The 12 biggest issues IT faces today
Joel
Schwalbe,
CIO
of
biotech
company
Transnetyx,
says
he’s
focused
on
continuously
reducing
technical
debt
and
modernizing
his
company’s
tech
stack
so
his
IT
team
can
minimize
the
resources
needed
for
maintaining
the
environment
and
instead
maximize
th
Joel
Schwalbe,
CIO
of
biotech
company
Transnetyx,
says
he’s
focused
on
continuously
reducing
technical
debt
and
modernizing
his
company’s
tech
stack
so
his
IT
team
can
minimize
the
resources
needed
for
maintaining
the
environment
and
instead
maximize
the
time
and
energy
spent
on
supporting
business
objectives.
It’s
a
constant
challenge,
Schwalbe
says.
“It’s
tricky,
because
as
technology
continues
to
evolve,
you
want
to
make
sure
you
place
your
bets
in
the
right
area,”
he
says,
adding
that
the
goal
is
to
stay
on
top
of
modernization
and
transformation
efforts
so
“you
don’t
get
to
the
point
where
tech
debt
is
a
problem.”
Lenovo’s
Global
Study
of
CIOs
gives
some
insight
into
this
work.
It
found
that
61%
of
respondents
believe
that
“their
business
would
feel
an
impact
in
no
more
than
a
few
weeks
if
they
halted
spending
on
digital
transformation
initiatives.”
Moreover,
57%
said
they’d
replace
half
or
more
of
their
company’s
current
technology
if
given
the
chance
to
start
from
scratch
and
25%
said
they’d
replace
most
or
all
of
it.
5.
Innovating
meaningfully
Of
course,
as
CIOs
know,
that
modernization
effort
can’t
just
be
for
the
sake
of
getting
new
technologies.
It
must
drive
business
objectives
and
ultimately
transformation.
That’s
why,
Phelps
says,
he
and
other
CIOs
continue
to
build
“an
ongoing
culture
of
innovation”
within
their
IT
departments
and
their
organizations
as
a
whole.
CIOs
are
well-positioned
to
take
on
the
task,
Phelps
says,
because
they
work
across
all
the
functional
areas
of
the
enterprise
and
they
are
among
the
best
equipped
to
propose
and
deliver
innovative
digital
services.
“Everything
is
now
digital,
and
CIOs
have
to
shape
that
narrative.
That
has
elevated
the
role
of
CIO
to
be
one
of
a
digital
leader
who
can
plug
into
innovative
initiatives,”
Phelps
adds.
Research
confirms
the
emphasis
on
IT
as
innovator:
In
the
May
2023
Technology
Pulse
Poll
from
professional
services
firm
EY,
94%
of
surveyed
tech
executives
said
that
“company-wide
innovation
will
help
them
come
out
of
the
current
economic
downturn
a
stronger
company
than
before”;
94%
said
their
company
plans
to
increase
investments
in
IT
or
emerging
technologies
over
the
next
year;
and
81%
said
their
company
plans
to
make
an
innovation-related
acquisition
in
the
next
six
months.
6.
Ensuring
IT’s
value
proposition
Just
as
innovation
must
bring
tangible
returns
to
the
enterprise,
so
too
are
CIOs
expected
to
work
with
their
business
colleagues
to
calculate
the
value
proposition
of
tech
initiatives.
As
Bruhin
explains,
CIOs
today
must
have
—
and
instill
in
their
partners
who
come
requesting
new
technologies
—
a
“benefits
realization
mentality.”
“There’s
a
focus
on
the
value
it’s
going
to
generate
for
the
organization,”
he
adds.
7.
Driving
data
insights
Speaking
of
value,
CIOs
are
also
looking
at
how
to
maximize
all
the
data-related
investments
they’ve
made
in
recent
years.
CIO’s
2023
State
of
the
CIO
survey
found
that
34%
of
IT
leaders
list
leveraging
data
as
a
major
tech
initiative,
putting
it
second
on
the
list
of
priorities
—
just
behind
security
and
risk
management.
And
EY’s
Technology
Pulse
Poll
found
that
62%
of
surveyed
tech
execs
have
prioritized
big
data
and
analytics
investments.
But
where
past
years’
investments
focused
on
building
solid
data
infrastructure,
CIOs
are
now
spending
on
technologies
and
training
to
help
people
throughout
their
organizations
use
data.
“We’re
seeing
a
shift
in
spending
to
technologies
that
drive
the
democratization
of
data
and
analytics
—
and
we
are
expecting
that
spend
will
dramatically
increase,”
Brunsman
says,
adding
that,
although
many
organizations
have
data
specialists
generating
insights
from
the
vast
troves
of
data
they’ve
accumulated,
they
now
want
to
get
to
a
place
where
everyone
in
their
organization
can
get
value
out
of
data.
8.
Transforming
to
meet
regulatory
requirements
CIOs
are
also
still
working
with
their
executive
peers
to
manage
their
data,
says
Ray
Velez,
global
CTO
with
the
digital
consultancy
Publicis
Sapient.
Granted,
many
CIOs
have
been
working
with
their
chief
data
officers,
chief
marketing
officers
and
other
C-suite
leaders
on
this
topic
for
years.
But,
as
Velez
points
out,
the
rules
and
regulations
around
data
evolve.
As
a
result,
Velez
says
he
sees
“a
lot
of
focus
on
modernizing
the
customer
data
stack”
and
adopting
emerging
technologies
that
allow
organizations
to
meet
regulatory
requirements
such
as
offering
a
customer
opt-out
capability
while
still
enabling
organizations
to
access
and
use
the
data
needed
to
deliver
personalized
customer
service
and
insights
to
decision-makers.
“CIOs
need
to
be
able
to
supply
things
like
consent
management
and
work
with
others
to
create
and
transform
how
customer
data
is
used,
stored
and
the
communication
of
the
value
proposition,”
Velez
adds.
9.
Democratizing
tech
development
CIOs
are
not
only
putting
data
into
the
hands
of
workers
throughout
their
organizations;
they’re
increasingly
putting
software
development
tools
there,
too.
Research
firm
IDC
expects
sales
of
low-code/no-code
platforms
to
grow
at
a
rapid
clip
—
13.9%
annually
—
through
2026.
Jamie
Smith,
CIO
at
the
University
of
Phoenix,
believes
enabling
non-IT
workers
to
create
some
of
their
own
capabilities
is
a
“force
multiplier”
that
benefits
the
entire
organization
by
enabling
workers
closest
to
business
processes
and
customers
to
create
the
digital
experiences
they
want
and
need
to
get
their
work
done.
10.
Acquiring
and
retaining
talent
Global
business
consulting
firm
Protiviti
surveyed
1,304
C-level
executives
and
directors
to
understand
the
top
risks
they
face.
The
top
of
their
list?
The
ability
to
attract
and
retain
top
talent
in
a
tightening
labor
market,
which
they
see
as
limiting
their
ability
to
achieve
operational
targets.
Although
many
functional
leaders
experience
challenges
finding
and
keeping
talent,
CIOs
are
among
the
most
taxed
in
this
regard.
“The
global
talent
shortage
has
burdened
the
job
market,
and
researchers
expect
this
issue
to
worsen,
with
85
million
jobs
forecasted
to
be
unfilled
by
2030
due
to
a
lack
of
skilled
workers,”
Rafuse
says.
“With
tech
advancement
accelerating
by
the
day,
it’s
possible
the
problem
gets
worse
before
it
gets
better.
IT
departments
need
to
be
able
to
keep
up
with
constant
updates,
new
operating
systems,
and
emerging
threats,
or
understaffed
teams
risk
falling
behind.”
He
continues:
“With
so
much
competition
for
top
talent
and
laid-off
workers
from
Big
Tech
firms,
companies
need
to
be
creative
in
how
they
set
themselves
apart.
CIOs
and
IT
leaders
should
also
constantly
explore
methods
to
invest
in
the
internal
upskilling
of
their
current
staff
in
order
to
attract
and
maintain
talent.”
11.
Preparing
IT
teams
for
the
future
CIOs
have
to
think
not
only
about
their
teams
today,
but
their
teams
of
tomorrow,
too.
IT
workers
must
keep
pace
with
evolving
technologies
to
ensure
they
can
deliver
and
support
the
tools
and
capabilities
their
organizations
will
need
to
be
successful.
Moreover,
technologists
want
to
learn
new
skills,
with
multiple
studies
showing
that
they’ll
switch
jobs
if
they
feel
like
they’re
stagnating
in
their
current
role.
(In
one
recent
survey,
47%
of
responding
tech
workers
said
they’re
considering
leaving
their
current
job
to
grow
their
skills.)
“Skilled
IT
labor
is
going
to
continue
to
be
difficult
to
find
in
the
future,
so
CIOs
more
than
ever
are
going
to
have
to
look
at
opportunities
for
their
staff
to
upskill,”
says
Matt
Deneroff,
vice
president
of
technology
talent
solutions
at
staffing
firm
Robert
Half.
12.
Creating
a
hybrid
work
environment
that
works
for
everyone
CIOs
say
they
themselves
also
must
learn
to
work
in
new
ways
as
the
world
shifts,
particularly
when
it
comes
to
supporting
a
hybrid
workforce
across
their
organization
as
well
as
leading
their
own
teams
in
this
new
workplace
model.
“Equipping
employees
with
the
tools
and
support
they
need
to
do
their
jobs,
no
matter
where
they
are,
needs
to
be
a
top
priority
for
IT
teams,”
Rafuse
says.
But
at
the
same
time
Rafuse
says
CIOs,
himself
included,
should
consider
what
that
means
for
IT
staffers.
“[The]
IT
manager
must
balance
this
flexibility
with
a
good
life/work
balance.
Just
because
IT
teams
can
always
be
on,
doesn’t
mean
they
should
if
you
want
to
keep
good
talent
around
for
the
long
term,”
he
says,
noting
that
“businesses
should
strive
for
quality
over
quantity
by
streamlining
the
number
of
technologies
and
software
they
are
using
thus
reducing
the
burden
on
IT.
This
will
create
a
more
positive
and
functional
virtual
working
environment
for
employees,
while
reducing
cross-department
friction
and
IT
team
burnout.”
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