IT Managers are responsible for guaranteeing cybersecurity in a rapidly evolving field. We talked to Roberto Bertocco, Head of IT SUANFARMA Italia about the many demands he faces in his role.
- What does the job of IT Manager consist of?
The IT Manager is an operational figure with managerial roles. The IT Manager is responsible for IT services, maintenance and general management of what are called information systems. It is, however, also a figure that has a global vision of business processes that supports the business in the choice of technological solutions especially at this time in which “digital transformation” has become one of the cornerstones for the industrial sector and beyond.
- What IT security risks are of most concern to businesses today?
Corporate information plays a strategic role in business and, in most cases, is stored in electronic/digital format. Hence the need to protect information both for its intrinsic value, but also and especially for the strategic value it has. Nowadays, “cyber attacks” are a daily occurrence and require continuous updates in terms of both technology and behavior by the users of the information; hence IT departments must provide skills and solutions both in the field of Cyber Security and Software Engineering to deal with security problems such as: hacker attacks, ransomware, computer viruses, fake news, to name just a few cases.
- What are the main challenges facing IT managers today?
In addition to cybersecurity, which must always remain in the IT Manager’s line of sight, the issues he has to face are related on the one hand to new technologies: Artificial Intelligence; Cloud, Big Data; Machine Learning, IoT. On the other to the skills required: workgroup management; IT systems monitoring; project planning and development; cyber security strategies; documentation management; budget management; collaboration with other business areas.
- What do you do to keep up with industry innovations?
There is no shortage of information channels, of course. The problem is distinguishing between good information and bad information. For this purpose, therefore, training and refresher courses, in IT and Management, selected and provided by partners with an excellent reputation. As far as the internet is concerned, the matter becomes more complicated; however, there is no lack of tools to investigate the reliability of information, such as the “impact factor” (IF) or the “Journal Citation Reports” for scientific publishing. In any case, when dealing with information on the Internet, it is necessary to have a good dose of skepticism and be ready to verify information by comparing it with different sources. In short, it is a demanding job.
- What advice would you give to a young person interested in working in IT?
As with all “jobs” you need passion. It’s a job where things change very quickly: keeping up to date is essential, keeping up with new technologies, and at the same time being attentive in providing concrete solutions for the business. It is also essential to establish good relationships with customers, providing a reliable service at the right price. Last but not least, it is also important to make yourself understood by your customers and therefore be patient in explaining how things work in a way that everyone can understand.
- Three words to describe SUANFARMA Italia
Dynamism, Freshness, Openness
