All work and no play does more than make Jack a dull boy. It can stifle creativity. A playful office helps corporate problem-solving and sparks innovation.

David's Bridal uses data from its social shopping community, where the bride-to-be shares plans with the wedding party, to tie the knot with customers

Sometimes tech startups make deals with the very industry players they're trying to disrupt.

CIOs are earning business credibility, sharpening customer focus and raising IT's strategic profile, according to our 2013 State of the CIO survey.

Directors admit they aren't adequately engaged in topics such as social media and IT-enabled business innovation

Our exclusive research shows that boards of directors still don't understand the role that IT can play in driving business innovation. It's the CIO's job to change that.

The rental-car company rolls out a voice-response system with tailored menus that anticipate what the customer will want to do next

A leadership expert and former hostage negotiator says that business leaders who show that they care about employees will create a safe haven that fosters productivity and creativity.

While the political contributions from leading tech CEOs are a bit hard to decipher (see Tech Industry Leaders and Their Political Donations), the message from the hard-working employees at the biggest technology companies is clear. Judging from data from OpenSecrets.org at the Center for Responsive Politics, Barack Obama would win this fall's presidential election in a landslide.

As companies strive to regain the ground lost to the recession, CEOs are talking a lot about innovation. Some have decreed that a certain percentage of revenue must come from brand-new products and services each year. If CEOs want innovation, then CIOs ought to want patents. Not for internal IT operations inventions, but for unique business methods and other inventions made possible by new technology. The innovation mandate, and the convergence of social media, mobile technology and analytics, has companies running to the patent office, trying to lock in ownership of new ways to do business and interact with customers.

Sure, soup is good food, but sales ain't what they used to be. To freshen up its product line and serve up innovative new products ASAP, Campbell's IT is building new systems for improved collaboration.

In an effort to get closer to customers and improve sales, American Airlines is launching a new mobile strategy aimed at boosting customer loyalty by giving flight attendants tablets loaded with customer data.

A Dartmouth faculty member suggests that CIOs can get fresh ideas from emerging economies, but it requires a new way of thinking

Though both are critical, physical and information security remain separate entities at many organizations. However, you can get a better grip on overall risk by integrating the two. Austin Recovery, a drug and alcohol treatment center, successfully took on the integration challenge-- and what it learned can teach corporations valuable lessons.

Wayne Shurts has accomplished a lot since he joined Supervalu as CIO in April 2010: He embedded his IT staff in business departments, handed out iPads with real-time data to 1,100 supermarket managers, and implemented a promotion analytics system critical to the grocery company's business-transformation plan.