For IT leaders, the year 2022 promises to be both exciting and demanding. In order to get the most out of IT in the coming year, CIOs should focus on a few important areas such as privacy, digital dexterity, automation, and sustainability.
January is a good time to take a step back and think about the goals that CIOs and their teams will need to work on in the coming year. Time, insight, and a fair dose of intuition are required to separate high-priority issues from the rest of an IT leader’s already hectic agenda.
Here’s a brief overview of five critical areas that should be at the top of CIO’s list to make their job easier.
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Strengthening and developing cybersecurity skills
CIOs, in collaboration with their CISOs and other decision makers, must address the cybersecurity talent shortage by prioritizing the development and training of a deep talent pool on their to-do list for 2022. It’s not only a case of throwing money at the problem; it’s also a case of putting effort into talent acquisition, deployment, and retention.
Many public and private sector organizations are currently experiencing a cybersecurity skills shortage. Today’s technical talent prefers to work for companies that are adaptable, versatile, and fast to respond.
Enhancing digital dexterity
To become more productive, IT teams must be liberated from manual processes. The days of a team member walking down the hall with a major contract and having a colleague physically sign it are long gone. They must now digitize and share the document so that it can be signed by people on the other side of the globe. Processes must be streamlined by CIOs. Because of the digital reality, digital efficiency and security are more crucial than ever to keep businesses functioning smoothly.
Advancing automation
CIOs should establish a proactive automation plan in 2022 to accelerate their organization’s digital transformation. Automating redundant, wasteful operations will not only help businesses adapt to changing customer needs in the aftermath of the pandemic, but will also better position them to fulfill growing business expectations on a budget.
For many CIOs, the aim of deploying fully autonomous systems is still a step or two away, therefore the shift does not have to happen right once. Prioritize areas where automation is already incorporated into platforms and applications for starters. Before advancing to more autonomous capabilities, such a strategy will immediately demonstrate success in terms of time, cost, and quality.
Commitment to sustainability
IT spending accounts for the majority of a company’s carbon footprint. Operating data centers, storage, networks, end-point devices, and different support services consumes a lot of energy. As customers and stakeholders grow increasingly interested, if not concerned, about their ecological footprint and what they are doing to reduce it, all of these factors are now on the agenda of IT companies, particularly major enterprises.
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Sustainability is a major priority for CIOs because of the overall subject of the planet’s health and ability to sustain humanity in the future. IT departments at all levels are aware of the mandate and will develop sustainability initiatives aimed at lowering energy use, eliminating electronic waste, and reaching carbon neutrality.
One of the simplest ways for a company to lower the environmental effect of its data center and IT operations is to go to the cloud. The cloud helps to reduce waste. The cloud also provides access to more environmentally friendly data centers. Cloud vendors have already made significant investments in ensuring the long-term viability of their data centers. Cloud vendors utilize more efficient cooling systems and put their data centers near green energy sources since they have substantial financial incentives to do so.
Increase focus on privacy
To protect customers, partners, clients, and employees, IT leaders must increase their focus on privacy. First and foremost, there is a need to consider how to defend people’s right to privacy and to be more careful in this area. They must guarantee that their strategy, policies, and practices are centered on preserving their data and the privacy of their customers, and that their actions are guided and steered in this direction. Enterprise systems must be designed to eliminate any temptation to misuse data.
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