Every CIO passionately believes that he or she should be reporting to the CEO or the board, with responsibility for all IT investment decisions. This is a demonstration of IT’s strategic intent, as the CEO has a direct overview of the direction taken by IT and the influence it has on the business.

Meanwhile, when reporting to the CFO the discussion tends to revolve primarily around cost. While I largely agree with this reasoning, it is essential to acknowledge that a lot of equations changed during the global economic downturn, as CFOs grew in their span of influence.

The CFO has traditionally held the enterprise purse strings, ensuring fiscal prudence while maintaining an adequate financial safety net. But with adequate risk controls and good governance in place, only in the rarest of cases could the CFO overrule other CXOs. Post-downturn, however, we have been bombarded with surveys showing that in most organizations the CIO is no longer in control of the IT budget and the CFO is now responsible for most IT investment decisions.

This has been compounded by the long-held perception of the CIO as the most junior CXO — not always by age but based on the fact that the role has evolved only in the last decade or so — and that he or she typically comes from a technology background, is likely to lack business acumen and is unable to take a broader view of the organization into account.

In most enterprises, IT suffered during the downturn, with squeezed budgets, investments becoming difficult and overall sentiment prevailing around cost containment. Some CIOs had difficulty in adjusting to the new reality, particularly as the CFO inevitably dominated the decision-making process.

However, organizations with good governance processes and CIOs who were aligned to the enterprise realities adapted quickly. These CIOs collaborated with the CEO and CFO to create models that worked for everyone. Innovation slowed in some cases, but did not come to a halt. In the “new normal,” they realized, the baseline had shifted: like it or not, the CFO is now an integral part of the decision-making process, and signs off — at least — large-value investments or costs.

My advice to CIOs, therefore, is to become best friends with your CFO. You might even be pleasantly surprised. The stereotypical CFO has changed in recent times, just as the CIO has also evolved. Thus to expect every CFO to be a one-dimensional bean-counter is like expecting every CIO to go and fix the CEO’s laptop or the boardroom projector.

CIOs who have already cultivated a strong working relationship with their CFOs — and their other CXO colleagues — are most likely wondering if this talk of rifts between IT and finance is just hype. My view is simple: you should invest in relationships with all your C-level colleagues. After all, if you don’t help them win, why should they help you?

• Arun Gupta is group CTO of Shoppers Stop, the leading Indian department store chain. He was previously group CIO at real estate and hospitality giant K Raheja Corp and has held senior management positions at Philips, Pfizer, DHL and Merrill Lynch.

Do you agree with Arun Gupta? Have your say by commenting below — and see also this alternative point of view on the CIO/CFO debate from Mahesh Shetty, COO and CFO of Encore Enterprise.