IT leaders are stuck between a rock and a hard place. They need to give employees the right technology to make them more productive, but at the same time they must follow corporate mandates to cut costs. How do you do both at once?
This paradox has become one of the defining challenges for today’s IT leaders. The old playbook of throwing more resources at productivity problems doesn’t work anymore. Today’s CIOs need to find innovative ways to unleash human potential while optimizing investments.
AI to the rescue
AI isn’t just about automation—it’s about intelligently amplifying human work. AI for business tools can reduce the time employees spend on routine tasks while improving the quality of their output.
For example, customer service teams equipped with AI assistants can handle more complex inquiries without increasing headcount. Software developers using AI agents can write better code faster, reducing both development time and bug-related costs. Marketing teams can leverage AI to personalize campaigns at scale, improving ROI while reducing manual effort.
Watch this video to see more examples of AI productivity in action.
Adopting AI can help unify fragmented data and cut decision-making times. Breaking down data silos through data unification not only trims inefficiencies but also saves significantly on storage costs.
Scale smart in the cloud
Cloud plays a role here, too. Moving to the cloud means shifting from capex to opex models so costs can be aligned more closely with actual business needs. During busy periods, resources scale up automatically. During downturns, costs scale down proportionally. What’s more, moving to the cloud can simplify operations and consolidate applications for better efficiency and security while kicking workflows into high gear.
Not there yet? Take our short cloud migration readiness questionnaire to see what your next steps should be.
Cloud migration readiness questionnaire
Evaluate your current readiness and identify next steps for your cloud transformation
The CIO’s paradox isn’t insurmountable—it’s an opportunity to demonstrate strategic value using the right technology that drives both efficiency and effectiveness. Learn more about how OpenText and better information management can help you meet your goals.
Read other blogs in the What’s keeping CIOs up at night? series:
- Part 1: Owning the AI agenda
