MES Computing

Patching has been part of IT for decades. From walking around updating individual machines… to centralized patching… to automated updates in the cloud. You’d think we’d have this solved by now. (That’s kind of poetic, no?) But we don’t. New data shows enterprise Windows devices are now, on average, 256 days behind on critical patches. In our latest Ready.Set.Midmarket! podcast episode, Andy Ward, SVP International at Absolute Security, explains why Windows 11 update delays aren’t just about convenience—they’re a growing cyber resilience risk. 🎧 Watch/listen here: https://okt.to/zYPLJB

The rapid expansion of AI infrastructure by hyperscalers is dramatically increasing global data center electricity consumption, outpacing sustainability commitments and creating new challenges in transparency and environmental reporting. All three major hyperscalers claim 100% renewable energy matching, but contracting renewable energy and delivering it onto the grid are different things. AWS brought 2.7 GW online in 2024. Google brought 2.5 GW. Microsoft won't say. Behind-the-meter gas generation is quietly filling the gap between clean energy ambition and operational reality, and no ESG report addresses it. Our sister publication Computing's Penny Horwood has the details:

Midmarket IT leaders are rapidly scaling AI, but the data governance required to keep those systems in check is failing to keep pace. Some industry reports show a widening “proof gap,” or the space between deploying AI and proving to boards, auditors and other stakeholders how, with evidence, those systems are governed, monitored and controlled. Organizations can often show how an AI model works but struggle to explain how the model’s decisions were made, what data it relied on, or whether that data was appropriate for the use case. Midmarket organizations are more likely to see gains from their AI investments by narrowing the proof gap and ensuring data governance is aligned. Here’s a checklist for midmarket IT leaders to determine the state of their organization’s data governance:

As organizations deploy more automated systems and service accounts, identity security has come under scrutiny as credential-based attacks grow more sophisticated and become more frequent. In response, more identity threat and detection response (ITDR) solutions are integrating managed detection and response (MDR) capabilities into their offerings. Analyst reports from firms including Gartner and IDC have noted particularly strong MDR uptake among midmarket organizations facing security talent shortages. As MDR becomes more integrated into ITDR platforms, there are concerns that many ITDR solutions are often too big for midmarket organizations, creating a gap in the market. MES Computing Senior Editor Samara Lynn details insights from a Verosint (now Imprivata) report and Kendra Krause, general manager at ThreatDown:

Glass substrates and silicon photonics represent a fundamental architectural shift

In this episode of Ready.Set.Midmarket!, MES Computing sits down with Andy Ward, SVP International at Absolute Security, to unpack why patching is no longer routine maintenance — it’s now a critical factor in an organization’s ability to withstand and recover from cyber incidents

Midmarket IT modernization’s familiar “rinse, lather, repeat” pattern of renegotiating contracts, buying what’s needed and deploying broke when VMware pricing skyrocketed after its acquisition by Broadcom, AI became priority No. 1 for senior leadership, and today’s threat landscape, including the looming “Q‑Day,” turned cybersecurity into a 24x7 battle arena. For many teams, modernization isn’t just urgent, but mandatory. During a session hosted by Mike Cisek, VP analyst for infrastructure, operations and cloud at Gartner, at the recent Midsize Enterprise Summit Spring 2026, the following midmarket IT leaders discussed how they’ve tackled modernization challenges head-on, from a move from Nutanix AHV to Microsoft Azure in the face of rising virtualization costs to refocusing on data classification, governance and cleanup, and rethinking the role of managed service providers (MSPs) to move faster without inflating staff or budgets: - Jason Frame, chief information officer, the Southern Nevada Health District - Chance Irvine, vice president, information technology, Transit Technologies - Daniel Lehman, CIO/CISO, Arnall Golden Gregory LLP #MES

After Broadcom’s acquisition of VMware in 2023, a majority of midsize organizations are now pursuing VMware alternatives, driven by contract renewal pressure and pricing shock among other factors, according to Mike Cisek, VP analyst for infrastructure, operations and cloud at research firm Gartner. Cisek delivered a post-mortem on how midmarket IT executives were handling business platform modernization in the wake of the acquisition and the best practices for seeking alternative platforms at the recent Midsize Enterprise Summit Spring 2026 in Houston. With only 10 percent to 15 percent of midsize organizations remaining committed to VMware, loyalty is diminishing, Gartner data found. For midmarket IT executives, a key point Cisek emphasized is that migrating platforms is no longer a “Should we?” conversation, but rather a “When and how fast do we move?” discussion that requires some thoughtful planning. MES Computing Senior Editor Samara Lynn has the details from Cisek’s #MES Spring session:

Workforce anxiety around AI is real, and everyone’s feeling it. C-suite executives, investors, and other stakeholders are pushing AI use in a frenetic state of FOMO, eager to reap the ROI and streamlined business processes that it promises. During an executive session at the recent Midsize Enterprise Summit Spring 2026, Herman Brown, chief information officer at the district attorney’s office in San Francisco, offered advice to midmarket CIOs on taking a leadership role in quelling AI anxiety in their organizations. MES Computing Senior Editor Samara Lynn breaks down the key takeaways from the session:

The Shared Responsibility Model is the backbone of the information and infrastructure security of modern IT landscapes. It precisely defines which tasks are the responsibility of the provider and which the customer must take on. The current discussion about Anthropic and its specific, four-stage model for AI agents has brought the topic back into focus. But what does shared responsibility mean in practice and what impact does it have on the IT security strategy of organizations? Kerstin G. Stief, editor of our sister publication Computing Deutschland, has all the details: