The influence of chief information officers (CIOs) is on the decline as churn within the sector hits new heights, according to research from professional recruitment consultancy, Harvey Nash.

The survey of more than 650 UK CIOs and senior technology professionals revealed that 10% felt their role was becoming less strategic and 58% expect to have moved jobs in the next two years.

The survey, conducted in partnership with PA Consulting, revealed that 46% of CIOs are on the board, and only 35% report direct to the chief executive. It found that 61% of respondents thought the role of the CIO was becoming more strategic, down 15% on last year.

It found that this drop in confidence is shared by board-level peers with half of chief financial officers viewing IT solely as a support function with no need for board representation. A perceived failure to deliver on innovation is to blame, 65% of businesses have no structured approach to IT innovation and, when they do innovate, the majority (78%) reported only reasonable or limited success.