Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.
304-019
was an easy scapegoat." Organizationally, there was a VP of IT, who reported directly to the CFO
and did not network into the organization. Self-contained and isolated, IT had developed its software
by itself (packages were an anathema). Coming from American Airlines, where IT was a critical part
of strategy, Williams had a sharply different vision. What he found at RCCL was a company with no
e-mail and all data locked up in systems and inaccessible: the exact opposite of American Airlines.
The challenge was two-sided: on the one hand was a technological challenge to change what IT was
doing; on the other hand, it had to be integrated into the firm's real needs and managers. Over the
past six years the TT team had grown with a substantial infusion of both human and technical skills to
a point where now Williams viewed RCCL's IT leadership team as second to none. Moreover,
Computerworld selected RCCL as one of the top workplaces for IT professionals in its 10th annual
"Best Places to Work in IT" survey three out of the past four years.
13
Tom Murphy
To deal with these two challenges, Williams brought in Murphy in April 1999 to report directly to
him, giving Murphy a clear mission of transforming the business into a more powerful brand.
Williams made sure that Murphy understood what he was getting into (i.e., "shake things up at a $2.9
billion Miami -based company and bring it into the digital world").
14
When Murphy came in, he faced
several challenges. He first had to win over the IT team and have the people on his side. He changed
most of the leadership in the first two years and engaged IBM's Business Services unit to work with
both shoreside and ships' organizations on their system development and "technology needs. He
worked to transition the IT team to a customer -oriented one that emphasized a culture of openness
and candor. He brought Mike Sutten in to get greater technology depth in the management team.
Discovering there was little alignment between the company's direction and ongoing IT projects, he
devoted considerable personal time to understanding the business strategy. He worked hard to gain
the
confidence of business
TT
users and
develop
solid
relationships with
them.
He came
to
understand that RCCL's business strategy was all about growth, and it was not going to happen with
either the existing infrastructure or IT organization.
Murphy's Background
Murphy was not a techie; he went to the University of Richmond and graduated with a B.A. in
English and a minor in marketing. Murphy asserted he had a good grasp of TT but admitted it was
not his first love. He was all about relationships and, in particular, 110% focused on customer service
and satisfaction. Prior to RCCL, he worked mainly in TT and the hospitality industry. He started with
Marriott Hotels as support manager, property management systems and quickly moved up to the
position of director, property management systems and telecommunications. He then evolved to VP
of information systems at Omni Hotels and Avis Rent-A-Car. Hired by Bristol Hotels & Resorts as VP
and CIO, he came to RCCL as
CIO in
April
1999.
Murphy considered
that his human and
interpersonal skills were key in his successful and fast -track career path. Moreover, he had practical
expertise and understanding in implementing systems and managing installation teams. Murphy
viewed himself, in his CIO position, as a business leader.
15
13
"Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Selected as one of Best Places to Work in Information Technology," PRNewswire-FirstCall,
, July 22, 2002.
14
"Murphy's law," , January 1,2002.
15
"RCCL President chose his CIO carefully," .
9