Latest news with #Nielson
Los Angeles Times
16-06-2025
- General
- Los Angeles Times
We set a big chunk of California wilderness on fire. You're welcome
HOPLAND, Calif. — On a sun-kissed hillside in remote Northern California, I watched in awe as a crackling fire I'd helped ignite engulfed a hillside covered in tall, golden grass. Then the wind shifted slightly, and the dense gray smoke that had been billowing harmlessly up the slope turned and engulfed me. Within seconds, I was blind and coughing. The most intense heat I'd ever felt seemed like it would sear the only exposed skin on my body: my face. As the flames inched closer, to within a few feet, I backed up until I was trapped against a tall fence with nowhere left to go. Alone in that situation, I would have panicked. But I was with Len Nielson, chief of prescribed burns for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, who stayed as cool as the other side of the pillow. Like a pilot calmly instructing passengers to fasten their seat belts, Nielson suggested I wrap the fire-resistant 'shroud' hanging from my bright yellow helmet around my face. Then he told me to take a few steps to the left. And, just like that, we were out of the choking smoke and into the gentle morning sunlight. The temperature seemed to have dropped a few hundred degrees. 'It became uncomfortable, but it was tolerable, right?' Nielson asked with a reassuring grin. 'Prescribed fires are a lot about trust.' Dripping gasoline onto dry grass and deliberately setting it ablaze in the California countryside felt wildly reckless, especially for someone whose job involves interviewing survivors of the state's all too frequent, catastrophic wildfires. But 'good fire,' as Nielson called it, is essential for reducing the fuel available for bad fire, the kind that makes the headlines. The principle is as ancient as it is simple. Before European settlers arrived in California and insisted on suppressing fire at every turn, the landscape burned regularly. Sometimes lightning ignited the flames; sometimes it was Indigenous people using fire as an obvious, and remarkably effective, tool to clear unwanted vegetation from their fields. Whatever the cause, it was common for much of the land in California to burn about once a decade. 'So it was relatively calm,' Nielson said, as the flames we'd set danced and swirled just a few feet behind him. 'There wasn't this big fuel load, so there wasn't a chance of it becoming really intense.' With that in mind, the state set an ambitious goal in the early 2020s to deliberately burn at least 400,000 acres of wilderness each year. The majority of that would have to be managed by the federal government, since agencies including the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management and the National Park Service own nearly half of the state's total land. And they own more than half of the state's forests. But California officials worry their ambitious goals are likely to be thwarted by deep cuts to those federal agencies by Elon Musk's budget-whacking White House advisory team, dubbed the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. In recent months, the Forest Service has lost about 10% of its workforce to mass layoffs and firings. While firefighters were exempt from the DOGE-ordered staffing cuts, employees who handle the logistics and clear the myriad regulatory hurdles to secure permission for prescribed burns were not. 'To me, it's an objective fact that these cuts mean California will be less safe from wildfire,' said Wade Crowfoot, California's secretary of natural resources. He recalled how President Trump, in his first term, erroneously blamed the state's wildfires on state officials who, Trump said, had failed to adequately 'rake' the forests. 'Fifty-seven percent of our forests are owned and managed by the federal government,' Crowfoot said. If anybody failed, it was the president, he argued. Larry Moore, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the Forest Service, said the job cuts won't affect the agency's fire prevention efforts. The Forest Service 'continues to ensure it has the strongest and most prepared wildland firefighting force in the world,' Moore wrote in an email. The agency's leaders are 'committed to preserving essential safety positions and will ensure that critical services remain uninterrupted.' Nevertheless, last month, Gov. Gavin Newsom added $72 million to the state's forest management budget to bridge some of the gap expected to be left by federal agencies. But wildfire experts say that's just a drop in the bucket. Doing prescribed burns safely takes a lot of boots on the ground and behind-the-scenes cajoling to make sure local residents, and regulators, are on board. Because people get pretty testy when you accidentally smoke out an elementary school or old folks home, burn plans have to clear substantial hurdles presented by the California Environmental Quality Act and air quality regulators. It took three years to get all the required permissions for the 50-acre Hopland burn in Mendocino County, where vineyard owners worried their world-class grapes might get a little too 'smoky' for most wine lovers. When the big day finally arrived in early June, more than 60 firefighters showed up with multiple fire engines, at least one bulldozer and a firefighting helicopter on standby in case anything went wrong. They gathered at the University of California's Hopland Research and Extension Center, where students learn about ranching and wilderness ecology. But this was no school project. A fire that began in the surrounding hills a couple of years ago threatened to trap people in the center, so the area being burned was along the only two roads that could be used to escape. 'We're trying to create a buffer to get out, if we need to,' said John Bailey, the center's director. 'But we're also trying to create a buffer to prevent wildfire from coming into the center.' As the firefighters pulled on their protective yellow jackets and pants, and filled their drip torches with a mixture of diesel and gasoline, Nielson bent down and grabbed a fistful of the yellow grass. Running it through his fingers, he showed it to his deputies and they all shook their heads in disappointment — too moist. Thick marine-layer clouds filled the sky at 7 a.m, keeping the relative humidity too high for a good scorching. In many years of covering wildfires, it was the first time I had seen firefighters looking bored and disappointed because nothing would burn. By 8:45 a.m., the clouds cleared, the sun came out, and the grass in Nielson's fist began to crinkle and snap. It was time to go to work. The fire that would fill the sky and drift north that afternoon, blanketing the town of Ukiah with the familiar orange haze of fire season, began with a single firefighter walking along the edge of a cleared dirt path. As he moved, he made little dots of flame with his drip torch, drawing a line like a kid working the edges of a picture in a coloring book. Additional firefighters worked the other edges of the field until it was encircled by strips of burned black grass. That way, no matter which direction the fire went when they set the center of the field alight, the flames would not — in most circumstances — escape the relatively small test patch. On the uphill edge of the patch, along the top of a ridge, firefighters in full protective gear leaned against a wooden fence with their backs to the smoke and flames climbing the hill behind them. They'd all done this before, and they trusted those black strips of pre-burned grass to stop the fire before it got to them. Their job was to keep their eyes on the downward slope on the other side of the ridge, which wasn't supposed to burn. If they saw any embers drift past them into the 'green' zone, they would immediately move to extinguish those flames. Nielson and I were standing along the fence, too. In addition to the circle of pre-burned grass protecting us, we were on a dirt path about four feet wide. For someone with experience, that was an enormous buffer. I was the only one who even flinched when the smoke and flames came our way. Afterward, when I confessed how panicked I had felt, Nielson said it happens to a lot of people the first time they are engulfed in smoke. It's particularly dangerous in grass fires, because they move so fast. People can get completely disoriented, run the wrong way and 'get cooked,' he said. But that test patch was just the warmup act. Nielson and his crew were checking to make sure the fire would behave the way they expected — pushed in the right direction by the gentle breeze and following the slope uphill. 'If you're wondering where fire will go and how fast it will move, think of water,' he said. Water barely moves on flat ground, but it picks up speed when it goes downhill. If it gets into a steep section, where the walls close in like a funnel, it becomes a waterfall. 'Fire does the same thing, but it's a gas, so it goes the opposite direction,' Nielson said. With that and a few other pointers — we watched as three guys drew a line of fire around the base of a big, beautiful oak tree in the middle of the hillside to shield it from what was about to happen — Nielson led me to the bottom of the hill and handed me a drip torch. Once everybody was in position, and all of the safety measures had been put in place, he wanted me to help set the 'head fire,' a 6-foot wall of flame that would roar up the hill and consume dozens of acres in a matter of minutes. 'It's gonna get a little warm right here,' Nielson said, 'but it's gonna get warm for only a second.' As I leaned in with the torch and set the grass ablaze, the heat was overwhelming. While everyone else working the fire seemed nonchalant, I was tentative and terrified. My right hand stretched forward to make the dots and dashes where Nielson instructed, but my butt was sticking as far back into the road as it could get. I asked Nielson how hot he thought the flames in front of us were. 'I used to know that,' he said with a shrug. 'I want to say it's probably between 800 and 1,200 degrees.' With the hillside still burning, I peeled off all of the protective gear, hopped in a car and followed the smoke north along the 101 Freeway. By lunchtime, Ukiah, a town of 16,000 that bills itself as the gateway to the redwoods, was shrouded in haze. Everybody smelled the smoke, but prescribed burns are becoming so common in the region, nobody seemed alarmed. 'Do it!' said Judy Hyler, as she and two friends walked out of Stan's Maple Cafe. A veteran of the rampant destruction of wildfires from years past, she didn't hesitate when asked how she felt about the effort. 'I would rather it be prescribed, controlled and managed than what we've seen before.'
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Info-Tech LIVE 2025 Day 2 Highlights: Bold Strategies for AI, IT Leadership, and Digital Disruption
The second day of Info-Tech LIVE 2025 continued to build momentum, spotlighting bold leadership insights, forward-looking AI strategies, and transformative playbooks to guide IT organizations through exponential change. TORONTO, June 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ - Info-Tech LIVE 2025 brought another wave of powerful insights to the thousands of IT leaders gathered at the Bellagio in Las Vegas for the global research and advisory firm's annual industry conference. From AI's organizational impact to transformative leadership frameworks, the day-two sessions of the three-day event delivered strategic direction across the most pressing areas of enterprise technology. The keynotes drilled into the leadership disciplines and bold bets that separate tomorrow's IT winners from the pack. Featured speakers unpacked everything from building an exceptional IT leadership bench and steering high‑stakes digital gambles to sizing up the next wave of tech trends and reigniting motivation at the human level. Key Highlights From Info-Tech LIVE 2025 in Last Vegas Day 2: 1. Systematically Improve IT: The Seven Secrets of Successful CIOsSpeaker: Geoff Nielson, SVP of Brand & Reach at Info-Tech Research Group Geoff Nielson opened day two of Info-Tech LIVE 2025 by tackling a familiar pain point for the industry: IT departments trapped in "firefighting mode," viewed as operational support rather than strategic change agents. Nielson argued that escaping this cycle isn't about adding tools or headcount; rather, it requires a structural reset of how IT leads, aligns, and delivers value. To that end, Nielson expanded on the IT Playbooks unveiled on day one by the firm's CEO, Tom Zehren. Info-Tech's newly launched IT Playbooks are five interlocking leadership playbooks for CIO, Infrastructure & Operations, Data, Applications, and Security. Each provides a clear cadence, accountability, and role-specific metrics so IT leaders can move in concert, not just in parallel. Key takeaways Transformation is a team sport. The CIO must act as an architect and empower domain leads within applications, infrastructure & operations, security, data, and enterprise architecture to carry shared responsibility for modernization, AI adoption, and resilience. Playbooks turn ambition into traction. By standardizing strategy, governance, and key performance indicators (KPIs), the playbook framework enables leadership teams to shift from reactive tasks to proactive, high-impact initiatives. Measure what matters. Nielson urged attendees to track role-specific "satisfaction" metrics – such as IT satisfaction for CIOs or data culture scores for data leads – and then use feedback loops to prioritize improvements. 2. Winning With Big Bets in the Hyper Digital EraSpeaker: John Rossman, former Amazon executive and best-selling author John Rossman argued that in today's hyper-digital marketplace, cautious, incremental projects rarely move the needle. Instead, companies need well-governed "big bets" that tackle transformational opportunities head-on. Yet many large initiatives stall because teams treat them purely as technology rollouts, overlook the riskiest assumptions, or fail to assign clear decision rights and incentives. Key takeaways Bold beats incremental. Small, safe steps can lead to stagnation; well-framed big bets unlock outsized value. Work backward from outcomes. Rossman's "Build Backward" method starts with a press release-style end-state narrative, then maps experiments to validate the riskiest hypotheses first. Create clarity, sustain velocity. Teams use a shared shorthand to keep decisions focused and momentum high. Be an active skeptic. Big bet leaders ruthlessly test assumptions, kill weak ideas early, and redeploy resources toward opportunities with clear, risk-adjusted returns. Measure return on experimentation. A big bet experiment planner stack ranks unknowns and tracks how quickly each test reduces risk or unlocks value, so every experiment pays its way forward. 3. Tech Trends Retrospective and Sneak PeekSpeaker: Rob Meikle, Executive Counselor, Info-Tech Research Group Rob Meikle likened Info-Tech's annual trend analysis to a compass for IT leaders, grounded in data and disciplined foresight, not hype. Looking back at 45 predictions made since 2017, Info-Tech counts 29 hits, unpacking why some technologies deliver sustained value while others stall. Key takeaways Don't bet on predictions – pursue value. Success stories, such as Citizen Development 2.0, proved their worth by empowering an entire workforce, whereas vision-heavy plays, like the Metaverse, fizzled without a killer use case. Think like a venture capitalist. Diversify bets and map the drivers. IoT thrived because interoperability and analytics were in place. However, Blockchain 2.0 remained niche where feasibility lagged. Be a first mover on transformative tech. Early adopters of generative AI rewrote the competitive rules; arriving late to mandatory sustainability reporting showed how incremental plays yield limited upside. Sneak peek – 2026 trends themes to watch Potential hits: Multiagent orchestration (automating knowledge work at scale) and AI as adversary and ally (AI-driven cyberdefense) top the list for broad applicability and value creation. Proceed with caution. Topics like purpose-built platforms may optimize high-compute workloads but lack the cross-industry impact needed for a breakout win. Meikle's closing message: IT leaders shouldn't merely react to change; they should shape it. Turn uncertainty into opportunity and ensure IT remains a true value engine. 4. The Next RenaissanceSpeaker: Zack Kass, Global AI Advisor, Former Head of Go-to-Market, OpenAI Zack Kass delivered a keynote that explored how plummeting AI costs and rapidly advancing models are ushering in what he called a "Cambrian economic explosion." Kass' mission is to strip away the mystery around AI so leaders can shape, rather than fear, what comes next. Key takeaways Three integration waves. Today's "enhanced apps" phase of ChatGPT-style copilots will give way to autonomous agents that act on our behalf and then, eventually, to a natural-language operating system that makes computing ambient and screen-lite. Unmetered intelligence. As inference costs approach zero, raw cognitive power becomes a utility. Real differentiation will come from how creatively organizations apply it. Risks to watch. Kass flagged four pitfalls – cognitive complacency, a drift toward virtual-first living, AI-enabled bad actors, and an impending identity-and-purpose crisis as work automates. Upside potential. AI can expand individual capability, deflate the cost of essentials like healthcare and education, and free time for richer human pursuits – if policy keeps pace. How to prepare. Leaders should: Learn how to learn. Adaptability outlasts any single skill. Master human qualities. Empathy, curiosity, and courage will matter more than rote knowledge. Cultivate optimism. Positive visions galvanize action and repel fear-driven paralysis. Kass left the audience with a challenge: tell better stories about the future. "Optimism isn't naive," he said. "It's the fuel that turns uncertainty into a more human world." 5. Addictive Leadership Stories in the League: An Interview with Steve Reese, CIO of the Phoenix SunsSpeaker: Steve Reese, Vice President, Chief Information Officer, Phoenix Suns CIO of the Phoenix Suns Steve Reese started his keynote presentation by asking the crowd a disarming question: "Are you the kind of leader you'd follow?" His answer centers on "addictive leadership" – not manipulation – which he explained is a style that makes people feel understood and driven by high purpose. Key takeaways Motivation fuels engagement. Lasting performance comes from tapping the intrinsic "why," not just dangling extrinsic perks. Target the right part of the brain. Great leaders speak to the cortex, focusing on purpose, creativity, and strategy rather than relying on fear-based, reptilian instincts. Leverage the Reiss Motivational Profile. Sixteen core desires, such as curiosity, independence, and tranquility, combine uniquely for each person; aligning work to those drivers lights the spark. One size never fits all. Leaders must "read" each team member, match tasks to natural strengths, and design complementary teams. Case in point – Paul. Reese described transforming a disengaged employee into a high performer by tweaking the environment (e.g. providing quiet spaces or workout breaks) and offering autonomy and role clarity, proving that small, personalized changes often lead to better performance. The new leadership mandate. Modern IT demands leaders coach, adapt, and foster sustainable motivation because people stay for a purpose, not just for the pay. Looking Ahead to Day 3 at Info-Tech LIVE 2025The third and final day of the conference has a half-day agenda that will keep the pace brisk while zeroing in on three key themes: building the next generation of tech talent, practical lessons from high-performing IT leadership teams, and emerging frontiers, such as advanced AI and quantum computing. The third day of the conference will feature keynote sessions from Felix Schmidt, Carlene McCubbin, Geoff Nielson, and Jeremy Roberts. Media Access to Info-Tech LIVE 2025 For media inquiries, including requests for interviews with featured speakers and experts to discuss what has been revealed at LIVE 2025 or for access to session recordings and additional content, please contact pr@ For conference-related press releases and images, please visit the online Info-Tech LIVE 2025 Media Kit. About Info-Tech Research Group Info-Tech Research Group is one of the world's leading research and advisory firms, proudly serving over 30,000 IT and HR professionals. The company produces unbiased, highly relevant research and provides advisory services to help leaders make strategic, timely, and well-informed decisions. For nearly 30 years, Info-Tech has partnered closely with teams to provide them with everything they need, from actionable tools to analyst guidance, ensuring they deliver measurable results for their organizations. To learn more about Info-Tech's divisions, visit McLean & Company for HR research and advisory services and SoftwareReviews for software-buying insights. Media professionals can register for unrestricted access to research across IT, HR, and software and hundreds of industry analysts through the firm's Media Insiders program. To gain access, contact pr@ For information about Info-Tech Research Group or to access the latest research, visit and connect via LinkedIn and X. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Info-Tech Research Group Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Info-Tech LIVE 2025 Day 2 Highlights: Bold Strategies for AI, IT Leadership, and Digital Disruption
The second day of Info-Tech LIVE 2025 continued to build momentum, spotlighting bold leadership insights, forward-looking AI strategies, and transformative playbooks to guide IT organizations through exponential change. TORONTO, June 12, 2025 /CNW/ - Info-Tech LIVE 2025 brought another wave of powerful insights to the thousands of IT leaders gathered at the Bellagio in Las Vegas for the global research and advisory firm's annual industry conference. From AI's organizational impact to transformative leadership frameworks, the day-two sessions of the three-day event delivered strategic direction across the most pressing areas of enterprise technology. The keynotes drilled into the leadership disciplines and bold bets that separate tomorrow's IT winners from the pack. Featured speakers unpacked everything from building an exceptional IT leadership bench and steering high‑stakes digital gambles to sizing up the next wave of tech trends and reigniting motivation at the human level. Key Highlights From Info-Tech LIVE 2025 in Last Vegas Day 2: 1. Systematically Improve IT: The Seven Secrets of Successful CIOsSpeaker: Geoff Nielson, SVP of Brand & Reach at Info-Tech Research Group Geoff Nielson opened day two of Info-Tech LIVE 2025 by tackling a familiar pain point for the industry: IT departments trapped in "firefighting mode," viewed as operational support rather than strategic change agents. Nielson argued that escaping this cycle isn't about adding tools or headcount; rather, it requires a structural reset of how IT leads, aligns, and delivers value. To that end, Nielson expanded on the IT Playbooks unveiled on day one by the firm's CEO, Tom Zehren. Info-Tech's newly launched IT Playbooks are five interlocking leadership playbooks for CIO, Infrastructure & Operations, Data, Applications, and Security. Each provides a clear cadence, accountability, and role-specific metrics so IT leaders can move in concert, not just in parallel. Key takeaways Transformation is a team sport. The CIO must act as an architect and empower domain leads within applications, infrastructure & operations, security, data, and enterprise architecture to carry shared responsibility for modernization, AI adoption, and resilience. Playbooks turn ambition into traction. By standardizing strategy, governance, and key performance indicators (KPIs), the playbook framework enables leadership teams to shift from reactive tasks to proactive, high-impact initiatives. Measure what matters. Nielson urged attendees to track role-specific "satisfaction" metrics – such as IT satisfaction for CIOs or data culture scores for data leads – and then use feedback loops to prioritize improvements. 2. Winning With Big Bets in the Hyper Digital EraSpeaker: John Rossman, former Amazon executive and best-selling author John Rossman argued that in today's hyper-digital marketplace, cautious, incremental projects rarely move the needle. Instead, companies need well-governed "big bets" that tackle transformational opportunities head-on. Yet many large initiatives stall because teams treat them purely as technology rollouts, overlook the riskiest assumptions, or fail to assign clear decision rights and incentives. Key takeaways Bold beats incremental. Small, safe steps can lead to stagnation; well-framed big bets unlock outsized value. Work backward from outcomes. Rossman's "Build Backward" method starts with a press release-style end-state narrative, then maps experiments to validate the riskiest hypotheses first. Create clarity, sustain velocity. Teams use a shared shorthand to keep decisions focused and momentum high. Be an active skeptic. Big bet leaders ruthlessly test assumptions, kill weak ideas early, and redeploy resources toward opportunities with clear, risk-adjusted returns. Measure return on experimentation. A big bet experiment planner stack ranks unknowns and tracks how quickly each test reduces risk or unlocks value, so every experiment pays its way forward. 3. Tech Trends Retrospective and Sneak PeekSpeaker: Rob Meikle, Executive Counselor, Info-Tech Research Group Rob Meikle likened Info-Tech's annual trend analysis to a compass for IT leaders, grounded in data and disciplined foresight, not hype. Looking back at 45 predictions made since 2017, Info-Tech counts 29 hits, unpacking why some technologies deliver sustained value while others stall. Key takeaways Don't bet on predictions – pursue value. Success stories, such as Citizen Development 2.0, proved their worth by empowering an entire workforce, whereas vision-heavy plays, like the Metaverse, fizzled without a killer use case. Think like a venture capitalist. Diversify bets and map the drivers. IoT thrived because interoperability and analytics were in place. However, Blockchain 2.0 remained niche where feasibility lagged. Be a first mover on transformative tech. Early adopters of generative AI rewrote the competitive rules; arriving late to mandatory sustainability reporting showed how incremental plays yield limited upside. Sneak peek – 2026 trends themes to watch Potential hits: Multiagent orchestration (automating knowledge work at scale) and AI as adversary and ally (AI-driven cyberdefense) top the list for broad applicability and value creation. Proceed with caution. Topics like purpose-built platforms may optimize high-compute workloads but lack the cross-industry impact needed for a breakout win. Meikle's closing message: IT leaders shouldn't merely react to change; they should shape it. Turn uncertainty into opportunity and ensure IT remains a true value engine. 4. The Next RenaissanceSpeaker: Zack Kass, Global AI Advisor, Former Head of Go-to-Market, OpenAI Zack Kass delivered a keynote that explored how plummeting AI costs and rapidly advancing models are ushering in what he called a "Cambrian economic explosion." Kass' mission is to strip away the mystery around AI so leaders can shape, rather than fear, what comes next. Key takeaways Three integration waves. Today's "enhanced apps" phase of ChatGPT-style copilots will give way to autonomous agents that act on our behalf and then, eventually, to a natural-language operating system that makes computing ambient and screen-lite. Unmetered intelligence. As inference costs approach zero, raw cognitive power becomes a utility. Real differentiation will come from how creatively organizations apply it. Risks to watch. Kass flagged four pitfalls – cognitive complacency, a drift toward virtual-first living, AI-enabled bad actors, and an impending identity-and-purpose crisis as work automates. Upside potential. AI can expand individual capability, deflate the cost of essentials like healthcare and education, and free time for richer human pursuits – if policy keeps pace. How to prepare. Leaders should: Learn how to learn. Adaptability outlasts any single skill. Master human qualities. Empathy, curiosity, and courage will matter more than rote knowledge. Cultivate optimism. Positive visions galvanize action and repel fear-driven paralysis. Kass left the audience with a challenge: tell better stories about the future. "Optimism isn't naive," he said. "It's the fuel that turns uncertainty into a more human world." 5. Addictive Leadership Stories in the League: An Interview with Steve Reese, CIO of the Phoenix SunsSpeaker: Steve Reese, Vice President, Chief Information Officer, Phoenix Suns CIO of the Phoenix Suns Steve Reese started his keynote presentation by asking the crowd a disarming question: "Are you the kind of leader you'd follow?" His answer centers on "addictive leadership" – not manipulation – which he explained is a style that makes people feel understood and driven by high purpose. Key takeaways Motivation fuels engagement. Lasting performance comes from tapping the intrinsic "why," not just dangling extrinsic perks. Target the right part of the brain. Great leaders speak to the cortex, focusing on purpose, creativity, and strategy rather than relying on fear-based, reptilian instincts. Leverage the Reiss Motivational Profile. Sixteen core desires, such as curiosity, independence, and tranquility, combine uniquely for each person; aligning work to those drivers lights the spark. One size never fits all. Leaders must "read" each team member, match tasks to natural strengths, and design complementary teams. Case in point – Paul. Reese described transforming a disengaged employee into a high performer by tweaking the environment (e.g. providing quiet spaces or workout breaks) and offering autonomy and role clarity, proving that small, personalized changes often lead to better performance. The new leadership mandate. Modern IT demands leaders coach, adapt, and foster sustainable motivation because people stay for a purpose, not just for the pay. Looking Ahead to Day 3 at Info-Tech LIVE 2025The third and final day of the conference has a half-day agenda that will keep the pace brisk while zeroing in on three key themes: building the next generation of tech talent, practical lessons from high-performing IT leadership teams, and emerging frontiers, such as advanced AI and quantum computing. The third day of the conference will feature keynote sessions from Felix Schmidt, Carlene McCubbin, Geoff Nielson, and Jeremy Roberts. Media Access to Info-Tech LIVE 2025 For media inquiries, including requests for interviews with featured speakers and experts to discuss what has been revealed at LIVE 2025 or for access to session recordings and additional content, please contact pr@ For conference-related press releases and images, please visit the online Info-Tech LIVE 2025 Media Kit. About Info-Tech Research Group Info-Tech Research Group is one of the world's leading research and advisory firms, proudly serving over 30,000 IT and HR professionals. The company produces unbiased, highly relevant research and provides advisory services to help leaders make strategic, timely, and well-informed decisions. For nearly 30 years, Info-Tech has partnered closely with teams to provide them with everything they need, from actionable tools to analyst guidance, ensuring they deliver measurable results for their organizations. To learn more about Info-Tech's divisions, visit McLean & Company for HR research and advisory services and SoftwareReviews for software-buying insights. Media professionals can register for unrestricted access to research across IT, HR, and software and hundreds of industry analysts through the firm's Media Insiders program. To gain access, contact pr@ For information about Info-Tech Research Group or to access the latest research, visit and connect via LinkedIn and X. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Info-Tech Research Group View original content to download multimedia: Sign in to access your portfolio
Sydney Morning Herald
01-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
Netflix reveals release date for final season of Stranger Things
Netflix has finally revealed the release date for the long-awaited final season of its hit Stranger Things. The eight-episode fifth season has been split into three parts, with the first four episodes released on November 27, three episodes released on Boxing Day and the final episode released on January 1. Created by the Duffer Brothers, the series has been a monster hit for the streamer ever since it debuted in 2016. Set in the 1980s in the small town of Hawkins, Indiana, it initially followed the disappearance of 12-year-old Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) into the alternate dimension of the Upside Down and the appearance of young girl named Eleven (Millie Bobbie Brown), who has psychokinetic powers. The main cast is set to return, including Winona Ryder, who plays Will's mother Joyce Byers and David Harbour, who plays police chief Jim Hopper. Terminator's Linda Hamilton is only big-name-addition to the fifth series, playing an undisclosed role. The show's blend of 1980s nostalgia, supernatural horror and teenage drama made it a breakout hit for Netflix, picking up 57 Emmy award nominations. The show's fourth season was named the most streamed show of 2022, with more than 52 billion viewing minutes over the year, according to ratings agency Nielson. It has also spawned a play, Stranger Things: The First Shadow, which opened to mixed reviews on the West End in 2024 and Broadway in April this year. Netflix made the announcement at its Tudum fan event, where it also announced the release dates and revealed new trailers and teasers for the third and final season of Korean hit Squid Game (released June 26), the film Happy Gilmore 2 (July 26), the third Knives Out movie, Wake Up Dead Man, starring Daniel Craig as private detective Benoit Blanc, will be released on December 13, and Ben Affleck and Matt Damon's new crime thriller The Rip (January 17). A teaser trailer for Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro's adaptation of Frankenstein, starring Australia's Jacob Elordi as the monster, was also revealed, but there was no firm release date, other than saying it would be in November.
The Age
01-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Age
Netflix reveals release date for final season of Stranger Things
Netflix has finally revealed the release date for the long-awaited final season of its hit Stranger Things. The eight-episode fifth season has been split into three parts, with the first four episodes released on November 27, three episodes released on Boxing Day and the final episode released on January 1. Created by the Duffer Brothers, the series has been a monster hit for the streamer ever since it debuted in 2016. Set in the 1980s in the small town of Hawkins, Indiana, it initially followed the disappearance of 12-year-old Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) into the alternate dimension of the Upside Down and the appearance of young girl named Eleven (Millie Bobbie Brown), who has psychokinetic powers. The main cast is set to return, including Winona Ryder, who plays Will's mother Joyce Byers and David Harbour, who plays police chief Jim Hopper. Terminator's Linda Hamilton is only big-name-addition to the fifth series, playing an undisclosed role. The show's blend of 1980s nostalgia, supernatural horror and teenage drama made it a breakout hit for Netflix, picking up 57 Emmy award nominations. The show's fourth season was named the most streamed show of 2022, with more than 52 billion viewing minutes over the year, according to ratings agency Nielson. It has also spawned a play, Stranger Things: The First Shadow, which opened to mixed reviews on the West End in 2024 and Broadway in April this year. Netflix made the announcement at its Tudum fan event, where it also announced the release dates and revealed new trailers and teasers for the third and final season of Korean hit Squid Game (released June 26), the film Happy Gilmore 2 (July 26), the third Knives Out movie, Wake Up Dead Man, starring Daniel Craig as private detective Benoit Blanc, will be released on December 13, and Ben Affleck and Matt Damon's new crime thriller The Rip (January 17). A teaser trailer for Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro's adaptation of Frankenstein, starring Australia's Jacob Elordi as the monster, was also revealed, but there was no firm release date, other than saying it would be in November.
