Isaac Junior Salvant of Haiti has over 12 years of experience in IT, Managed Services, Sales, and Business Development. He is also a member of the National Society of Sales Engineers. In the following article, Isaac Junior Salvant discusses how the global pandemic is still rattling companies today, problematic supply chain trends, the challenges that come with process automation, and how CIOs are shouldering heavy weights.
No two worries are the same, but
Chief Information Officers (CIOs) share in their concerns about cybersecurity, work process automation, and supply chain disruptions, to name only a few. Regardless of the organization, Isaac Junior Salvant of Haiti says that CIOs are often subjected to massive expectations and pressure from all sides.
Achieving HIPAA Compliance is a Daily Worry
One major challenge CIOs face in 2023 is ensuring compliance with the
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (otherwise known as HIPAA). While it's a known problem for many companies, it's most prevalent for those handling personal health information (PHI).
Isaac Junior Salvant of Haiti explains that the Act primarily outlines regulations about the storage and sharing of data. Businesses that fail to comply can suffer large fines, damaged reputations, and even prison time for executive officers. Thus, guaranteeing HIPAA compliance is vital.
CIOs and their teams are responsible for determining how to make HIPAA compliance a reality for their company — a challenge that is only getting more difficult as time goes on and technology progresses, thanks to the influx of increasingly intelligent cybercriminals.
In this highly digital era, CIOs have access to secure cloud software with automated backups, updates, and risk alerts to give them a fighting chance at staving off nifty hackers and complying with the Act.
Remote Workers and Hybrid Offices Make Data Security Tricky
Compliance isn't the only worry on CIOs' minds, though.
Workforces have transitioned drastically since the COVID-19 pandemic, plunging Chief Information Officers into all-new territory. With some employees working strictly from home, others working only onsite, and the rest performing a mismatch of both, digital security is more important than ever before — but it's also more challenging according to Isaac Junior Salvant of Haiti.
Nowadays, almost half of the full-time workers in the United States of America work exclusively off-site or in a hybrid setting.
While convenient for employees, it has wreaked havoc on the IT teams headed by CIOs. They must manage tech setups and the risk of data transportation through unsecured networks.
On top of the cybersecurity challenges presented by hybrid working, Isaac Junior Salvant of Haiti reports that CIOs must ensure that all workers are provided with the software required for efficient workflows, regardless of where they're based.
Supply Chain Disruptions Are an Ever-Present Problematic Trend
Isaac Junior Salvant of Haiti says that supply chain disruptions have continued to run rampant, following the pandemic. It's a trend that doesn't appear to be going away soon.
While it's impacted all industries to some extent, IT teams have faced shortages of critical tech components, increasing the difficulty of the CIO's role.
According to the CEO of Intel, he believes chip shortages will continue into next year due to lacking manufacturing equipment. Such deficits mean that CIOs will continue struggling to find the tools necessary for their company’s efficiency, competitiveness, and security.
Process Automation Might Be Trending, But it's Challenging
Isaac Junior Salvant of Haiti says that roughly one-fifth of CIOs implemented AI, RPA, IoT, and on-demand platforms during 2019, and that fraction has grown exponentially since then. It's undoubtedly one of the top trends seen in the position's to-do list this year.
However, it also presents unique challenges, including training, cost, integration, maintenance, and change management.
Experts note that the difficulties faced by CIOs in this department specifically depend on the organization and what particular processes are being automated. And while it may be a time-consuming and complex endeavor, there are significant efficiency, money-saving, and accuracy benefits.
After all, Chief Information Officers realize that implementing automation is one of the only ways to stay up to date with the competition in the current and future landscape.
CIOs Continue Working Tirelessly to Curb Cybersecurity Threats
New technology is undeniably beneficial for both personal and commercial reasons, but it puts complicated cybersecurity risks onto the shoulders of many organizations' CIOs.
According to industry participants, phishing is one of the top cybersecurity threats still faced by such executives. Isaac Junior Salvant of Haiti explains that employees aren't always accustomed to the characteristics of phishing ploys, and CIOs find that this is particularly problematic because they have almost no control over workers' actions during these scams.
Despite this, Chief Information Officers continue employing new technology and insisting on individual training courses to relieve their burden and enhance digital security.
