IT leadership

  • Which Tech Roles Are Hardest to Fill Right Now?

    Organizations are shifting focus to holistic hiring, prioritizing talent, cultural alignment, and long-term commitment over mere technical skills. Key roles facing challenges in recruitment include designers, architects, and leaders, where inherent qualities and problem-solving abilities are critical. Emphasizing character over traditional experiences can enhance talent retention and organizational growth.

  • How to Partner with Law Enforcement Following a Cyberattack

    In case of a cyberattack, establishing relationships with law enforcement contacts beforehand is advised. Organizations can start building these connections easily by contacting their local FBI office. The FBI offers various programs that help private partners collaborate. Following a cyberattack, a pre-designated contact should cooperate with law enforcement, providing all evidence of the intrusion. A partnership based on information sharing is crucial, though it should be noted that law enforcement investigations can indeed be lengthy.

  • The Mind of the Inside Attacker

    Cyberattacks are a major threat to all businesses, with both external and insider perpetrators posing significant risks. Insider threats can come from employees or contractors who have access to sensitive data. Recent studies suggest that these individuals are motivated by a combination of factors, including personal spite, financial gain, and the ability to punish employers. Certain personality traits like narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellian tendencies appear common in inside attackers. Efforts to mitigate these threats include proactive interventions, regular audits, and fostering a culture of security within the organization.

  • How to Use AI to Inspire IT Team Creativity

    Artificial Intelligence (AI) can bolster creativity and problem-solving within IT teams. Innovative concepts can be drawn from AI, which can simulate various outcomes and propose solutions to issues. By learning from past experiences, AI can offer potentially valuable insights. Furthermore, tools like Generative AI can optimize tasks and efficiency, freeing teams to focus on more critical matters. However, care must be taken to ensure the secure handling of sensitive data and to verify AI-generated content for accuracy and bias.

  • Storytelling with Data: Crafting Compelling Narratives

    Data storytelling involves transforming raw data into a clear and relatable narrative that illustrates patterns, trends, and insights. It uses data visualization techniques like charts and infographics to support its message. Essential elements of data storytelling include context, appropriate visualization, a narrative structure, and emphasizing key insights. Employing supporting tools like data extraction, ETL tool, and data warehousing will help aid the data storytelling process. However, pitfalls like poor data quality, confusion between correlation and causation, data overload, and cherry-picking data should be avoided.

  • A Smarter Way to Design Business Strategies to Serve the Poor

    Researchers working on improving Nuru Energy’s business model in Rwanda discovered that inconvenience and liquidity were the main issues affecting the company’s sales of rechargeable LED lamps. Through intelligent modelling and taking into account the consumers’ needs and pain-points, they were able to devise strategies such as offering door-to-door service once a week and allowing one recharge on credit, which could potentially increase the company’s revenue by a significant amount.

  • AI and Overcoming User Resistance

    Although initial resistance to AI was observed, increasing familiarity via platforms like ChatGPT is encouraging its acceptance as it becomes routine in various industries. A Pew Research survey found mixed emotions, with job loss, reduced digital privacy, and diminished human connection concerning some users. However, the survey also indicated people are comfortable delegating tedious or repetitive tasks to AI. An effective AI introduction should engage users early in the process for better acceptance and integration.

  • Effective Strategies for Building and Boosting Psychological Safety

    Recent INSEAD research has emphasised the importance of integrating psychological safety into modern workplaces for better collaboration, innovation and inclusion. Psychological safety invigorates employees to contribute their opinions and take risks. Strategies for encouraging psychological safety include facilitating open dialogue, promoting mutual respect, and eliminating punitive measures. Furthermore, the study recommends adjusting one-on-one meetings to focus on individuals’ needs or tasks, balancing psychological safety with intellectual honesty, and acknowledging diverse team perspectives in order to adapt to changing work dynamics.

  • The Provocateurs Episode 18 | Sunny Bonnell

    In this Provocateurs podcast with Thinkers50 co-founder, Des Dearlove, and Geoff Tuff of Deloitte, Sunny outlines seven unconventional traits displayed by ‘rare breeds’ – traits that are traditionally seen as vices, such as being rebellious, audacious, emotional, and hot-blooded. The real difference, as I

  • Disaster Response: Finding Order in Turmoil

    Even after the decision to accept international help and deploy local networks, many factors can further complicate humanitarian response. This means that both local and incoming international relief teams without the machinery and resources to remove the debris could only deliver aid after the

  • How to Destigmatise Repulsive Products

    To investigate this concept, we interviewed dozens of creative workers and their associates, surveyed more than 200 consumers and culled through countless articles and reviews about “weird” products to determine how they become accepted in the marketplace. Dirty creatives must also recast the

  • Harmonizing the CIO and CISO Roles to Bolster Security

    One way to develop a robust security and ransomware protection plan across an organization is to ensure the CIO and CISO work closely together to ensure organizations can meet compliance and promote better security