Information technology departments, and therefore chief information officers (CIOs), can have a communication and action gap with their institutions and leadership. The gap between IT and the institution poses a major challenge if the senior IT executive, or the CIO, does not have the necessary skills and ability to lead a rapidly evolving IT department. IT's potential impact has made it critical to the operation of the institution. As a result of IT's organizational importance, the CIO position has evolved from a technical person holding a managerial role to an education and business executive assuming the technical post. The nature of the position makes the CIO responsible for successfully bridging any communication and action gap between the organization and IT. This article presents a research study whose goal was to create a detailed description of an effective and successful CIO within a higher education environment. The results provide insight into effective IT leadership by examining CIO attributes, membership on the management team, an organization's strategic view of IT, and the impact a centralized or decentralized IT organization has on a CIO's effectiveness. The research highlighted the circumstances under which IT leaders, and consequently the IT department and institution, have the best chance of success. (Contains 5 tables and 20 endnotes.)