The IT Director of supermarket Sainsbury‘s has won the CIO of the Year Award at the UK IT Industry Awards 2011, the second consecutive year that a retailer has collected the prize.
Rob Fraser, CIO of Sainsbury‘s collected the award run by BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, and follows in the footsteps of Marks & Spencer CIO Darrell Stein who won the same recognition last year.
Fraser joined the grocer in 2009 and was tasked with transforming its internal IT capability following an unsuccessful outsourced operating model. The IT division now achieves high levels of operational service and efficiency savings and delivers a significant capital programme of IT led business change.
Fraser is said to have fundamentally restructured the department and its capabilities and was up against stiff competition across the entire IT profession, as BCS celebrates best practice, innovation and excellence.
Entrants can be organisations or individuals involved in IT across the public, not for profit and commercial sectors.
David Clarke, MBE, Chief Executive Officer BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, praised Fraser‘s contribution to the company.
“This outlines the importance of IT in retail today and the value it brings to the business,” he said.
“Our judges were impressed by Rob who showed that he is genuinely proud of IT as a trusted advisor to the business and has built an environment where people can start and develop their careers.”
In total, 23 awards were presented during the ceremony, including gongs for such areas as Security Innovation, Infrastructure Innovation, Business Project and Environmental Project and covered project, organisation, technology, and individual excellence.
Clarke added: “The variety of entrants highlights the extent to which IT is embedded in our society, from our healthcare, the high street, car production, to the stage; IT is the enabler behind so many businesses in the UK.”
