In my case, it was also against company policy for two people to have a relationship where one was below the other in chain of command. So if he were in charge

In my case, it was also against company policy for two people to have a relationship where one was below the other in chain of command. So if he were in charge of people and projects, asking me out immediately barred me from ever getting any of the positions that he oversaw. Given his high rank, I assume he had some authority. But, I didn't ever know the exact structure of the IT department.