There are currently few things that worry CEOs worldwide as much as geopolitics. Cybersecurity is undoubtedly one of them. But what happens when you combine geopolitical conflicts and cyber threats?
Geopolitical cyber threats, that’s what.
This lethal combination threatens to disrupt economies, destabilize governments, and shatter global stability. That’s why it must be met with an ironclad cybersecurity strategy.
But what does that strategy entail?
That’s for Tom Vazdar and Venicia Solomons to answer. Tom is the chair of the Master’s Degree in Enterprise Cybersecurity program at the Open Institute of Technology (OPIT). Venicia is a seasoned cybersecurity architect and advocate who has rightfully earned the nickname “the Cyber Queen.”
Here’s what these two esteemed cyber professionals have to say about geopolitical cyber threats in their highly informative master class titled “Cyber Threat Landscape 2024: Navigating New Risks.”
What Are Geopolitical Cyber Threats?
Geopolitical threats refer to cyberattacks (or campaigns) driven by political motives. These attacks are often conducted by state-sponsored actors and have a specific strategic goal in mind.
For instance, Iran-backed hackers have recently been targeting U.S. water systems, aiming to disrupt Israeli-made equipment globally. This example also perfectly illustrates the targets of geopolitical cyberattacks – critical infrastructure, government systems, military networks, and other relevant entities.
But don’t jump to conclusions – the private sector isn’t immune to such attacks.
Cybercriminals have also targeted private companies to steal intellectual property, disrupt operations, or extort money. However, what differentiates these attacks from other cyberattacks is the motivation behind them.
Whether it’s through espionage, sabotage, or disinformation, geopolitical cyber threats always aim to achieve a political or strategic advantage for the attacker.
How Do State-Sponsored Cyber Threats Differ From Other Cyberattacks?
In their master class, Tom and Venicia specifically focus on state-sponsored cyber threats, even though they aren’t the only type of geopolitical cyber threats. Why? Because they’re the most advanced and sophisticated cyber threats.
As Venicia puts it, state-sponsored cyberattacks involve “specialist hacking techniques,” “stealthy behavior,” and “stealthy execution.” That’s why the consequences of these attacks are often only seen after significant damage has been done.
This leads us to another distinctive characteristic of state-sponsored cyberattacks – they typically involve long-term execution.
You see, other forms of cyberattacks usually want to reach their goal as soon as possible. For instance, a ransomware attack will infiltrate your system, and the hacker will ask for ransom straight away.
A state-sponsored cyberattack, on the other hand, usually plays the long game. That’s why they’re considered an advanced persistent threat (APT). Remaining undetected for a long time allows these threats to collect lots of critical data and perform long-term espionage.
Tom adds that the goal of these cyberattacks is another important distinction. As mentioned, they usually have a strategic goal in mind. “Regular” cyber threats, in contrast, typically only aim for financial profit.
Why Is Geopolitical Cybersecurity Important?
For the most part, traditional warfare was limited to three battlefields – the land, the air, and the sea. However, as Tom points out, two vital battlefields have joined the fray – space and cyberspace.
Sure, threats in cyberspace aren’t overtly visible like those on land, air, or sea. However, they can be just as devastating, if not more so – especially if they’re geopolitical cyber threats.
Here’s how Tom and Venicia break down the importance of geopolitical cybersecurity.
Protecting Against Espionage
As mentioned, espionage is one of the leading types of geopolitical cyberattacks. Since espionage aims to collect as much valuable information as possible, these attacks are typically highly refined, which allows them to remain undiscovered for months on end.
Venicia points out that the recent geopolitical tensions have led to increased cyber espionage. That’s what makes solid geopolitical cybersecurity more important than ever. Let one intruder into your network, and you’re essentially giving away all your classified information (past, present, and future).
Avoiding Manipulation
2024 is an election year. This means that “influence operations, disinformation operations, [and] deep fake operations” will run more rampant than ever, as Tom warns. Ultimately, these operations aim to shape public opinion and undermine trust in democratic institutions. These outcomes are never desirable, let alone during such a crucial time.
That’s where cybersecurity comes into play.
These measures help secure digital platforms, detect (and remove) false information, and (in this specific scenario) safeguard electoral systems.
Protecting the Economy
As mentioned, geopolitical cyberattacks aren’t typically done for financial gain. However, they can still cause massive financial losses. How? By targeting “public organizations and private entities that make a large contribution to a country’s economy,” as Venicia explains.
And a world that’s still reeling from the effects the COVID-19 pandemic had on the global economy can’t possibly handle another major disruption. That’s why any similar threat should never be taken lightly.
How to Combat Geopolitical Cyber Threats
Now that you know why geopolitical cyber threats must be combatted, let’s discuss how this can be done.
Keep All Aspects in Mind
There are numerous factors that go into protecting against geopolitical cyber threats. But for this protection to actually work, all these factors must be considered when devising a defense strategy.
For starters, this means protecting all critical infrastructure sectors. Tom lists just some of them –financial services, healthcare and public health, and transportation systems. However, one thing applies to all critical infrastructure sectors – they aren’t “independent islands,” as Tom puts it.
They’re all part of a larger ecosystem.
Each sector can only be protected if there’s a holistic approach to cybersecurity, one that considers interdependencies between sectors and the potential cascading effects of cyber disruptions. This way, in case of a cyberattack, every sector can provide support and respond effectively to minimize the impact.
Foster Collaboration
The collaborative approach shouldn’t only apply to critical infrastructure sectors. All stakeholders, including government agencies, cybersecurity experts, and the private sector, must work together to address geopolitical threats effectively.
This collaboration can take many forms.
However, Tom highlights the three most important ones on the global level – sharing intelligence, developing international norms and agreements, and establishing cybersecurity alliances.
Our experts list some of the most useful alliances and resources in this regard:
- The No More Ransom Project helps organizations combat ransomware attacks by providing decryption keys, thus returning their vital information.
- Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) worldwide allow for sharing cyber threat intelligence among industry partners to improve defenses collectively.
- The Budapest Convention on Cybercrime sets out international standards for combating cybercrime, promoting cooperation among countries to tackle cyber threats effectively.
Focus on Critical Infrastructure
By now, one thing’s clear – protecting critical infrastructure against geopolitical cyber threats is paramount.
According to Tom, collaboration plays a key role here as well. In his words, “The only way to protect [critical infrastructure] is that collaborative effort between government and the private sector because they cannot go without each other; they have to work together.”
Implement a Robust Cybersecurity Framework
A comprehensive and collaborative approach to combating geopolitical threats is just the preamble. The implementation of a robust cybersecurity framework is where the actual protection starts. Of course, these systems should be based on the intelligence collected through collaboration and education.
However, the system itself is just as important. After all, protecting critical infrastructure and other elements of similar importance requires more than just traditional anti-virus software!
According to Tom, a comprehensive cybersecurity framework will comprise four elements – threat detection, response tools, regular security assessments, and training. The specifics will vary by organization, and every relevant employee should be familiar with them.
Tom also emphasizes the importance of adopting a multi-layer approach to cybersecurity defenses. This way, even if one layer is breached, others will provide protection and prevent a total collapse of the system.
Stay Vigilant
Organizations should always be on the lookout for an uptick in suspicious activities, especially during times of geopolitical conflicts. This vigilance includes monitoring network traffic for anomalies, conducting regular security audits, and staying on top of the latest cyber threats and—let’s face it—the latest geopolitical conflicts.
Train Your Employees
The importance of thorough cybersecurity education can’t be understated. After all, employees are usually the first line of defense against cyber threats. So, they should be trained to handle the information system properly within the organization. They should know what to do and what not to do before, during, and after a geopolitical cyberattack.
However, there’s another type of employee crucial for the strength of cybersecurity within an organization – cybersecurity professionals themselves.
These individuals must be on top of their game at all times. One way to ensure this is to only hire professionals with ample experience and education. For instance, completing a renowned Master’s program like OPIT’s Enterprise Cybersecurity should be a huge green flag for any employer. It signals a strong commitment to cybersecurity excellence and a deep understanding of the latest trends and techniques in the field.
Invest in the education and professional development of your employees, and you stand a chance against the ever-evolving landscape of cyber threats, geopolitical and beyond.
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From the same author
Read the articleOpen Institute of Technology (OPIT) masterclasses bring students face-to-face with real-world business challenges. In OPIT’s July masterclass, OPIT Professor Francesco Derchi and Ph.D. candidate Robert Mario de Stefano explained the principles of regenerative businesses and how regeneration goes hand in hand with growth.
Regenerative Business Models
Professor Derchi began by explaining what exactly is meant by regenerative business models, clearly differentiating them from sustainable or circular models.
Many companies pursue sustainable business models in which they offset their negative impact by investing elsewhere. For example, businesses that are big carbon consumers will support nature regeneration projects. Circular business models are similar but are more focused on their own product chain, aiming to minimize waste by keeping products in use as long as possible through recycling. Both models essentially aim to have a “net-zero” negative impact on the environment.
Regenerative models are different because they actively aim to have a “net-positive” impact on the environment, not just offsetting their own use but actively regenerating the planet.
Massive Transformative Purpose
While regenerative business models are often associated with philanthropic endeavors, Professor Derchi explained that they do not have to be, and that investment in regeneration can be a driver of growth.
He discussed the importance of corporate purpose in the modern business space. Having a strong and clearly stated corporate purpose is considered essential to drive business decision-making, encourage employee buy-in, and promote customer loyalty.
But today, simple corporate missions, such as “make good shoes,” don’t go far enough. People are looking for a Massive Transformational Purpose (MTP) that can take the business to the next level.
Take, for example, Ben & Jerry’s. The business’s initial corporate purpose may have been to make great ice cream and serve it up in a way that people will enjoy. But the business really began to grow when they embraced an MTP. As they announced in their mission statement, “We believe that ice cream can change the world.” Their business activities also have the aim of advancing human rights and dignity, supporting social and economic justice, and protecting and restoring the Earth’s natural systems. While these aims are philanthropic, they have also helped the business grow.
RePlanet
Professor Derchi next talked about RePlanet, a business he recently worked to develop their MTP. Founded in 2015, RePlanet designs and implements customized renewable energy solutions for businesses and projects. The company already operates in the renewable energy field and ranked as the 21st fastest-growing business in Italy in 2023. So while they were already enjoying great success, Derchi worked with them to see if actively embracing a regenerative business model could unlock additional growth.
Working together, RePlanet moved towards an MTP of building a greener future based on today’s choices, ensuring a cleaner world for generations. Meeting this goal started with the energy products that RePlanet sells, such as energy systems that recover heat from dairy farms. But as the business’s MTP, it goes beyond that. RePlanet doesn’t just engage suppliers; it chooses partners that share its specific values. It also influences the projects they choose to work on – they prioritize high-impact social projects, such as recently installing photovoltaic energy systems at a local hospital in Nigeria – and how RePlanet treats its talent, acknowledging that people are the true energy of the company.
Regenerative Business Strategies
Based on work with RePlanet and other businesses, Derchi has identified six archetypal regenerative business strategies for businesses that want to have both a regenerative impact and drive growth:
- Regenerative Leadership – Laying the foundation for regeneration in a broader sense throughout the company
- Nature Regeneration – Strategies to improve the health of the natural world
- Social Regeneration – Regenerating human ecosystems through things such as fair-trade practices
- Responsible Sourcing – Empowering and strengthening suppliers and their communities
- Health & Well-being – Creating products and services that have a positive effect on customers
- Employee Focus – Improve work conditions, lives, and well-being of employees.
Case Studies
Building on the concept of regenerative business models, Roberto Mario de Stefano shared other case studies of businesses that are having a positive impact and enjoying growth thanks to regenerative business models and strategies.
Biorfarm
Biorfarm is a digital platform that supports small-scale agriculture by creating a direct link between small farmers and consumers. Cutting out the middleman in modern supply chains means that farmers earn about 50% more for their produce. They set consumers up as “digital farmers” who actively support and learn about farming activities to promote more conscious food consumption.
Their vision is to create a food economy in which those who produce food and those who consume it are connected. This moves consumers from passive cash cows for large corporations that prioritize profits over the well-being of farmers to actively supporting natural production and a more sustainable system.
Rifo Lab
Rifo Lab is a circular clothing brand with the vision of addressing the problem of overproduction in the clothing industry. Established in Prato, Italy, a traditional textile-producing area, the company produces clothes made from textile waste and biodegradable materials. There are no physical stores, and all orders must be placed online; everything is made to order, reducing excess production.
With an eye on social regeneration, all production takes place within 30 kilometers of their offices, allowing the business to support ethical and local production. They also work with companies that actively integrate migrants into the local community, sharing their local artisan crafts with future generations.
Ogyre
Ogyre is a digital platform that allows you to pay fishermen to fish for waste. When fishermen are out conducting their livelihood, they also collect a significant amount of waste from the ocean, especially plastic waste. Ogyre arranges for fishermen to get paid for collecting that waste, which in turn supports the local fishing communities, and then transforms the waste collected into new sustainable products.
Moving Towards a Regenerative Future
The masterclass concluded with a Q&A session, where it explained that working in regenerative businesses requires the same skills as any other business. But it also requires you to embrace a mindset where value comes from giving and that growth is about working together for a better future, and not just competition.
Read the articleRiccardo Ocleppo’s vision for the Open Institute of Technology (OPIT) started when he realized that his own university-level training had not properly prepared him for the modern workplace. Technological innovation is moving quickly and changing the nature of work, while university curricula evolve slowly, in part due to systems in place designed to preserve the quality of courses.
Ocleppo was determined to create a higher learning institution that filled the gap between the two realities – delivering high-quality education while preparing professionals to work in dynamic environments that keep pace with technology. Thus, OPIT opened enrolments in 2023 with a curriculum that created a unique bridge between the present and the future.
This is the story of one student, Ania Jaca, whose time at OPIT gave her the skills to connect her knowledge of product design to full system deployment.
Meet Ania
Ania is an example of an active professional who was able to identify what was missing in her own skills that would be needed if she wanted to advance her career in the direction she desired.
Ania is a highly skilled professional who was working on product and industrial design at Deloitte. She has an MA in product design, speaks five languages, studied in China, and is an avid boxer. She had the intelligence and the temperament to succeed in her career, but felt that she lacked the skills to advance and move from determining how products look to how systems really work, scale, and evolve.
Ania taught herself skills such as Python, artificial intelligence (AI), and cloud infrastructure, but soon realized that she needed a more structured education to go deeper. Thus, the search for her next steps began, and her introduction to OPIT.
OPIT appealed to Ania because it offered a fully EU-accredited MSc that she could pursue at her own pace, thanks to remote delivery and flexible hours. But more than that, it filled exactly the knowledge gap she was looking to build upon, teaching her technical foundations, but always with a focus on applications in the real world. Part of the appeal was the faculty, which includes professionals who are leaders in their field and who deal with current professional challenges on a daily basis, which they can bring into the classroom.
Ania enrolled in OPIT’s MSc in Applied Data Science & AI.
MSc in Applied Data Science and AI
This is OPIT’s first master’s program, which also launched in 2023, and is now one of four on offer. The course is designed for graduates like Ania who want a career at the intersection of management and technology. It is attractive to professionals who are already working in this area but lack the technical training to step into certain roles. OPIT requires no computer science prerequisites, so it accepted Ania with her MA in product design.
It is an intensive program that starts with foundational application courses in business, data science, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and problem-solving. The program then moves towards applying data science and AI methodologies and tools to real-life business problems.
The course combines theoretical study with a capstone project that lets students apply what they learn in the real world, either at their existing company or through internship programs. Many of the projects developed by students go on to become fundamental to the businesses they work with.
Ania’s Path Forward
Ania is working on her capstone project with Neperia Group, an Italian-based IT systems development company that works mostly with financial, insurance, and industrial companies. They specialize in developing analysis tools for existing software to enhance insight, streamline management, minimize the impact of corrective and evolutionary interventions, and boost performance.
Ania is specifically working on tools for assessing vulnerabilities in codebases as an advanced cybersecurity tool.
Ania credits her studies at OPIT for helping her build solid foundations in data science, machine learning, and cloud workflows, giving her a thorough understanding of digital products from end to end. She feels this has prepared her for roles at the intersection between infrastructure, security, and deployment, which is exactly where she wants to be. OPIT is excited to see where Ania’s career takes her in the coming years.
Preparing for the Future of Work
Overall, studying at OPIT has helped Ania and others like her prepare for the future of work. According to the Visual Capitalist, the fastest-growing jobs between 2025 and 2030 will be in big data (up by 110%), Fintech engineers (up by 95%), AI and machine learning specialists (up by 85%), software application developers (up by 60%), and security management specialists (up by 55%).
However, while these industries are growing, entry-level opportunities are declining in areas such as software development and IT. This is because AI now performs many of the tasks associated with those roles. Instead, companies are looking for experienced professionals to take on roles that involve more strategic oversight and innovative problem-solving. But how do recent graduates leapfrog past experienced professionals when there is a lack of entry-level positions to make the transition?
This is another challenge that OPIT addresses in its course design. Students don’t just learn the theory, OPIT actively encourages them to focus on applications, allowing them to build experience while studying. The capstone project consolidates this, enabling students to demonstrate to future employers their expertise at deploying technology to solve problems.
OPIT also has a dynamic Career Services department that specifically works with students to prepare them for the types of roles they want. This focus on not only learning but building a career is one of the elements that makes OPIT stand out in preparing graduates for the workplace.
-
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Open Institute of Technology (OPIT) masterclasses bring students face-to-face with real-world business challenges. In OPIT’s July masterclass, OPIT Professor Francesco Derchi and Ph.D. candidate Robert Mario de Stefano explained the principles of regenerative businesses and how regeneration goes hand in hand with growth.
Regenerative Business Models
Professor Derchi began by explaining what exactly is meant by regenerative business models, clearly differentiating them from sustainable or circular models.
Many companies pursue sustainable business models in which they offset their negative impact by investing elsewhere. For example, businesses that are big carbon consumers will support nature regeneration projects. Circular business models are similar but are more focused on their own product chain, aiming to minimize waste by keeping products in use as long as possible through recycling. Both models essentially aim to have a “net-zero” negative impact on the environment.
Regenerative models are different because they actively aim to have a “net-positive” impact on the environment, not just offsetting their own use but actively regenerating the planet.
Massive Transformative Purpose
While regenerative business models are often associated with philanthropic endeavors, Professor Derchi explained that they do not have to be, and that investment in regeneration can be a driver of growth.
He discussed the importance of corporate purpose in the modern business space. Having a strong and clearly stated corporate purpose is considered essential to drive business decision-making, encourage employee buy-in, and promote customer loyalty.
But today, simple corporate missions, such as “make good shoes,” don’t go far enough. People are looking for a Massive Transformational Purpose (MTP) that can take the business to the next level.
Take, for example, Ben & Jerry’s. The business’s initial corporate purpose may have been to make great ice cream and serve it up in a way that people will enjoy. But the business really began to grow when they embraced an MTP. As they announced in their mission statement, “We believe that ice cream can change the world.” Their business activities also have the aim of advancing human rights and dignity, supporting social and economic justice, and protecting and restoring the Earth’s natural systems. While these aims are philanthropic, they have also helped the business grow.
RePlanet
Professor Derchi next talked about RePlanet, a business he recently worked to develop their MTP. Founded in 2015, RePlanet designs and implements customized renewable energy solutions for businesses and projects. The company already operates in the renewable energy field and ranked as the 21st fastest-growing business in Italy in 2023. So while they were already enjoying great success, Derchi worked with them to see if actively embracing a regenerative business model could unlock additional growth.
Working together, RePlanet moved towards an MTP of building a greener future based on today’s choices, ensuring a cleaner world for generations. Meeting this goal started with the energy products that RePlanet sells, such as energy systems that recover heat from dairy farms. But as the business’s MTP, it goes beyond that. RePlanet doesn’t just engage suppliers; it chooses partners that share its specific values. It also influences the projects they choose to work on – they prioritize high-impact social projects, such as recently installing photovoltaic energy systems at a local hospital in Nigeria – and how RePlanet treats its talent, acknowledging that people are the true energy of the company.
Regenerative Business Strategies
Based on work with RePlanet and other businesses, Derchi has identified six archetypal regenerative business strategies for businesses that want to have both a regenerative impact and drive growth:
- Regenerative Leadership – Laying the foundation for regeneration in a broader sense throughout the company
- Nature Regeneration – Strategies to improve the health of the natural world
- Social Regeneration – Regenerating human ecosystems through things such as fair-trade practices
- Responsible Sourcing – Empowering and strengthening suppliers and their communities
- Health & Well-being – Creating products and services that have a positive effect on customers
- Employee Focus – Improve work conditions, lives, and well-being of employees.
Case Studies
Building on the concept of regenerative business models, Roberto Mario de Stefano shared other case studies of businesses that are having a positive impact and enjoying growth thanks to regenerative business models and strategies.
Biorfarm
Biorfarm is a digital platform that supports small-scale agriculture by creating a direct link between small farmers and consumers. Cutting out the middleman in modern supply chains means that farmers earn about 50% more for their produce. They set consumers up as “digital farmers” who actively support and learn about farming activities to promote more conscious food consumption.
Their vision is to create a food economy in which those who produce food and those who consume it are connected. This moves consumers from passive cash cows for large corporations that prioritize profits over the well-being of farmers to actively supporting natural production and a more sustainable system.
Rifo Lab
Rifo Lab is a circular clothing brand with the vision of addressing the problem of overproduction in the clothing industry. Established in Prato, Italy, a traditional textile-producing area, the company produces clothes made from textile waste and biodegradable materials. There are no physical stores, and all orders must be placed online; everything is made to order, reducing excess production.
With an eye on social regeneration, all production takes place within 30 kilometers of their offices, allowing the business to support ethical and local production. They also work with companies that actively integrate migrants into the local community, sharing their local artisan crafts with future generations.
Ogyre
Ogyre is a digital platform that allows you to pay fishermen to fish for waste. When fishermen are out conducting their livelihood, they also collect a significant amount of waste from the ocean, especially plastic waste. Ogyre arranges for fishermen to get paid for collecting that waste, which in turn supports the local fishing communities, and then transforms the waste collected into new sustainable products.
Moving Towards a Regenerative Future
The masterclass concluded with a Q&A session, where it explained that working in regenerative businesses requires the same skills as any other business. But it also requires you to embrace a mindset where value comes from giving and that growth is about working together for a better future, and not just competition.
Riccardo Ocleppo’s vision for the Open Institute of Technology (OPIT) started when he realized that his own university-level training had not properly prepared him for the modern workplace. Technological innovation is moving quickly and changing the nature of work, while university curricula evolve slowly, in part due to systems in place designed to preserve the quality of courses.
Ocleppo was determined to create a higher learning institution that filled the gap between the two realities – delivering high-quality education while preparing professionals to work in dynamic environments that keep pace with technology. Thus, OPIT opened enrolments in 2023 with a curriculum that created a unique bridge between the present and the future.
This is the story of one student, Ania Jaca, whose time at OPIT gave her the skills to connect her knowledge of product design to full system deployment.
Meet Ania
Ania is an example of an active professional who was able to identify what was missing in her own skills that would be needed if she wanted to advance her career in the direction she desired.
Ania is a highly skilled professional who was working on product and industrial design at Deloitte. She has an MA in product design, speaks five languages, studied in China, and is an avid boxer. She had the intelligence and the temperament to succeed in her career, but felt that she lacked the skills to advance and move from determining how products look to how systems really work, scale, and evolve.
Ania taught herself skills such as Python, artificial intelligence (AI), and cloud infrastructure, but soon realized that she needed a more structured education to go deeper. Thus, the search for her next steps began, and her introduction to OPIT.
OPIT appealed to Ania because it offered a fully EU-accredited MSc that she could pursue at her own pace, thanks to remote delivery and flexible hours. But more than that, it filled exactly the knowledge gap she was looking to build upon, teaching her technical foundations, but always with a focus on applications in the real world. Part of the appeal was the faculty, which includes professionals who are leaders in their field and who deal with current professional challenges on a daily basis, which they can bring into the classroom.
Ania enrolled in OPIT’s MSc in Applied Data Science & AI.
MSc in Applied Data Science and AI
This is OPIT’s first master’s program, which also launched in 2023, and is now one of four on offer. The course is designed for graduates like Ania who want a career at the intersection of management and technology. It is attractive to professionals who are already working in this area but lack the technical training to step into certain roles. OPIT requires no computer science prerequisites, so it accepted Ania with her MA in product design.
It is an intensive program that starts with foundational application courses in business, data science, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and problem-solving. The program then moves towards applying data science and AI methodologies and tools to real-life business problems.
The course combines theoretical study with a capstone project that lets students apply what they learn in the real world, either at their existing company or through internship programs. Many of the projects developed by students go on to become fundamental to the businesses they work with.
Ania’s Path Forward
Ania is working on her capstone project with Neperia Group, an Italian-based IT systems development company that works mostly with financial, insurance, and industrial companies. They specialize in developing analysis tools for existing software to enhance insight, streamline management, minimize the impact of corrective and evolutionary interventions, and boost performance.
Ania is specifically working on tools for assessing vulnerabilities in codebases as an advanced cybersecurity tool.
Ania credits her studies at OPIT for helping her build solid foundations in data science, machine learning, and cloud workflows, giving her a thorough understanding of digital products from end to end. She feels this has prepared her for roles at the intersection between infrastructure, security, and deployment, which is exactly where she wants to be. OPIT is excited to see where Ania’s career takes her in the coming years.
Preparing for the Future of Work
Overall, studying at OPIT has helped Ania and others like her prepare for the future of work. According to the Visual Capitalist, the fastest-growing jobs between 2025 and 2030 will be in big data (up by 110%), Fintech engineers (up by 95%), AI and machine learning specialists (up by 85%), software application developers (up by 60%), and security management specialists (up by 55%).
However, while these industries are growing, entry-level opportunities are declining in areas such as software development and IT. This is because AI now performs many of the tasks associated with those roles. Instead, companies are looking for experienced professionals to take on roles that involve more strategic oversight and innovative problem-solving. But how do recent graduates leapfrog past experienced professionals when there is a lack of entry-level positions to make the transition?
This is another challenge that OPIT addresses in its course design. Students don’t just learn the theory, OPIT actively encourages them to focus on applications, allowing them to build experience while studying. The capstone project consolidates this, enabling students to demonstrate to future employers their expertise at deploying technology to solve problems.
OPIT also has a dynamic Career Services department that specifically works with students to prepare them for the types of roles they want. This focus on not only learning but building a career is one of the elements that makes OPIT stand out in preparing graduates for the workplace.
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