At these lofty levels, a CIO entourage can include a publicist to sculpt the image of the executive and sometimes his entire department, both inside and outside the company. A trusted right-hand man or woman gathers intelligence from the IT ranks and the influential players outside the technology group. A sharp lawyer negotiates with vendors and protects intellectual property. A technology operations specialist troubleshoots and fixes daily problems. A recruiter learns your work style and fills critical job openings with people skilled and compatible with the team.

Ken Harris, a former Pepsi CIO, credits a chunk of his success leading technology at Nike, Gap and now Shaklee to having found, and continued working with, project leader Rhonda Sias. What she adds to his entourage are technical excellence, business knowledge and smooth interpersonal skills. "It is rare to find someone who is highly developed in all three of these areas," Harris says. In the past decade, the two have worked together at four companies. Sias has, says Harris, "saved my butt."

The Posse That's Right for You

IT execs now reaching for superstardom can also make use of a posse. Jeff O'Hare specializes in turning around IT groups gone awry. Now CIO at West Corp., a $2.3 billion business process outsourcing provider, O'Hare was previously senior vice president with enterprisewide responsibilities at Cendant, a $20 billion services conglomerate that was later split into four companies. Cendant hired him to fix a $1.5 billion outsourcing deal with IBM that had turned ugly. From Cendant and other companies where he has worked, O'Hare stays in touch with a group of IT professionals with specific, sought-after skills. These include technology purchasing and the financial intricacies of outsourcing contracts.

When he enters a turnaround situation, he wants tested and trustworthy people with him, he says. "Knowing the ins and outs of how your key reports work greatly accelerates your ability to initiate change and provides you with additional eyes and ears," he says.

The CIO's people get plenty from the relationship, too. Outside loyalists, such as recruiters and consultants who contract with certain CIOs, say they receive valuable referrals and future work. Hotshot technology professionals and others who move around with a particular CIO say that with each job together, they learn more and lead more.

Before he took a job as an IT consultant and manager at Accenture last year, John Melott followed one CIO — Wayne Sadin, now at Loomis — to six companies over 18 years. Sadin has been one of the CIO profession's elite. Back in 2000 when he led technology at Bank United, he earned nearly $760,000 and had perks typical of superstar CIOs: a car allowance, financial planning services and a country club membership. Melott and others who have worked with Sadin say he's an innovator — marrying technology to business strategy before that was part of the CIO job description. Melott's specialty is IT operations, including designing infrastructure, managing data centres and directing technical services. "He drug me all over the country," Melott says. "But I always knew that anytime Wayne called, it was always going to be a great opportunity. With each one, my horizon was getting broader and broader."