Connect with us

Technology

Modernizing K-12 Education: Info-Tech Research Group Says to Adopt an Exponential IT Mindset to Meet Evolving Needs of Students and Educators

Published

on

In a newly published industry blueprint for K-12 education leaders, Info-Tech Research Group advises the need for the sector to integrate advanced technologies to boost student engagement, strengthen cybersecurity, and streamline school operations. The research delivers research and actionable insights to guide leaders in developing an Exponential IT mindset to drive innovation, enhance learning experiences, and optimize educational infrastructure.

TORONTO, June 5, 2024 /CNW/ – As K-12 education institutions grapple with rapid technological advancements and increasing demands for digital transformation, schools are under pressure to modernize their operations to remain relevant and effective, as well as to meet the evolving needs of students and educators. However, balancing the need for cost optimization in a constrained environment while investing in technology can be challenging. To support this critical transition, global research and advisory firm Info-Tech Research Group has released a new blueprint, Priorities for Adopting an Exponential IT Mindset in K-12 Education. This comprehensive, sector-specific research provides education leaders with strategic insights and actionable plans to leverage exponential technologies, such as AI and advanced analytics, to enhance educational outcomes, streamline operations, and drive innovation across all levels of the education system.

“Information technology is revolutionizing K-12 education, from improving classroom interactions to streamlining administrative processes,” says Mark Maby, principal research director at Info-Tech Research Group. “The rapid pace of technological change is creating numerous opportunities, but to fully leverage these, IT leaders in K-12 schools must evolve into strategic partners. By doing so, they can unlock advanced value and insights that will benefit their schools and districts.”

As explained by Info-Tech in the new resource, “Exponential IT” in the context of K-12 education involves the strategic adoption and integration of advanced technologies to revolutionize how schools operate and deliver education. This framework includes leveraging artificial intelligence, data analytics, and automation to enhance classroom learning, streamline administrative tasks, and improve overall educational outcomes. The firm advises that by adopting an Exponential IT mindset, K-12 institutions can navigate the rapid technological changes, strengthen cybersecurity measures, and foster an innovative learning environment that supports the continuous growth and development of both students and educators.

“With exponential technologies come new risks, including heightened security threats and the complexities of deploying these innovations within schools,” explains Maby. “For Exponential IT to be successful, acquiring new skills and capabilities is essential, but achieving innovation readiness can be a significant hurdle. To stay ahead, technology leaders in K-12 education need to grasp the core priorities of Exponential IT transformation. Establishing and integrating foundational capabilities are vital first steps in launching a successful Exponential IT journey, which can create substantial value for all stakeholders in the K-12 education sector.”

The firm’s research highlights the significant challenges that K-12 institutions face in adopting Exponential IT, including limited budgets, outdated infrastructure, and the need for enhanced digital literacy among educators. Info-Tech cites that schools often struggle with integrating new technologies into legacy systems, ensuring cybersecurity, and providing equitable access to digital resources for all students. Overcoming these challenges requires a holistic approach that includes strategic planning, investment in professional development for educators and IT staff, and fostering a culture of innovation. By building foundational IT capabilities and advancing digital competencies, K-12 schools can navigate the complexities of digital transformation and drive significant improvements in educational outcomes and operational efficiency.

Additionally, in the blueprint, Info-Tech emphasizes the necessity for K-12 schools to adopt robust data governance practices to safeguard student information and support data-driven educational strategies. Leveraging emerging technologies like AI, advanced analytics, and cloud computing can enhance personalized learning, streamline administrative tasks, and improve overall operational efficiency. This approach ensures that schools not only protect sensitive data but also harness its potential to drive innovative teaching methods and improve student outcomes. By focusing on these technological advancements, schools can create a more engaging and effective learning environment, preparing students for a technology-driven world.

Info-Tech’s blueprint details four key priorities that K-12 educational IT leaders must consider as they adopt an Exponential IT mindset, outlined below:

Co-Own Organizational Outcomes: By co-owning organizational outcomes, IT leaders can focus more time on strategic organizational goals and outcomes rather than just application delivery. As IT services become commoditized and outsourced, the role of IT must evolve to be integral to educational success.Defend Against AI Attacks: IT must defend against exponentially sophisticated threat actors leveraging AI-powered capabilities. This includes preparing for a threat landscape where polymorphic APTs and zero-day threats are on the rise, as attackers operate without the regulatory constraints that defenders face.Boost Vendor Management Practices: IT should manage a portfolio of virtual organizational capability vendors, moving beyond transactional relationships to strategic partnerships. This approach can free up budget to invest in new technology use cases by reducing costs for routine operations and integrating end-to-end capabilities.Treat Data as a Product: Data must be managed as a valuable product rather than merely a business enabler. This involves evolving roles to drive product ownership, increasing cross-functional influence and collaboration, and actively marketing and using data assets both internally and externally to achieve organizational outcomes.

As schools continue to navigate the rapidly evolving technological landscape, those that embrace these priorities will be well-positioned to foster innovation, ensure data security, and create dynamic, engaging learning environments that prepare students for the future.

Through the adoption of an Exponential IT mindset, K-12 education institutions can address the multifaceted challenges of digital transformation, enhance their operational efficiencies, and significantly improve educational outcomes. Info-Tech Research Group’s blueprint provides a comprehensive roadmap to guide IT leaders through this transformation, offering actionable insights and strategies to leverage emerging technologies effectively.

For exclusive and timely commentary on this topic from Info-Tech’s analysts and access to the complete Priorities for Adopting an Exponential IT Mindset in K-12 Education blueprint, please contact pr@infotech.com.

Info-Tech LIVE 2024
Registration is now open for Info-Tech Research Group’s annual IT conference, Info-Tech LIVE 2024, taking place September 17 to 19, 2024, at the iconic Bellagio in Las Vegas. This premier event will also offer journalists, podcasters, and media influencers access to exclusive content, the latest IT research and trends, and the opportunity to interview industry experts, analysts, and speakers. To apply for media passes to attend the event or to gain access to research and expert insights on trending topics, please contact pr@infotech.com.

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@infotech.com

For information about Info-Tech Research Group or to access the latest research, visit infotech.com and connect via LinkedIn and X.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/modernizing-k-12-education-info-tech-research-group-says-to-adopt-an-exponential-it-mindset-to-meet-evolving-needs-of-students-and-educators-302165184.html

SOURCE Info-Tech Research Group

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Technology

11:11 Systems Announces Strategic Partnership with Cato Networks to Deliver SASE Solution for Distributed Enterprises

Published

on

By

New Managed Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) solution combines SD-WAN, cloud-native networking and security capabilities with 11:11’s connectivity, cyber resilience and cloud expertise

SYDNEY, July 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — 11:11 Systems, a leading managed infrastructure solutions provider, today announced the global availability of its 11:11 Managed Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) solution and a new strategic partnership with Cato Networks.

11:11 Managed SASE is a fully managed secure connectivity solution leveraging Cato Networks AI-native network security platform. This solution brings together intelligent SD-WAN, cloud-delivered security and global connectivity into a single offering. It enables organisations to simplify and secure access across branch offices, data centres, users and cloud environments, reducing complexity without sacrificing performance or control.

Built on the Cato Networks cloud-native SASE platform, 11:11 Managed SASE combines zero trust network access (ZTNA), firewall as a service (FWaaS), secure web gateway (SWG), cloud access security broker (CASB), advanced threat protection and centralised visibility into a unified managed experience. 11:11 also delivers 24x7x365 monitoring and support, incident management integration and operational accountability to help customers limit vendor sprawl, increase agility and free internal teams to focus on higher-value priorities.

The offering is backed by 11:11’s broader networking, cloud and cyber resilience capabilities. Through its global backbone, carrier-agnostic connectivity options and integrated portfolio spanning cloud, backup, disaster recovery and security services, 11:11 gives customers a practical path to modernise network and security architecture while strengthening resilience across the business.

“Enterprises are under pressure to support users, applications and locations that are more distributed than ever, while limiting complexity and improving security,” said Justin Giardina, CTO, 11:11 Systems. “Our Managed SASE solution provides customers with a unified approach to modernising networking and security, along with the visibility, support and flexibility they need to thrive in a rapidly changing environment.”

According to Karl Soderlund, global channel chief, Cato Networks, “As enterprises move beyond fragmented legacy networking and security stacks, they need a simpler way to gain visibility, context and control across hybrid work environments and reduce the operational burden on IT. Through our partnership, we can address these challenges head on and deliver end-to-end visibility and protection in a single service built for the reality of modern work.”

The joint offering is well suited for distributed enterprises, multi-site organisations, hybrid workforce initiatives, SD-WAN refreshes, security modernisation efforts and businesses with limited IT resources. 11:11 meets customers where they are by supporting existing environments, simplifying multi-vendor operations and serving as a single provider accountable for network, security, cloud and data integration.

This partnership expands 11:11’s Network as a Service portfolio and follows Forrester’s inclusion of 11:11 Systems in its report, “The Secure Access Service Edge Services Landscape, Q1 2026.”

About 11:11 Systems

11:11 Systems is a managed infrastructure solutions provider that empowers customers to modernise, protect and manage mission-critical applications and data, leveraging 11:11’s resilient cloud platform. Learn more at www.1111Systems.com and follow 11:11 on LinkedIn.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/1111-systems-announces-strategic-partnership-with-cato-networks-to-deliver-sase-solution-for-distributed-enterprises-302830322.html

SOURCE 11:11 Systems

Continue Reading

Technology

Crowell & Moring Expands Financial Services Group with Former UBS Bank USA General Counsel Cristina Diaz

Published

on

By

NEW YORK, July 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Crowell & Moring has added Cristina Diaz, former executive director and general counsel of UBS Bank USA, and most recently head of legal for UBS’s U.S. Remediation Management Office, to the firm’s Financial Services Group as senior counsel in New York. Diaz brings more than two decades of in-house counsel and law firm experience in bank regulation, compliance, and risk management.

At Crowell, Diaz will counsel banks, fintechs, and digital assets companies on a broad range of bank regulatory matters, including charters and licensing, permissible activities, capital requirements, regulatory enforcement, M&A, and corporate governance. She will also counsel clients navigating the intersection of traditional banking and emerging financial services, including digital assets companies seeking to acquire or establish national banks, and banks exploring partnerships with fintechs and digital assets firms.

At UBS, Diaz advised on the firm’s most pressing regulatory matters, including most recently UBS Bank USA’s charter conversion from a Utah industrial bank to an OCC national bank and key compliance remediations. This work gave Diaz extensive experience navigating relationships with state and federal financial regulators. Earlier in her career, Diaz spent eight years at Davis Polk & Wardwell advising U.S. and foreign banks on bank regulatory matters, M&A, and capital markets transactions.

“Cristina is a highly experienced, solution-oriented attorney who brings deep knowledge in the bank regulatory space. She will be an enormous asset to the firm’s growing regulatory and transactional offerings to banks, digital assets businesses, and fintechs,” said Carlton Greene, Co-Chair of Crowell’s Financial Services Group.

“I am delighted to join Crowell & Moring and integrate my bank regulatory experience with the firm’s nationally-recognized digital assets practice. As traditional banking and emerging financial technologies continue to evolve, clients need actionable and sophisticated legal counsel. Crowell offers the collaborative platform to help institutions successfully execute their growth and compliance strategies,” said Diaz.

Diaz received her J.D. from New York University School of Law, where she was a member of the New York University Law Review, and received her B.A., summa cum laude, from New York University. She is fluent in Spanish.

About Crowell & Moring LLP
Crowell & Moring is an international law firm with operations in the United States, Europe, and MENA. Drawing on significant government, business, industry, and legal experience, the firm helps clients capitalize on opportunities and provides creative solutions to complex regulatory and policy, litigation, transactional, and intellectual property issues. The firm is consistently recognized for its commitment to pro bono service, as well as its comprehensive programs and initiatives to advance the professional and personal development of all members of the Crowell community.

Media Contact:
Email: prteam@crowell.com

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/crowell–moring-expands-financial-services-group-with-former-ubs-bank-usa-general-counsel-cristina-diaz-302831280.html

SOURCE Crowell & Moring LLP

Continue Reading

Technology

Quantinuum and SoftBank Corp. Publish Joint White Paper on Scaling Practical Quantum Computing Use Cases Toward the Fault-Tolerant Era

Published

on

By

The companies have published a joint white paper mapping commercially relevant quantum computing use cases in quantum chemistry and graph analytics to Quantinuum’s hardware roadmap.The paper provides a framework for assessing how advances in quantum hardware and algorithms, could affect when practical industrial applications become feasible.SoftBank Corp. and Quantinuum will use the roadmap to inform their exploration of future quantum AI data center services and related business models.

TOKYO and BROOMFIELD, Colo., July 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Quantinuum (NASDAQ: QNT) and SoftBank Corp. (“SoftBank”) today announced the publication of “Quantum Computing Frontiers,” a joint white paper that maps two commercially-relevant quantum computing application areas against Quantinuum’s hardware roadmap. The analysis examines how advances in quantum hardware and algorithms could affect when these applications become practical for industrial use.

The paper focuses on two representative application domains that SoftBank is actively using Quantinuum’s systems to research: quantum chemistry for new materials discovery and energy research, and topological data analysis for large-scale graph analytics, including for telecommunications fraud detection. The authors anchor their assessment of the scalability of these two application areas against Quantinuum’s published hardware roadmap, examining how projected advances in hardware capabilities and algorithms may enable the commercial readiness of future industrial applications.

Building on this use-case roadmap, the paper also examines how quantum computing, AI, and high-performance computing could be integrated into future computing infrastructure. It considers how progress across successive hardware generations could inform future quantum AI data center services and related business models, a key focus of the Quantinuum and SoftBank partnership announced last year.

“The key takeaway of this study is that organizations do not need to wait for large-scale, fault-tolerant systems to explore where quantum computing can begin creating value,” said Duncan Jones, General Manager, Applications Group at Quantinuum. “By using today’s systems to develop, benchmark and refine applications in areas such as quantum chemistry and graph analytics, enterprises can build the technical and operational readiness needed for the next era of quantum-enabled computing.”

“The question is no longer whether quantum computing may deliver value, but rather which problem classes become executable at which stage of hardware maturity,” said Ryuji Wakikawa, Senior Vice President & CTO at SoftBank Corp. “However, we believe progress in hardware must be complemented by equally strong developments in quantum algorithms and the integration of quantum systems with AI and high-performance computing.”

The white paper discusses illustrative scenarios describing how representative applications, technology maturity, and potential market opportunities may evolve over time under stated assumptions. The analysis provided in the paper is intended to provide a conceptual framework for understanding potential market evolution and does not represent financial guidance or forecasts. These analyses are intended to support discussion of future technology development and should not be interpreted as commitments regarding commercialization, infrastructure investment, products, services, or financial performance.

The full white paper is available to download on the SoftBank and Quantinuum websites.

About SoftBank Corp.

Guided by the SoftBank Group’s corporate philosophy, “Information Revolution – Happiness for everyone,” SoftBank Corp. (TOKYO: 9434) operates telecommunications and IT businesses in Japan and globally. Building on its strong business foundation, SoftBank Corp. is aiming to activate the potential of AI across its businesses and drive implementation in line with its “Activate AI for Society” growth strategy. While further growing its telecom business, SoftBank is expanding its AI computing infrastructure and AI and Cloud service businesses with the aim of becoming a provider of Next-generation Social Infrastructure. To learn more, please visit https://www.softbank.jp/en/corp/

About Quantinuum

Quantinuum (NASDAQ: QNT) is a leading quantum computing company offering a full-stack platform designed to make quantum computing deployable in real-world environments. The company has commercially deployed multiple generations of quantum systems built on the well-established QCCD architecture, which it has implemented with novel designs and capabilities to achieve the industry’s highest accuracy levels based on average two-qubit gate fidelity.[1] Quantinuum has active engagements with market leaders across pharmaceuticals, material science, financial services, and government and industrial markets. The company has a global workforce of approximately 700 employees, including top scientists and researchers. Over 70% of its technology team holds PhDs or Master’s degrees. Quantinuum’s headquarters is in Broomfield, Colorado, with additional facilities across the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, Qatar, and Singapore.

For more information, please visit www.quantinuum.com.

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain statements that may be deemed “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include all statements that are not historical facts. The words “anticipate,” “assume,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “future,” “will,” “seek,” “foreseeable,” the negative version of these words, or similar terms and phrases are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on certain assumptions and assessments made by our management in light of their experience and their perception of historical trends, current economic and industry conditions, expected future developments and other factors they believe to be appropriate. The forward-looking statements included in this release are also subject to a number of material risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to economic, competitive, governmental, and technological factors affecting our operations, markets, products, services and prices. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for Quantinuum to predict all such factors. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and, except as required by law, Quantinuum does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

 

[1] As of December 31, 2025.

SOURCE Quantinuum

Continue Reading

Trending