CxO is a collective term (総称) for the titles of executives who hold top responsibility for the whole business or for an area such as finance or information.
CxO (collective name for top-officer titles)
CEO: overall management
CIO: information systems and IT
CFO: finance
COO: business operations
Each title takes the form Chief + area + Officer, and the letter standing for the area of responsibility goes where the x sits in CxO. For finance, F goes in to make CFO (Chief Financial Officer), and for running day-to-day operations, O goes in to make COO (Chief Operating Officer). Each company decides which of these posts to create, and no post is actually called CxO.
AnalogyIt works like the word captain in school teams. The football captain and the chess captain each lead their own team, and the word in front tells you which team the captain is in charge of.
How to rememberThe C at the start and the O at the end never change; only the middle swaps out. Read the middle letters and you know the area.
Exam points
ExamThe F in CFO stands for Finance, and the CFO is the executive with top responsibility for the company's finances.
The CEO (Chief Executive Officer, 最高経営責任者) is the executive who bears final responsibility for running the company as a whole.
The CEO makes the final call on the direction of the whole company, such as its management policy and business strategy, and answers for the results. Among the CxO titles, it is the one that looks at the entire company instead of a single area. In Japanese companies, the president or the representative director sometimes also serves as CEO.
AnalogyThink of the leader of a climbing team. The leader makes the last call on the route and on whether to turn back, while the members in charge of food and gear each look after their own part.
How to rememberIn English, a company's senior managers are called executives. Their Chief is the CEO.
Exam points
Mix-upThe COO (Chief Operating Officer, 最高執行責任者) is the executive who directs day-to-day operations along the policy the CEO has set. The one with final responsibility for the policy itself is the CEO.
The CIO (Chief Information Officer, 最高情報責任者) is the executive with top responsibility for the company's information systems and its use of IT.
Business strategy
Set the information strategy
Direct system investment and use
Starting from the business strategy, the CIO sets an information strategy (a policy on how to use information and IT) to achieve it through IT, and directs investment in systems and the use of information. The job is to link business goals with IT efforts so the two do not drift apart.
AnalogyIt is like the architect's position when a house is built. The architect turns the way of life the owner wants into concrete drawings and a construction schedule.
How to rememberThe I stands for Information, but tying it to the I in IT works just as well. That makes it easy to link the title to the head of everything information-related.
Exam points
ExamTo achieve the business strategy through IT, the CIO sets the information strategy (情報戦略) and leads it all the way through execution. This is also the post that oversees all of the company's information systems.
Mix-upThe CISO (Chief Information Security Officer, 最高情報セキュリティ責任者) is the executive responsible only for information security, while the CIO covers information systems and the use of IT as a whole.