Information Week

Low-code/no-code platforms have given rise to the “citizen developer” — a power user of tools such as Microsoft Excel. In other cases, this person tends to be someone who needs an immediate solution, has an idea in mind, and isn’t afraid to try something new to turn their dream into a reality.  Citizen developers aren’t a threat to professional developers because they don’t understand software architecture and the hand-written code it would take to customize the app. They’re simply a less expert member of the workforce who happens to understand the context of a task, workflow or technology, and are motivated to make improvements on their own.  In many cases, citizen developers aren’t left to their own devices. They’re using wizards and visual tools instead of writing lines of code. In some organizations, citizen development has been enabled by IT and developers in a way that benefits both professional and citizen developers.   For example, a citizen developer might build a solution that may eventually need a professional developer’s expertise to take it to the next level. The beauty of the center of excellence approach is that professional developers can spend more time on difficult problems while citizen developers solve the simple ones. If the organization has standardized on a platform, then handoffs between citizen developers and professional developers are seamless. It is common, however, for enterprises to use more than one low-code/no-code solution.  Related:How to Get a Delayed IT Project Back on Track The “best” citizen developers have some traits in common, though their roles may differ. A proactive mindset and a love of learning help.  Traits of An Effective Citizen Developer Brett Smith, distinguished software developer at data and AI provider SAS, believes effective citizen developers are usually subject matter experts on the business problem and possess a basic understanding of programming concepts. They are also problem solvers who are self-motivated and have a growth mindset. Notably, they can learn new skills quickly and are not afraid to experiment with new technologies.  “Citizen developers have a deep understanding of the business problem and the domain. They [can] communicate effectively with IT teams, which helps to ensure the solutions they develop are aligned with the needs of the business,” says Smith. “It’s critical that enterprises provide citizen developers with the tools and resources they need to be successful. This includes access to training and support, as well as creating a culture that encourages innovation and experimentation.”  Related:Quick Study: The Evolving Roles of CIOs and IT Leaders Brett Smith, SAS Brett Smith, SAS Nick Vlku, VP of product growth at end-to-end AI search and discovery platform provider Algolia, says citizen developers hold different roles such as product managers, project managers, designers and analysts, to name a few. One common trait is that they’re intensely solution-oriented with an intrinsic drive to tackle business challenges, he adds.  “I’ve witnessed this firsthand, like watching a non-technical product manager who taught themselves SQL simply because they needed better answers to their data questions,” says Vlku. “These individuals are natural problem solvers who take initiative. Rather than waiting for help, they actively search for no-code solutions or teach themselves low-code approaches they find online.”   Their ability to focus on solving the problem at hand will become even more valuable with the rise of AI-assisted development tools and coding applications, Vlku says.    “Citizen developers will naturally incorporate these advances as additional tools to help them achieve solutions more efficiently,” says Vlku.  However, the enterprise also has a role to play. Vlku says enterprises should actively support and cultivate citizen developers, as they represent highly valuable employees who prioritize efficient problem-solving.   Related:How WFH and RTO Burnout Differ “There’s a notable challenge: these individuals often undervalue their technical capabilities, placing software engineering on a pedestal that makes them doubt their own abilities or feel uncomfortable embracing their problem-solving approaches,” says Vlku. “Organizations need to take specific actions to nurture this talent.”  First, enterprises should explicitly recognize and reward this initiative during performance reviews, acknowledging the solutions delivered and the innovative approaches used to achieve them. Second, they should streamline access to necessary tools and platforms.  “While determined citizen developers might find ways around organizational barriers, removing these obstacles upfront will encourage more employees to step into this role,” says Vlku. “This support is particularly important because citizen developers tend to doubt their technical legitimacy despite their demonstrated ability to deliver solutions. By creating an environment that actively validates and enables their efforts, organizations can help overcome this self-doubt and expand their pool of effective citizen developers.”  Karl Threadgold, managing director at Oracle NetSuite provider Threadgold Consulting, says the most effective citizen developers tend to have four defining traits: a problem-solving mindset, a strong understanding of business operations, a willingness to collaborate with IT and a hunger for learning.  “The most successful citizen developers deeply understand their organization’s workflows, pain points and inefficiencies. They don’t just automate processes for the sake of it; they focus on solving real business challenges,” says Threadgold. “Rather than working in isolation, they engage with IT teams to ensure their solutions are scalable, secure and aligned with governance policies. Given how quickly no-code and low-code tools are evolving, top citizen developers continuously upskill to stay ahead.”  The reason successful citizens outperform their peers is that they create solutions that are technically sound and strategically relevant.  “They don’t just build the bare minimum,” says Threadgold. “They go above and beyond and build what the organization needs to thrive. Their ability to communicate with IT teams also helps prevent shadow IT issues, ensuring their applications integrate seamlessly into the broader tech landscape.”  The enterprise also has a role to play here, which is enabling this broader base of problem-solvers.  “Many enterprises still take a passive approach to citizen development. [They assume] that providing access to low-code tools is enough — it’s not,” says Threadgold. “They need to provide clear training structures, chances for people to work alongside experienced developers, and have clear collaboration frameworks in place.

In March, several YouTube content creators seemed to receive a private video from the platform’s CEO, Neal Mohan. It turns out that it was not Mohan in the video, rather an AI-generated version of him created by scammers out to steal credentials and install malware. This may stir memories of other recent, high-profile AI-powered scams. Last year, robocalls featuring the voice of President Joe Biden urged people not to vote in the primaries. The calls made use of AI to mimic Biden’s voice, AP News reports. Examples of these kinds of deepfakes — video and audio — are popping up in the news frequently. The nonprofit Consumer Reports reviewed six voice cloning apps and reports that four of those apps have no significant guardrails preventing users from cloning someone’s voice without their consent. Executives are often the public faces and voices of their companies; audio and video of CEOs, CIOs, and other C-suite members are readily available online. How concerned should CIOs and other enterprise tech leaders be about voice cloning and other deepfakes? A Lack of Guardrails ElevenLabs, Lovo, PlayHT, and Speechify — four of the apps Consumer Reviews evaluated — ask users to check a box confirming that they have the legal right to go ahead with their voice cloning capabilities. Descript and Resemble AI take consent a step further by asking users to read and record a consent statement, according to Consumer Reports. Related:Why Your Business Needs an AI Innovation Unit Barriers to prevent misuse of these apps are quite low. Even for the apps that require users to read a statement could potentially be manipulated by audio created by a non-consensual voice clone on another platform, the Consumer Reports review notes. Not only can users employ many readily available apps to clone someone’s voice without their consent, they don’t need technical skills to do so. “No CS background, no master’s degree, no need to program, literally go on to your app store on your phone or to Google and type in voice clone or deepfake face generator, and there’s thousands of tools for fraudsters … to cause harm,” says Ben Colman, co-founder and CEO of deepfake detection company Reality Defender. Colman also notes that compute costs have dramatically dropped within the past few months. “A year ago you needed cloud compute. Now, you can do it on a commodity laptop or phone,” he adds. The issue of AI regulation is still very much up in the air. Could there be more guardrails for these kinds of apps in the future? Colman is confident that there will be. He gave testimony before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law on the dangers of election deepfakes. Related:What’s New in Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality? “The challenges and risks created by generative AI are a truly bipartisan concern,” Colman tells InformationWeek. “We’re very optimistic about near-term guardrails.” The Risks of Voice Cloning While more guardrails may be forthcoming, whether via regulation or another impetus, enterprise leaders have to contend with the risks of voice cloning and other deepfakes today. “The burden to entry is so low right now that AI voices could essentially bypass outdated authentication systems, and that’s going to leave you with multiple risks whether there’s data breaches, reputational concerns, financial fraud,” says Justice Erolin, CTO of BairesDev, a software outsourcing company. “And because there’s no industry safeguards, it leaves most companies at risk.” Safeguarding Against Fraud The obvious frontline defense to defend against voice cloning would be to limit sharing personal data, like your voice print. The harder it is to find audio featuring your voice, the harder it is to clone it. “They should not share either personal data or voice or face, but it’s challenging for CEOs. For example, I’m on YouTube. I’m on the news. It’s just a cost of doing business,” says Colman. Related:Building Trust with Conversational AI: How to Avoid Common Pitfalls CIOs must operate in the realities of digital world, knowing that enterprises’ leaders are going to have publicly available audio that scammers can attempt to voice clone and use for nefarious ends. “AI voice cloning is not a futuristic risk. It’s a risk that’s here today. I would treat it like any other cyber threat: with robust authentication,” says Erolin.Given the risks of voice cloning, audio alone for authentication is risky. Adopting multifactor authentication can mitigate that risk. Enabling passwords, pins, or biometrics along with audio can help ensure you are speaking to the person you think you are, not someone who has cloned their voice or likeness. The Outlook for Detection Detection is an essential tool in the fight against voice cloning. Colman likens the development of deepfake detection tools to the development of antivirus scanning, which is done locally, in real time on devices. “I’d say deepfake detection [has] the exact same growth story,” Colman explains. “Last year, it was pick files you want to scan, and this year, it’s pick a certain location, scan everything. And we’re expecting within the next year, we will move completely on-device.” Detection tools could be integrated onto devices, like phones and computers, and into video conferencing platforms to detect when audio and video have been generated or manipulated by AI. Reality Defender is working on pilots of its tool with banks, for example, initially integrating with call centers and interactive voice response (IVR) technology. “I think we’re going to look back on this period in a few years, just like antivirus, and say, ‘Can you imagine … a world where we didn’t check for generative AI?’” says Colman. Like any other cybersecurity concern, there will be a tug of war between escalating deepfake capabilities in the hands of threat actors and detection capabilities in the hands of defenders. CIOs and other security leaders will be challenged to implement safeguards and evaluate those capabilities against those of fraudsters. source

Finance and IT leaders are shifting their approach to retaining top technology talent as traditional methods of salary increases and financial incentives alone are proving insufficient. This is prompting companies to focus on career development, workplace culture, and employee engagement.  Meanwhile, demand for tech talent remains strong as companies across industries continue to prioritize hiring, according to CompTIA’s latest analysis of US Bureau of Labor Statistics data.   With demand outpacing supply in key areas like AI and cybersecurity, businesses are competing for top talent while also increasing job postings to meet future workforce needs and tech professionals are expecting meaningful growth opportunities.  Chief financial officers and HR leaders must work together to implement strategies that prioritize professional development, mentorship, and internal mobility.  Professional Growth Prioritized Over Pay   One of the most effective ways to retain IT professionals is by offering clear career development pathways.  According to TEKsystems’ State of Digital Transformation Report, 82% of digital leaders are poised to reskill or upskill their workforce.  Cosmin Pitigoi, CFO at Flywire, emphasizes that employees are more engaged when they have continuous opportunities to strengthen their skills and expand their experiences. “One of the best ways to keep top talent engaged is to have a clear professional development pathway and provide them opportunities to keep strengthening their skills and rounding out their career experiences,” he says in an email interview.   Related:How WFH and RTO Burnout Differ Leslie Deutsch, vice president of people strategy at TEKsystems, says upskilling has become a major priority. “Offering continuous learning and upskilling programs helps employees feel valued and invested in,” she explains via email.   Mentorship also plays a key role in this strategy, with Pitigoi stressing the importance of both formal and informal mentoring relationships to provide long-term career guidance. “I’ve benefited from a ‘doors always open’ philosophy in my career and pay that forward in my current role,” he says.  He says when IT professionals feel they have support and guidance, they are more likely to stay engaged with their employer.  Collaboration Between IT, Finance Leaders  Balancing cost control with investments in professional development requires close collaboration between IT and finance teams.  Both Deutsch and Pitigoi emphasize that talent retention should be viewed as a strategic investment rather than an expense.  Related:Tech Company Layoffs: The COVID Tech Bubble Bursts “Organizations should be leveraging data and analytics to understand how development is impacting productivity and have that inform any investment,” Pitigoi says.  Deutsch highlights the importance of forming cross-functional teams that include IT, finance, and HR stakeholders.  These collaborations ensure that professional development investments align with both financial and operational goals, maximizing their impact on workforce retention.  Another key aspect is fostering an “owner” mindset among employees, where individuals take responsibility for improving efficiency and identifying new ways to work smarter.  Flexible Work, Internal Mobility, and Employee Retention  Beyond professional development, flexibility in work arrangements continues to be a crucial factor in IT retention.  Remote work and hybrid models are now expected benefits rather than perks; IT professionals, in particular, value autonomy and flexibility in managing their workloads.  “Implementing hybrid work models that allow employees to balance in-office and remote work is essential,” Deutsch says.  Internal mobility also plays a significant role in keeping employees engaged.  Deutsch and Pitigoi both stress that organizations must create clear pathways for employees to move into new roles and take on greater responsibilities.  Related:What CIOs Should Know About Post-Election Winners and Losers “As part of this, organizations should encourage leaders to allow their best talent to move on to other roles, which is hard to do, but best for allowing talent to develop through diverse opportunities,” Pitigoi says.  This approach not only keeps employees engaged but also reduces the need for costly external recruitment.  Deutsch adds that companies should structure internal mobility programs with well-defined career pathways and transparent role expectations.  “Creating clear pathways for career advancement within the organization encourages employees to take on new roles and responsibilities,” she says.  CFOs, CIOs, and HR Leaders Shape Talent Retention  Retaining IT professionals requires collaboration across multiple leadership roles.  According to Deutsch, CIOs, CFOs, and HR leaders each play a unique part in crafting effective retention strategies. “CIOs drive technological advancements and provide necessary tools, CFOs align financial resources with retention strategies, and HR leaders create a positive workplace culture,” she says.  Pitigoi says he agrees, adding that product and data analytics leaders also contribute by identifying innovation opportunities and ensuring that investments align with business needs.  “A few key factors of success are having a clear collaboration framework between departments, making data-driven decisions together, and having clear role accountability with implementation,” he says.  Consistent communication among these stakeholders ensures that employee experience remains a top priority.  Overcoming the Challenges of a Culture-Driven Retention Model  However, shifting from a pay-driven retention model to one focused on engagement and culture comes with challenges.  Employees accustomed to salary increases as a primary motivator may take time to adjust to a new approach that prioritizes career development and well-being.  “Prioritizing engagement and well-being over financial incentives requires open communication and transparency,” Deutsch says.   Organizations must build trust by explaining why they are making these changes and how employees will benefit in the long run.  Recognition and rewards programs are also effective in reinforcing engagement; while salary growth may be slowing, companies can still show appreciation through meaningful recognition initiatives.  “Implementing systems that recognize and reward employee contributions in meaningful ways fosters a sense of appreciation and belonging,” Deutsch says.  Pitigoi emphasizes the importance of enabling employees to focus on high-value work. Employees who feel they are making an impact are more likely to stay with their organization.  “Investing in systems, automation, and tools helps your best talent focus on doing work they enjoy rather than more mundane tasks,” he says.  Measuring the Success of New Retention Strategies  For companies transitioning to culture-driven retention strategies, measuring success is critical.   Deutsch suggests using employee engagement surveys, tracking professional development participation, and analyzing internal mobility rates. “HR leaders can

Technology is transforming every industry, but the biggest roadblock isn’t the technology itself — it’s communication. Engineers and executives often don’t speak the same technical language, which means big ideas get lost in translation, budgets get wasted, and projects fail before they even get off the ground. That’s where what I like to call “tech translators” come in. They connect the dots, helping technical teams and leadership stay aligned.  I know this struggle all too well. At my previous job at Volvo, I led AI initiatives and saw firsthand how technical ideas were misunderstood in executive meetings, leading to misalignment and missed opportunities. This experience highlighted the need for better communication between technical and business teams. Recognizing this challenge, I decided to deepen my understanding of business by pursuing an MBA, which gave me the tools to communicate technology’s impact in a way that resonates with executives. That decision completely changed my approach, and it’s why I believe tech translators are critical to every company investing in data and technology.  If you want to future-proof your career and make a bigger impact, here’s how you can become an indispensable tech translator. 1. Learn the business basics  Related:Tech Company Layoffs: The COVID Tech Bubble Bursts Too often, tech teams build amazing solutions that never get adopted because they don’t tie back to business priorities. Understanding core business principles — finance, operations, and strategy — helps you connect the dots between technology and real-world results.  At Volvo, my team worked on an AI-powered recommendation system for the online cars configurator. While we focused on accuracy and relevance from a technical perspective, business leaders cared more about cost savings and efficiency. Once we demonstrated how much the system could reduce stockout of cars, it became a priority.  My tip: A few online business courses, some reading on corporate finance, or even an MBA can go a long way in strengthening your ability to bridge the gap between technology and business. In this case, knowledge is power — and connection.  2. Be a bridge between tech and strategy  Being a tech translator means having a foot in both worlds. You need to understand the business objectives while also keeping up with technical developments. That means showing up to both business strategy meetings and technical standups.  At my current company, I work with product managers, engineers, and marketing teams. I help marketing craft messaging that’s both engaging and accurate while ensuring our data and automation strategies align with business needs.  Related:What CIOs Should Know About Post-Election Winners and Losers My tip: Sitting in on meetings outside your core team — whether it’s product roadmap discussions, business reviews, or shadowing sales calls — can help you understand customer pain points and the bigger business picture. Offer to explain technical projects to business leaders and vice versa.  3. Make technology understandable through storytelling  Even the most technical discussions benefit through storytelling. Humans remember stories more than raw data, and in a room filled with both technical engineers and business leaders, finding the right balance is key.   For example, rather than simply stating, “We reduced processing time from weeks to days,” tell the story of a customer who struggled with inefficiencies, how a specific integration challenge was solved, and what that meant for their business. This approach maintains technical depth while making a tangible impact.    My tip: Structure technical discussions as narratives. Whether it’s a case study, an engineering challenge, or a breakthrough, frame the details within a story that connects the dots for everyone in the room. 4. Stay ahead of tech and business trends  Technology is evolving fast and staying relevant means keeping up with both technical advances and business trends. I balance deep dives into research with staying plugged into industry conversations to make sure I see the full picture.  Related:Key Attributes That Lead to an Ethical IT Department I run internal knowledge-sharing sessions where we break down new trends and discuss how they apply to our business.  My tip: Staying ahead means keeping up with research papers, following business news, and participating in industry forums. Engaging with different perspectives can provide valuable insights into emerging trends. Consider exploring a mix of sources — hackathons where young developers adopt zeitgeist technologies, technical blogs, leading tech publications like MIT Technology Review, and innovation-focused communities. Following influential thinkers on social media and monitoring leaderboards on platforms like Hugging Face and Hacker News can also help you stay ahead.  The more perspectives you have, the better.  The most successful professionals in the data-driven future won’t just build systems. They’ll be the ones who can explain them, align them with business goals, and push them into real-world use. Becoming a tech translator isn’t just a nice skill — it’s a game-changer for your career.  For companies, the message is clear: If you don’t have tech translators, you’re wasting your technology investment. For individuals, the opportunity is huge. Master these skills, and you’ll be indispensable in any data-driven organization.  source

Artificial intelligence, video surveillance, facial recognition: Today’s IT leaders must struggle with an increasing number of ethical dilemmas. While innovation supports business growth, it also creates opportunities for potential abuse.  IT leaders lead because they already have an important combination of procedural knowledge and ethics expertise, states Jonathan Beever, an associate professor of ethics and digital culture at the University of Central Florida. “IT leaders benefit, like we all do, from continued literacy building as new technologies and techniques challenge ethical understanding,” he adds in an email interview.  An ethical IT department operates with transparency, integrity, and accountability, while balancing the needs of the business and its customers, says Mike Lebron, senior IT director at photography and imaging firm Canon USA. “This involves not only adhering to regulatory standards, but also proactively addressing ethical considerations that may arise from the use of technology,” he notes via email. “By fostering an environment where ethical conduct is prioritized, IT departments can help build trust both internally within the organization and externally with customers and partners.”  First Steps  An important first step is embracing the classical adage of knowing thyself, Beever says. “What values guide you personally?” He explains that values shape decisions implicitly and making values explicit helps leaders understand their own actions and decisions.  Related:Tech Company Layoffs: The COVID Tech Bubble Bursts Beever, who is also the director and co-founder of the UCF Center for Ethics, advises IT leaders to question the values that guide their department. “Are these clear and transparent to all stakeholders?” Also consider what possible conflicts might arise between individual values and department commitments. “Finally, what ethical decision-making strategies can help navigate those possible conflicts.”  Codes of ethics provide guidance at the organizational level. Yet broader strategies, such as principlism, suggest key ethics principles of beneficence, nonmaleficence, respect for autonomy, and justice offers attributes that cut across departments/cultures/disciplines, Beever says. “Since interdisciplinary work is essential for IT departments, maybe now more than ever shared ethics principles can help communication about values across boundaries.”  Success in the digital era hinges on trust and an ethical approach to all aspects of IT operations fosters this trust, Lebron says. “Trust builds a virtuous cycle that enhances collaboration and strengthens relationships,” he explains. When stakeholders, including employees, customers, and partners, feel confident that an organization’s IT operations are guided by strong ethical principles, they’re more likely to engage positively and collaborate effectively, potentially creating a stable and sustainable path forward.  Related:What CIOs Should Know About Post-Election Winners and Losers Trust is also the foundation of customer loyalty, and an ethical IT approach is key to maintaining and strengthening that foundation, Lebron advises. “Organizations that embrace ethical practices may experience quicker decision-making, resilience, and long-term sustainability.”  Leadership Values  Ethically literate individuals are necessary to build ethical cultures, Beever says. “There seems to be a traditional corporate move to train top-down, as if regulations and rules could govern ethical behavior,” he observes. Beever notes that professional ethics codes, such as the one created by The Association for Computing Machinery, push against this trend by directing responsible individuals. “But what opportunities do IT departments give their workers to develop the skills required to analyze, understand, and implement the principles of those codes?” he asks. “An ethical IT department would couple procedural literacy to ethics literacy, in support of an ethical culture.”  Related:8 Ways Generative AI Can Help You Land a New Job After a Layoff Ethical considerations should be factored into every aspect of digital projects, from data privacy and cybersecurity to AI and automation, Lebron says. “Ethical IT practices help ensure that technology is used responsibly and unintended consequences that could negatively impact customers are avoided,” he notes. “By doing so, organizations can mitigate risks, enhance their reputation, and drive more meaningful innovation.” Lebron believes that the trust that’s built from ethical IT practices can move the needle in all aspects within an organization, creating a competitive edge, a true force multiplier.  Responsibility and accountability for technology outcomes — including failures — are key to building trust between stakeholders and IT, Lebron says. “Ethical vendor selection means you choose partners who align with your organization’s ethical standards,” he explains. “Accessibility and inclusivity in technology allows you to create products and services that consider people with disabilities so that everyone benefits.”  Ethics Success  Ethical practices should not come solely from within the IT department, Lebron advises. “They should also be shaped by those whom IT serves and supports.” Engaging with a diverse set of stakeholders — including employees, customers, partners, and community members — helps ensure that ethical standards reflect a wide range of perspectives and needs.  Inclusivity not only builds trust but also helps create more comprehensive and relevant ethical guidelines, Lebron says. Furthermore, open communication channels allow the continuous exchange of ideas, fostering a culture of transparency and mutual respect. “By embracing diverse inclusion and active communication, IT departments can ensure that their transformation efforts are well-informed, equitable, and truly supportive of all stakeholders.”  source

Just one month into his new role as chief information officer, Red Hat’s Marco Bill is already helping the company reach for the stars — literally. From a unique space collaboration, to helping businesses navigate their AI ambitions, to rolling with quickly emerging technologies, Bill is forging ahead in his new role. The Raleigh N.C.-based open-source software giant recently announced a new collaboration with Axiom Space to run a data center on the International Space Station. The mission will launch this spring and Red Hat’s Device Edge will power Data Center Unit-1, enabling hybrid cloud applications and cloud-native workloads — in outer space. Axiom says the effort will allow data center customers to have access to satellite data closer to the source, making transmission quicker and more efficient. Bill says the collaboration was an opportunity for Red Hat to innovate in a new space. “It was a mutual interest,” Bill says of the space project. “We don’t really have a space mission at Red Hat, but it’s obviously a use case that fits very well with us and what we do. It’s very intriguing. For us at Red Hat, it’s good to be exposed to these new environments. We always learn and we can improve our products.” Axiom says its Orbital Space Center (OBC) will have tangible benefits, including reducing delays by utilizing cloud storage and edge processing infrastructure, allowing for faster and more secure connections in orbit. Reducing latency in space will allow quicker access to orbital data sources for terrestrial users, the company says. Related:Tech Company Layoffs: The COVID Tech Bubble Bursts (Editors Note: Be sure to check out this week’s “DOS Won’t Hunt” Podcast, which features a panel discussion about data centers in exotic locations, including space). Earthly AI Ambitions Back on Earth, Red Hat is facing more terrestrial issues, like the sudden AI arms race sparked by booming enterprise interest in generative AI (GenAI). Like any company, Red Hat is balancing increasing AI infrastructure costs. “The development of AI is definitely our big mission,” Bill says. “We want to be a leader there … and that’s where the budget goes from a company perspective. I have to provide infrastructure there — the data is important as well, so I’ve got to follow that. I have to provide an environment with the right GPUs, right?” CIOs struggling to balance budgets with priorities can learn from Red Hat’s process, Bill says. “I do spend quite a bit of money on the whole transformation of data, because that’s where we were lagging. So, we cleaned this up over the last two years … And then there’s not much budget left, right? So, you really have to work with the business and identify the priorities.” Related:What CIOs Should Know About Post-Election Winners and Losers CIOs need to place a high priority on AI, Bill says. “The biggest advice I would give to other CIOs is not to ignore AI or to find excuses why AI doesn’t work in their environment. Don’t ignore this. [AI] is bigger than the internet when it came around and companies who ignored the internet aren’t around anymore. Don’t find excuses, really double down and find ways to experiment. Finding that right use case is important, but this is not hype.” Securing Open Source Many IT leaders may struggle with the option of open-source solutions as they struggle with increasing cybersecurity threats. They may see open-source software as a risky proposition, despite benefits in cost and innovation. Bill says CIOs can take advantage of the open-source value proposition and maintain a strong security stance. “We have a whole cyber team engaged globally 24/7 and they’re engaged in the communities,” he says. “When you have a good team of people, you can mix open source. In our culture, if you have a lot of open-source engineers, they want to have some freedom. I cannot give them a Windows laptop and lock it down — you’ve got to give them environments they can actually work with in the open-source community. But you still need to control it. That’s one of the biggest challenges.” Related:Key Attributes That Lead to an Ethical IT Department Red Hat and the Future of Tech For Bill, the next several years of tech will bring more diversity in cloud infrastructure and placement. “You will have some applications running on the ground, you will have some in the public cloud, and you’ll have data centers in space. You’ll have to be on different footprints, and that can be for geopolitical reasons or because of cost. So being on a hybrid-cloud infrastructure is really important.” And that infrastructure will usher in a new era of AI, where companies can begin reaping benefits and seeing a return on investment. “There is so much we can do with AI,” Bill says. “With Red Hat, our infrastructure is important. Linux is still important to us. That’s our foundation with open source and having the Kubernetes platform. How do those work together? How do they work on a hybrid cloud and enable AI? There will be a lot of evolution with the large language models … that’s the future that we see.” source

It’s hard to survive a layoff or a firing. It’s tougher now than ever given the long hiring cycles and the growing number of ghost jobs. Adding to the unemployment chaos are the massive White House and DOGE firings as well as expected upticks in layoffs correlating with a spike in tariffs. The future looks bleak for the unemployed.   “Layoffs aren’t just numbers but a form of economic trauma,” says Lars Nyman, CMO of CUDO Compute, a platform that powers many AI programs.  “Right now, the job market feels like an obstacle course rigged against the people running it. Generative AI isn’t a magic bullet and actually takes many jobs, but if you use it right, it can tilt the odds back in your favor,” Nyman adds.  But how do you use AI “right” to get another job. Here are eight ways to apply GenAI to your advantage.  1. AI as exorcist: expelling ghost jobs from your job hunt  Ghost jobs aren’t a fluke. They are an actual business strategy for companies seeking to accomplish goals that often have nothing to do with hiring anyone now.   “A whopping 40% to 50% of job postings are ghost jobs, meaning roles companies never intend to fill but leave up to look busy or fish for future talent. Generative AI tools can analyze patterns in job postings to flag likely fakes. Red flags would be vague descriptions, recycled listings, and positions staying open forever. If you’re seeing those, move on,” says Nyman.   Related:Tech Company Layoffs: The COVID Tech Bubble Bursts Use general generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot, or Perplexity AI to weed out ghost jobs. Sample prompts for GenAI tools connected to the Internet: “A ghost job is a job opening announcement which the company does not actually plan to fill now or maybe ever. The following are indicators that a job announcement is a ghost job: vague descriptions, recycled listings, and positions staying open (listed or relisted) for longer than 3 months in a one-year period. Analyze the following job announcement to determine whether it is a legitimate job opening or a ghost job [copy and paste job description here].”  2. AI as scam buster: identifying scam job postings  Desperate times call all the predators forth to feast on desperate people. Watch out for fake jobs. You might apply, be interviewed, get hired, fill out the onboarding forms with your personal data including your social security number and bank details. After that there’s only crickets. You’ve been scammed. This job didn’t exist.   AI can help identify fake jobs posted by scammers. But do research job listings further, too. AI can get you a false red or green flag.   Related:What CIOs Should Know About Post-Election Winners and Losers “Feed the job posting text into AI, asking it to flag suspicious phrases or inconsistent requirements,” says Sam Wright, head of operations and partnerships at Huntr.  You can add flags to the prompt too, like asking AI to check the email or web address in the job announcement against the web address and emails of the company advertised. Add any other red flags too, so AI can make a better assessment.   3. Use AI to automatically fill out job application forms  Autofill helps fill out some fields on online forms, but not very many. That leaves you to fill out the rest of job application forms online. If you’re smart and playing the numbers, you’re filling out a lot of job applications. That means entering the same data over and over and over again. AI can do that for you and much faster!  “I used this extension called: Simplify Jobs, it allowed me to fill most of the job applications within one minute, which allowed me to apply to 30+ jobs within an hour. Generally, it takes 15-30 minutes for each application if you manually do it,” says Devansh Agarwal, senior machine learning engineer at Amazon Web Services.  “I set up LinkedIn alerts for the companies and job types that I was interested in and every day I would receive mails with job posting alerts. Then I would use Simplify Jobs to apply to these roles,” Agarwal adds. He also says that all the views he expressed in this article are his own and do not reflect his current or previous employers.   Related:Key Attributes That Lead to an Ethical IT Department 4. Use AI to tailor resumes and cover letters  You can use a generative AI tool to create your resume. “When creating your resume, you need to be precise, as the recruiters spend less than 10 seconds looking at one. You need to write your experiences in the correct format, it takes time and is complicated to do it yourself. ChatGPT can help you rephrase things and write them in the proper format,” says Agarwal.  But then be sure to use AI to repurpose your resume and cover letter to fit the exact requirements for each job application. Go the extra mile and prompt the GenAI tool to use keywords that will trigger the AI on the other side to conclude an exact candidate match.  “You can automate job applications, and without looking like a bot. There are tools like LazyApply that mass-send applications, but the value is in using AI to customize your resume and cover letter — producing quality, accurate material at scale,” says Nyman. “AI can tweak tone, highlight specific achievements, and adjust language to better suit company culture.”  5. Use AI to boost your LinkedIn reach so more employers see you  Posting often on LinkedIn is a great way to build your following and profile views which can be helpful to your job search.   “During a job search there isn’t enough time to focus on posting content on LinkedIn but since it is the primary platform for job search it is important to increase your network on it. People use GenAI to post things on LinkedIn and increase their reach, by using GenAI it barely takes

The Trump Administration is making big changes faster than any other modern president. The movement of many kinds of levers — tariffs, buyout packages, government layoffs, and more are disrupting the status quo, and the effects will affect tech companies and enterprise chief information officers.  Like the pandemic, the extreme and rapid changes require extreme organizational agility, Monte Carlo simulations, an open mind, and a CIO unafraid to lead. As with all major changes, organizations need to have a strong vision and the ability to execute it within the context of changing circumstances.  Organizations Will Depend More on MSPs  Jonathan Lerner, president and CEO at MSP InterVision Systems, believes deregulation will create a lot of confusion.   “It’s about your customers, the people you work with every day, who are going to have a lot of questions right now,” says Lerner. “Small business owners, CIOs and people just trying to keep their systems running smoothly will be asking their MSPs, ‘How does this affect my data, network security, and software updates? How will I continue to innovate and better serve in a period of uncertainty?’ In this business, our job is to simply provide stable, reliable business solutions, and these kinds of rapid changes make that harder.”  Related:Tech Company Layoffs: The COVID Tech Bubble Bursts InterVision Systems will focus on strengthening its security and compliance expertise to stay a step ahead. Lerner says his company will be spending a lot of time helping its customers understand the new rules and how to adapt to them.   Jonathan Lerner, InterVision Systems Jonathan Lerner, InterVision Systems “We’re going to have to be flexible, focusing on sustaining strong relationships, listening to our customers and providing clear, practical advice focused on outcomes to drive their strategy,” says Lerner. “I hope this leads to less red tape so that businesses can thrive. But, in the meantime, my advice to anyone in our field, especially MSPs, is to be prepared to become a guide.”  Businesses Will Also Turn to Consultants  Jenny Rae Le Roux, CEO at consulting industry news publisher and business skills training company Management Consulted, says while there are always economic winners and losers, the consulting industry is “the canary in the coal mine” for who is who.  “Outsized demand for services from one sector [or] function usually indicates robust growth or big challenges in the broader economy,” says Le Roux. “The sectors that will grow in 2025 [are] supply chain, healthcare, and cloud services. The losers [will be] businesses that focus on DEI, ESG, and federal government consulting work.”  Related:Key Attributes That Lead to an Ethical IT Department There is also a strategic shift occurring among clients that is driving demand for more consulting assistance.  Jenny Rae Le Roux, Management Consulted Jenny Rae Le Roux, Management Consulted “2025 is bringing with it a reordering of traditional business cycles. Typically, firms think about macro business cycles in eight-year increments. The first four years are focused on growth, and the second four years are focused on cost optimization,” says Le Roux. “As AI and trade policy transform the way the world does business, clients are now asking firms to help them deliver on a dual mandate: Drive growth and optimization simultaneously. This is a meaningful driver of increased demand for consulting services.”  Data Security Will Remain a Priority  Arnaud Treps, CISO at Salesforce data security platform Odaseva, expects that some companies will find themselves unprepared for policy changes and will be forced to scramble to catch up.   “Organizations that aren’t proactive or are incapable of rapidly pivoting in the face of shifting regulatory environments will suffer,” says Treps. “Regardless of changes in regulations, policy, or administrations, underlying security challenges remain. Even if there are fewer regulatory requirements, security threats don’t just disappear if the regulations do. As a result, data security investments will be driven more by business needs rather than investing in security just because regulations require companies to do so.”  Related:8 Ways Generative AI Can Help You Land a New Job After a Layoff Odaseva is encouraging its customers to implement the strongest security and management capabilities, so that regulatory or policy changes don’t require exponential or rapid scaling up of data security and management approaches.  “We will carefully monitor policy changes and identify trends, while continuing to offer products and services to our customers that allow them to independently secure their data at the highest level and achieve agility so they can pivot as necessary based on policy and/or geopolitical changes,” says Treps.   Of course, it’s unclear where regulations, policy, and geopolitics are headed in the short term and long term.  Arnaud Treps, Odaseva Arnaud Treps, Odaseva “Securing and managing SaaS data is the most important thing you can do in the face of regulatory uncertainty,” says Treps. “Understanding your data model and how employees, third parties, fourth parties, and customers all interact with it puts you in the best possible position to navigate regulatory changes as they emerge.”  Accessibility Will Suffer  Josh Miller, co-CEO at media accessibility company 3Play Media, the leader in media accessibility says with the Trump administration’s focus on abolishing DEI and a suit filed by 17 states against Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, there is obvious risk to the accessibility space.  “As a vendor that provides accessibility services, we are close to the impact on people with disabilities, vendors that provide accessibility services [and] businesses that have prioritized accessibility and are now questioning whether they still should or need to,” says Miller. “Ultimately, it would be naive to think that the current political climate won’t have a negative impact on accessibility.  Some businesses will deprioritize making their websites, products and spaces accessible.”  Federal enforcement of accessibility law may wane, but individual or independent litigation and state enforcement will persist. People with disabilities will continue to fight for their right to access, and many organizations will continue to support them.  Miller says 3Play Media began pushing into the video localization space to expand its footprint beyond accessibility. In the

“Toxic workplaces” have been a prevailing theme in the zeitgeist for decades — the phrase was first used in a 1989 nursing leadership guide. Discussion of workplace dissatisfaction reached a fever pitch with the advent of social media. Disgruntled workers took to the web, sharing their experiences of abusive managers, unrealistic expectations, grueling hours — and a plethora of more minor complaints as well.   Thus, it might be argued, the meaning of the term has been diluted. Surely, there are differences between being regularly berated by a supervisor for insignificant infractions or refusals to acknowledge an employee’s personal commitments and the occasional request for overtime or expectations of inconvenient social conventions.   Even if the intended meaning has drifted, the discourse on workplace toxicity has identified a range of prevailing tendencies that have severe consequences both for employees and the organizations they work for. Cybersecurity is no exception — and toxicity appears to be particularly pernicious in this profession for a variety of reasons.  It is likely exacerbated by the cybersecurity shortage — small teams are expected to carry heavy workloads, and their managers bear the brunt of the consequences for any failures that occur. This zero-failure mentality results from a siloed structure in which cybersecurity professionals are isolated from other parts of an organization and expected to carry the entire burden of protection from attacks without any assistance. Individuals are blamed for events that in reality result from institutional failures — and those failures are never addressed.   Related:Key Attributes That Lead to an Ethical IT Department This is exacerbated by a general lack of people skills among managers and poorly executed communication. These factors lead to a bullying managerial culture, demoralized staff, burnout, high turnover rates — and ultimately, a greater likelihood of breaches.   Here, InformationWeek looks at the factors contributing to toxic cybersecurity environments and the steps that CISOs and other IT leaders should take to correct them, with insights from Rob Lee, chief of research at cybersecurity training company SANS Institute; and Chloé Messdaghi, founder of responsible AI and cybersecurity consultancy SustainCyber.  Tech Over People  One of the first organizational mistakes that can lead to toxicity in the cybersecurity workforce in an emphasis on packaged solutions. Slick marketing and fast-talking salespeople can easily lead anxious executives to purchase supposedly comprehensive cybersecurity packages that offer assurances of protection from outside attackers with very little work or additional investment. But even the most well-designed package requires maintenance by cybersecurity professionals.   Related:8 Ways Generative AI Can Help You Land a New Job After a Layoff “Ninety percent of the cybersecurity market is product based,” Lee says. “You can have an amazing Boeing strike fighter, but you still need a pilot to run it.”  The failure to understand the demands of this work can lead to underfunded and understaffed departments expected to keep up with unrealistic expectations. CISOs are thus compelled to pressure their employees to perform beyond their capabilities and toxicity soon results.  Siloed Security  Even in cases where cybersecurity teams are reasonably funded and given a degree of agency in an organization’s approach to protecting its assets, their efficacy is limited when the entire burden falls to them. If an organization does not implement top-down practices such as multi-factor authentication and education on phishing scams, it regularly falls to the cyber team to clean up preventable messes. This can shift focus from other proactive measures.  “There are conflicts when the organization is trying to enable innovation and freedom,” Lee says. “Security still has to do monitoring and restrict access.”  Related:Why Every Company Needs a Tech Translator — And How to Be One Siloes develop within cyber teams themselves, too. Teams focused on compliance, risk assessment, and operations may have very different priorities. If they are not in regular communication, those priorities cannot be reconciled. This leads to further conflict and inefficiency.  Resources Versus Reality  The availability of both staff and funding can negatively affect a cybersecurity work environment. Tiny teams faced with massive defense tasks are likely to feel overburdened and underappreciated, even under the best management. Understaffed cyber teams are frequently the result of underfunding.  Chloé Messdaghi, SustainCyber Chloé Messdaghi, SustainCyber “When you go to like the board or the executive team, they’ll say ‘No, it’s not needed. We don’t need more funds,’” Messdaghi relates. “They don’t understand why security is important. They see it as setting money on fire.”  One study found that cybersecurity budgets were only expected to increase by 11% from 2023 to 2025 despite the exponential rise in threats, putting the onus on already strained cybersecurity teams to make up the difference. These unrealistic expectations are likely to lead to employees being burned out.  But that is not the whole picture: Burnout also comes from bad leadership. “Burnout is not caused by the amount of work you have. It’s about leadership and a lack of communication,” Messdaghi argues.  Toxic Personalities in Management  Toxicity trickles down — from management to the most junior of employees, no matter the industry. This appears to be particularly true in cybersecurity. One of the worst traits in upper management appears to be apathy — simply not caring much about cybersecurity at all.   This can lead directly to underfunding or band aid solutions that leave teams scrambling to compensate. These types of executives dismiss admonitions to implement password security procedures and phishing tests across the organizations, considering them to be meaningless exercises.   When cyber teams do raise relevant issues with management, they may be dismissed or treated as irritations rather than people who are attempting to do their jobs. Further, when errors do occur, they are pinned squarely on these underfunded and understaffed teams.  Cybersecurity team leaders themselves can contribute to toxic environments, even if upper management is supporting solid practices. Micromanaging employees, publicly or privately abusing them with demeaning or profane language and refusing to listen to their concerns can lead to disengagement, adversarial relationships and decreased performance.  Research has identified such managers as “petty tyrants,” so involved with

As chief information officers race to adopt and deploy artificial intelligence, they eventually encounter an uncomfortable truth: Their IT infrastructure isn’t ready for AI. From widespread GPU shortages and latency-prone networks to rapidly spiking energy demands, they encounter bottlenecks that undermine performance and boost costs.  “An inefficient AI framework can greatly diminish the value of AI,” says Sid Nag, vice president of research at Gartner. Adds Teresa Tung, global data capability lead at Accenture: “The scarcity of high-end GPUs is an issue, but there are other factors — including power, cooling, and data center design and capacity — that impact results.”  The takeaway? Demanding and resource-intensive AI workloads require IT leaders to rethink how they design networks, allocate resources and manage power consumption. Those who ignore these challenges risk falling behind in the AI arms race — and undercutting business performance.  Breaking Points  The most glaring and widely reported problem is a scarcity of high-end GPUs required for inferencing and operating AI models. For example, highly coveted Nvidia Blackwell GPUs, officially known as GB200 NVL-72, have been nearly impossible to find for months, as major companies like Amazon, Google, Meta and Microsoft scoop them up. Yet, even if a business can obtain these units, the cost for a fully configured server can cost around $3 million. A less expensive version, the NVL36 server, runs about $1.8 million.  Related:How AI is Transforming the Music Industry While this can affect an enterprise directly, the shortage of GPUs also impacts major cloud providers like AWS, Google, and Microsoft. They increasingly ration resources and capacity, Nag says. For businesses, the repercussions are palpable. “Lacking an adequate hardware infrastructure that’s required to build AI models, training a model can become slow and unfeasible. It can also lead to data bottlenecks that undermine performance,” he notes.  GPU shortages are just a piece of the overall puzzle, however. As organizations look to plug in AI tools for specialized purposes such as computer vision, robotics, or chatbots they discover that there’s a need for fast and efficient infrastructure optimized for AI, Tung explains.  Network latency can prove particularly challenging. Even small delays in processing AI queries can trip up an initiative. GPU clusters require high-speed interconnects to communicate at maximum speed. Many networks continue to rely on legacy copper, which significantly slows data transfers, according to Terry Thorn, vice president of commercial operations for Ayar Labs, a vendor that specializes in AI-optimized infrastructure.  Related:Why AI Model Management Is So Important Still another potential problem is data center space and energy consumption. AI workloads — particularly those running on high-density GPU clusters — draw vast amounts of power. As deployment scales, CIOs may scramble to add servers, hardware and advanced technologies like liquid cooling. Inefficient hardware, network infrastructure and AI models exacerbate the problem, Nag says.  Making matters worse, upgrading power and cooling infrastructure is complicated and time-consuming. Nag points out that these upgrades may require a year or longer to complete, thus creating additional short-term bottlenecks.  Scaling Smart  Optimizing AI is inherently complicated because the technology impacts areas as diverse as data management, computational resources and user interfaces. Consequently, CIOs must decide how to approach various AI projects based on the use case, AI model and organizational requirements. This includes balancing on-premises GPU clusters with different mixes of chips and cloud-based AI services.  Organizations must consider how, when and where cloud services and specialty AI providers make sense, Tung says. If building a GPU cluster internally is either undesirable or out of reach, then it’s critical to find a suitable service provider. “You have to understand the vendor’s relationships with GPU providers, what types of alternative chips they offer, and what exactly you are gaining access to,” she says.  Related:How Big of a Threat Is AI Voice Cloning to the Enterprise? In some cases, AWS, Google, or Microsoft may offer a solution through specific products and services. However, an array of niche and specialty AI service companies also exist, and some consulting companies — Accenture and Deloitte are two of them — have direct partnerships with Nvidia and other GPU vendors. “In some cases,” Tung says, “you can get data flowing through these custom models and frameworks. You can lean into these relationships to get the GPUs you need.”  For those running GPU clusters, maximizing network performance is paramount. As workloads scale, systems struggle with data transfer limitations. One of the critical choke points is copper. Ayar Labs, for example, replaces these interconnects with high-speed optical interconnects that reduce latency, power consumption and heat generation. The result is better GPU utilization but also more efficient model processing, particularly for large-scale deployments.  In fact, Ayar Labs claims a 10x lower latency and up to 10x more bandwidth over traditional interconnects. There’s also a 4x to 8x reduction in power. No longer are chips “waiting for data rather than computing,” Thorn states. The problem can become particularly severe as organizations adopt complex large language models. “Increasing the size of the pipe boosts utilization and reduces CapEx,” he adds.  Still another piece of the puzzle is model efficiency and distillation processes. By specifically adapting a model for a laptop or smartphone, for example, it’s often possible to use different combinations of GPUs and CPUs. The result can be a model that runs faster, better and cheaper, Tung says.  Power Plays  Addressing AI’s power requirements is also essential. An overarching energy strategy can help avoid short-term performance bottlenecks as well as long-term chokepoints. “Energy consumption is going to be a problem, if it is not already a problem for many companies,” Nag says. Without adequate supply, power can become a barrier to success. It also can undermine sustainability and boost greenwashing accusations. He suggests that CIOs view AI in a broad and holistic way, including identifying ways to reduce reliance on GPUs.  Establishing clear policies and a governance framework around the use of AI can minimize the risk of non-technical business users misusing tools or inadvertently creating bottlenecks. The risk is