What keeps technology leaders at night?

Heads of technology have a lot of mind. Even after having closed its doors for the day and going home, the concerns of the continuation of his misfortunes which complain well in the evening.

The CIOs and other leaders of technology are faced with the enlargement of skills gaps, the challenges of cybersecurity and increasing pressure in the workplace, while organizing the strategy of rapidly evolving technologies, including generative AI.

From the management of unrealistic expectations linked to emerging technology to the mental task to follow a constant change, it is often the leaders of technology that assume the burden and balance many situations with high issues.

Even if the change arrives at a rapid pace, the leaders of technology also balance the fundamental technological elements which maintain operational companies.

Here are five concerns that keep technology leaders at night:

Technological talent

Mondelēz undergoes a period of significant change in the middle of a $ 1.2 billion Multi -year transformation plan This includes the outputs from the data center, workload migration, ERP upgrade and generative exploration of AI. For CTO and CISO Kostas GeorgakopoulosThis means that things are busy at work.

“I love what I do, I work for a big business and we have a full schedule that would remain most worried and worried”, ” Georgakopoulos said. “But really, one of my greatest concerns is to be able to provide a balance between professional and private life to my teams.”

While Mondelēz spent 18 Months preparing for transformation in order to bypass the traps and strengthen governance, the manufacturer of snacks still needs qualified teams to concretize the plan.

“There is no work shortage, there is no shortage of opportunities but there is certainly a shortage of talents”, ” Georgakopoulos said. “This is actually something I worry about daily and keeps awake.”

CIOs and other technology chiefs can relate to Georgakopoulos’ worries. Around 1 out of 3 Technology professionals have changed jobs In the past two yearsAccording to an investigation by the IT Professional Association Isaca published earlier this month. IT workers have most often cited the balance between professional and private life as the key factor to stay with their current employer.

There are signs of employers who potentially gain the upper hand in negotiations, such as the increase in unemployment and companies that take a Waiting job approachbut almost half a million Job offers for technological roles remain active, according to A journal counted data from the American work statistics office in February.

Innovation rhythm

Walmart continues to develop a portfolio for using AI and extend adoption, more recently Deposit of coding tools powered by AI to its developers in North America and India. But the company is still focusing on Find an optimal adoption speed.

David Glick, please enterprise business services at WalmartSaid that finding the balance between going quickly and moving safely is a constant concern.

Glick compared the task to the challenges of Mario Kart.

“The first day I played in Mario Kart, these guys all stole from the edge, so I decided to go slowly to stay on the road, then I lost,” said Glick. “The second time, I said to myself” I had to keep the button pressed all the time “. Sometimes I’m going to steal from the side of the road, but if I don’t push button A, I’m going to lose certainly.

Analogy probably resonates with other technology leaders. The influx of new information and changes caused by the recent innovation of AI has prompted it to rethink how fast the adoption should take place.

Without the right railing, the pressure to perform can exacerbate the risks. More than 90% of Business leaders have expressed their concern On generative AI pilots who advance despite unresolved problems identified by previous initiatives, a Computer scientist report found. Almost 60% said they felt pressure to quickly move projects.

IA monitoring and compliance

Unilever is a first AI adopter, with more than 500 projects worldwide and around 23,000 employees trained on AI at the end of the last yesr. However, stay in advance in the constantly evolving landscape of the regulations and governance of AI maintains the company The manager of business technology Steve MCCRYSTAL Up at night.

In the United States, the lack of federal regulation has led states to pick up the stick and create a patchwork of rules. Compliance with AI laws in the world is also complex.

“Our conviction is that doing business in the right way stimulates higher performance – and AI is no exception”, ” MCCRYSTAL said. “Successful adoption requires focusing on the most critical commercial needs, to scale deployments and to bring people.”

The consumer goods company based in the United Kingdom operates under a sinister countdown for the application of the European Union AI Act. Rely and Prioritize responsible AI The practices are one -way Unilever has worked to build a solid base for its strategy.

Shiyi Pickrell, please of data and AI to the Expedia group, stressed the importance of these practices.

“I’m so happy that we have this consolation,” said Pickrell. “It allows me to sleep at night, rather than awakening.”

While companies continue to combat regulatory complexities and risk attenuation, a The AI ​​responsible approach can relieve challenges. More than 4 out of 5 Organizations expect tactics to improve employee confidence and stimulate innovation, according to research in Accenture and AWS.

Cybersecurity

Ey Has great hopes on how technological innovation will help optimize operations and unlock efficiency, but World Director of Innovation Joe Depa Is also concerned about what will happen when threat actors take advantage of the same progress.

Cybersecurity has become one of The most urgent concerns for companies. THE The cybersecurity market is expected more than double during the next decade, reaching $ 338 billions in 2033 from $ 152.5 billion in 2023, Bloomberg Intelligence Analysts predict.

“My biggest concern is that … It could potentially become a problem if it is put in bad hands,” said DEPA. “I am worried about things like cyber AI and what we have in place of the means to protect and certify and understand the risks.”

Some leaders feel more prepared than others.

More than 3 cisos out of 5 and DSI say they feel sufficiently prepared to defend themselves against threats fueled by AI, An increase of 15% compared to last year, according to DarkTrace 2025 IA cybersecurity condition report. However, those who have more practical experience were more likely to disagree. Less than half Safety operations practitioners, architects and engineers have expressed the same confidence.

The qualified teams are crucial to fill the gaps and strengthen existing practices. Cyber ​​and commander Company reduction prioritieswhile also representing the skills that companies have the greatest difficulty in finding, according to a Skillsoft investigation.

“Make sure we have the right executives in place with a responsible AI and we ensure that we have the right systems in place to protect future potential attacks on a scale that none of us can even imagine at this stage,” said DEPA. “This is the biggest challenge as leaders at the moment.”

Manager

IKEA was a first adopter of generative AI as one of the first companies to launch an AI tool on the OPENAI GPT store and to undertake a AI literacy initiative on the company’s scale. But even for organizations in the initial adoption wave, it is difficult to keep up with the rate of change rate.

The number of AI -related patents, research documents and tools, has increased considerably since the launch in 2022 of Chatgpt. THE The last IA flavor is agenticthat 600 Research documents published dedicated to the subject in 2023, but in October 2024, the subject had more than 1,500 papers, according to Accenture analysis.

“I felt that there was no way that I could (be able) to follow everything,” said Ikea Francesco Marzoni, data manager and analysis, said.

It is a fairly common feeling among commercial decision -makers. More than half of senior leaders admit that they have the impression that they fail in the middle of the rapid growth of technology, according to Ey research.

But even more worrying for Marzoni that following is Adopt and deploy technology In a responsible manner, he said.

“I am a de facto AI leader, so with that comes a responsibility that I strongly feel to make sure that the following generations, including the generations of my daughters, do not come back in a few years and say to me:” Why did you not do that the proliferation of this technology occurs in the right direction? “” Marzoni said.

The executive said that the industry still underestimates what it means to deploy and build an AI in an inclusive manner.

“I think I have the responsibility to make sure that this chapter of humanity AI is not translated into something of a few for many, but it is built by the many for the many,” said Marzoni. “This is generally what I spend some thoughts every night.”