these exceptions, rather than standard processes that disrupt execution. Addressing these complexities with thorough planning and adaptability is essential to bridge the gap between expectations and on-the-ground realities.
CIO&Leader: What do CIOs need more from boards to deliver outcomes successfully, clearer direction, investment discipline, patience, or shared risk ownership?
Ashish Thakur: In 2026, the role of CIOs has evolved from asking for permission to transform, to delivering measurable outcomes like growth, resilience, productivity, and trust, despite rising expectations and reduced tolerance for errors. The success of these efforts depends as much on the board’s behavior, governance, and sponsorship along a similar scale on technology capabilities. CIOs need boards to provide clearer direction, including explicit articulation of business outcomes that matter most, and disciplined investment strategies focused on high-impact initiatives rather than spreading resources thin. Additionally, patience is essential, ensuring funding supports end-to-end value realization rather than stopping at pilot programs.
Above all, shared risk ownership by the board, through active sponsorship of cross-functional initiatives, clear prioritization of speed versus risk or growth versus cost, and support in dismantling organizational silos, forms the foundation for achieving transformative outcomes. This collaborative approach fosters alignment and ensures CIOs are equipped to drive meaningful, measurable business results.
CIO&Leader: What is the most underestimated technology risk or opportunity for 2026–27, and how do expectations differ across sectors?
Ashish Thakur: Technology risks like AI bias, data integrity, and decision-making distortions are now enterprise risks, with accountability boundaries between CIOs, CISOs, and business leaders often unclear. While AI’s promise lies in automation and cost reduction, its deeper impact shaping and accelerating decisions, poses significant risks if unchecked. For example, AI systems expected to improve efficiency may also unlock hidden supply chain costs or margins through quick decisions, yet these outcomes depend on proper oversight. Leaders must shift focus from counting AI initiatives to ensuring AI enhances decision quality, asking: How is AI influencing critical business decisions, and are the results measurably distinct as a comparative analysis of decision-making quality levels?
CIO&Leader: What is the most underestimated technology risk or opportunity for 2026–27, and how do expectations differ across sectors?
Ashish Thakur: AI’s transformative influence on organizational decision-making appears as among the most underrated technology risks towards the future trajectory. AI’s real impact isn’t in automation or cost cutting alone, it lies in how it shapes, accelerates, and improves critical decisions. Beyond efficiency gains, AI can reveal hidden opportunities such as supply chain cost reduction, margin optimisation, and smarter planning. Success is not about the number of AI projects, but about better decision quality. Leaders should ask: How many critical decisions are AI-enabled, and are outcomes measurably better? The priority now is to use AI to drive smarter, faster, and more responsible decisions, while managing risks such as bias, opacity, and overreliance.