Nemacolin

According to recent reports, cybersecurity is expected to be 2023s biggest driver of business ITspending. What are some modern digital measures you believe should be implemented toensure data security in the IT landscape?

The cybersecurity landscape is evolving rapidly. To ensure system security successfully, you must layer your security so that if one level is breached, it is identified and contained at the next level. At Nemacolin, we take cybersecurity very seriously. We protect the data of our associates and our guests.

To ensure this protection, we retain a security operations center that is offsite. They analyze systems logs to look for patterns of questionable behavior. This also allows them to watch the internal IT team. If someone internally goes roque, the third-party SOC will notify Nemacolin leadership to prevent an internal bad actor from harming.

Some things are table stakes like email scanning, internet firewalls, anti-virus, and multi-factor authentication. The IT team must help the end users protect themselves and help avoid security fatigue. For MFA, adding location information helps the end user to have a quick visual that the location in MFA is their current location. With anti-virus, moving from scanning and looking for patterns can be a never-ending battle. Endpoint protection (EPP), endpoint detection, and response (EDR) in real-time help identify threats quickly and contains them. With mobile and remote work exploding in the last few years, encryption, and Mobile Device Management (MDM) on mobile devices can be the difference between a major data loss and a minor inconvenience. The days of just blanketing everyone with generic cybersecurity training are in the past. While standard training is needed for all associates, doing simulated testing goes much future. If an associate has a less than stellar response to a simulation, they can be directed in real time to specific training sessions that enable them to improve.

  

​An IT leader needs to
get with the operational teams and understand their current systems (pros and
cons). Then, have the IT team review what IT systems and operations could be
limiting the business operations. The information should then be matched up

   

Well, the good and bad of IT is that it is constantly changing. I see cybersecurity, digital transformations, and talent shortages as major challenges. Cloud computing and artificial intelligence are two major trends. Cybersecurity is table stakes, and I covered that in the question above. Unless you are a new company that started with being all-digital, you are on a digital transformation journey. In this journey, you must make sure you are removing friction in integrations with your guest through technology. The technology needs to be focused on the customer’s needs, allowing the business operations to be nimble and adjust quickly to changing market conditions. This will improve your overall competitiveness. Keep in mind that it cannot just be adding technology to a process. Part of digital transformation is investing in associates to ensure your team has the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in a digital environment. This training also must work with the company culture, so new ways of thinking and working are embraced by all levels of the organization. One of the questions asked at Nemacolin is, “What is the best way to do something?” Normally you hear how we can do something better. The Nemacolin culture is not, ‘How do we take what we have and make it a little better?” but, “How do we do it the best way possible?” That takes a culture willing to embrace new ideas and challenge each other. This mindset helps to evaluate systems to see if they need to be in the cloud or on-premises. I cover AI in the question below. For the talent shortage the IT industry is facing, we must look for ways to invest in people. At Nemacolin, roles of intern and apprentice are used so associates in school or with limited schooling can learn real-world IT. This helps Nemacolin give back to the local community and find new talent in IT.

It is predicted that 2023 will witness the widespread democratization of AI across the techindustry. What are your views regarding the integration of AI into everyday business practicesand how it will enhance industry practices?

With AI being more widespread, the first area I see having a positive impact is knowledge-based systems for level-one support. AI can be used to build out and validate knowledge base articles. This will speed up the documentation process and allow level-one tech workers to be more specific. This can then be used to create more self-help for end users. AI can be used to connect to chat sessions for user support. This will help basic tech support requests to be handled by the AI and free up tech workers to handle more complex issues, thus speeding up recovery time and improving first-call resolutions. I understand people being concerned about AI replacing jobs. I do not see that happening for a long time, if ever. The workforce is thin and overtaxed, so the AI help will get tech teams a little more breathing space.

Before your stint at Nemacolin, what are some of your experiences that empowered you to gaindeep expertise in enterprise architecture, application development and operational support?

Before Nemacolin, I held various IT positions over my career. I worked with both application and networking support so I could grow my knowledge of how applications work and how they talk. I moved into network development and helped build out TCP/IP networks and worked as a DNS administrator. While there, I moved into application development and application performance testing. This allowed me to move into application architecture and then to enterprise architecture. Lastly, I took on leadership roles in IT for enterprise architecture, application development, and operational support.

Given this background, I am one to say that I believe you must work in an area to understand it. For example, to be an excellent enterprise architect you need experience in support and development. Those experiences will help you design systems that perform and integrate correctly along with being easily supportable. You do not have to be on the job. If your career path has taken you in different directions, just schedule some time with the teams. It cannot only be an hour or two; you need to live in it a little. Take a week and shadow a team. If you can take two weeks, the first week can be shadowing and the second week can be having some hands-on work. You want to make sure you see it from their side. I use the term “positive tension” for this space. When a design/solution is agreeable with everyone outside of architecture, then the design is not being challenged enough. If all three areas have a few issues with the final solution, you, most likely, have a good design that is challenging to all groups, so the best results are achieved.

On an ending note, what is your advice for other senior leaders and CXOs working to upgradetheir organizations IT infrastructure and operations?

My advice for other senior leaders and CXOs working to upgrade their organization’s IT infrastructure and operations is to first focus on the people and processes. Too many times IT deploys systems that are new with a lot of bells and whistles, but the system does not solve the operational issue.

An IT leader needs to get with the operational teams and understand their current systems (pros and cons). Then, have the IT team review what IT systems and operations could be limiting the business operations. The information should then be matched up. This allows the IT leader to map IT infrastructure to business needs. For example, a network infrastructure upgrade can be very costly. If the funding request is presented as an IT-only project, it will most likely be denied.

IT leaders need to partner with revenue-generating leaders to show how the IT infrastructure projects will enable systems in the revenue lines of business. For example, in working with guest services to improve the speed of the guest wi-fi network via an IT network infrastructure project, the business case for improved guest wi-fi helps to sell the IT infrastructure project. Always tie a business case to IT infrastructure to improve the chances for approval. IT leaders should watch that they do not fall into a “that is not my job” mindset. At Nemacolin, it is everyone’s job to take care of fellow associates and guests. You must get out from behind the keyboard.