The Open Institute of Technology (OPIT) is a new concept in higher education that aims to equip people for a fast-changing work landscape characterized by rapidly evolving technology. This goes beyond deep training in trending technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and cybersecurity to reframing our approach to work and how we envision the future of work.

As part of that ongoing discussion, Stefania Tabi from OPIT Career Services sat down with Matteo Roversi, Co-Founder and Chief Community Officer at Cosmico, to talk about how we need to reframe our approach to work to thrive in the future workplace.

Founded in 2020, Cosmico is an Italian-based talent platform that uses AI-powered technology to connect talent – currently a pool of more than 27,000 independent professionals – with the businesses that need them, including many of Europe’s biggest companies. The platform uses AI for talent screening, matching, and recommendations, as well as to assess coding skills. This can reduce the time from request to screening, interview, proposal, and kick-off to between 24 and 72 hours, letting businesses move faster.

New Rules

Matteo started by discussing the aspects of the work landscape that have fundamentally changed over the last decade, and how this is forcing us to reframe our approach to standing out in the workplace.

CV to Reputation

He explained that while for many potential employees, the main concern used to be populating your CV with the relevant skills and experience to land your next job, that is becoming increasingly meaningless. AI can be used to tailor your CV exactly to what a job description wants, bearing in mind that the description was probably also written by AI and will be assessed by AI. As a result, matching CVs to job descriptions has become an increasingly unreliable way to find desirable candidates.

This has shifted the focus to reputation, as it is increasingly important that people are familiar with your work and know people who can recommend you to get your foot in the door.

Execution to Agency

It used to be that your objective was fulfilling the tasks on a job description, which required intelligence and experience, but not necessarily a significant amount of self-direction. That is changing as new ways of solving problems continue to emerge. Today, businesses want employees who have agency and take the initiative to solve problems. In a way, today, everyone needs the self-starter mindset of an entrepreneur.

Specialization to Deep Generalism

In recent years, the work landscape has been about specialization in specific fields and technologies. But Matteo explained how that focus is disappearing. Technology is moving so quickly that specialist software, coding languages, and algorithms are becoming obsolete, or the work previously required is being automated through AI.

Therefore, today, instead of a focused specialization, applicants need deep generalism, with not only a broad understanding of the technological landscape but a deep understanding of how technology can be leveraged to connect different fields of work, solve problems, and judge decisions.

Hours to Progression

The trend of moving away from paying for hours worked to the product being delivered will only become more pronounced, Matteo explained. Things that once took hours can now be delivered within minutes, but that doesn’t necessarily diminish the value of that delivery.

He explained how we need to think of ourselves as mind athletes. For instance, a sprinter may compete for a little over 10 seconds in their principal race, but they spend vast amounts of time in deep training. This is what professionals must do now: invest in their knowledge base so that they can deliver. As an extension of this, just like athletes, professionals need to focus on recovery. No one is a machine, and we cannot be delivering constantly.

Compete to Create

Matteo explained how the workplace mindset has long been one of competition, with talent competing for a finite number of jobs. But as jobs disappear and emerge rapidly, the field of competition changes significantly, and the market no longer feels finite. He also suggested that the best way to find the job that you want is to create it, rather than wait for someone else to make it for you (and then compete for it).

Taking Charge of Your Career

Having looked in detail at how the work landscape is changing, Matteo then shifted gears and shared his best advice for creating the job that you want.

Shift to AI Mode

He started by pointing out that you need to leverage the available technology to stay competitive, especially AI. But you have to do this in a way that increases your productivity and enhances the value of your contribution. He suggests that people embrace and test technologies and automate where possible by delegating. But delegating should go beyond simple tasks to orchestrating processes. When this is in place, you can reshape your vision of your contribution by identifying what you do that machines cannot replicate.

Build Your Work Stack

Once you have identified your value, Matteo explains how to reform what you offer. Start by thinking of yourself as a company rather than a job description. Don’t tell people what you do, but tell them the problems that you solve. Once this is in place, you can build your presence and your audience by making yourself accessible, both online and offline. This helps you grow your network by actively seeking mentors and peers.

Write Daily, Ship Weekly, Share Always

Matteo emphasized that work must be public to build your reputation, an important factor already discussed in his review of the work landscape. To this end, he suggests writing daily, which means spending at least 15 minutes a day focused on your problem. This should result in something you can “ship” every week to maintain your visibility, and always share to build your profile.

Level Up Your Purpose

Matteo agreed with the advice that to thrive in your work, you need to have purpose, but also agreed with the suggestion that people who say to follow your passion are usually already rich and have a safety net in place for failure. He suggested that your purpose changes according to your circumstances and that you should aim to cycle through these different phases.

  • Survival – When you need to pay your bills, you need to find clients and sell your work
  • Status – Once you have a stable base, you can focus on gaining recognition for your work and attracting clients to you
  • Creativity – While many people stop at the status phase, this is the moment to stretch yourself and push out of your comfort zone to do something new
  • Contribution – This is the ultimate phase when you can scale up the impact of your work

Preparing for the Future of Work With OPIT

One theme that came through clearly in Matteo’s discussion was the importance of investing in yourself. This is because you are no longer simply being asked to fulfill a job description; you need to frame yourself as a problem-solver who adds value. In today’s work landscape, this means understanding tech trends and their impact on the business landscape. Making that leap can start with OPIT. We offer bachelor’s courses for those looking to build a strong technical foundation and master’s courses for professionals looking to reframe their value proposition.

Discover OPIT’s accessible and fit-for-purpose programs today.

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Raconteur: AI on your terms – meet the enterprise-ready AI operating model
OPIT - Open Institute of Technology
OPIT - Open Institute of Technology
Nov 18, 2025 5 min read

Source:

  • Raconteur, published on November 06th, 2025

What is the AI technology operating model – and why does it matter? A well-designed AI operating model provides the structure, governance and cultural alignment needed to turn pilot projects into enterprise-wide transformation

By Duncan Jefferies

Many firms have conducted successful Artificial Intelligence (AI) pilot projects, but scaling them across departments and workflows remains a challenge. Inference costs, data silos, talent gaps and poor alignment with business strategy are just some of the issues that leave organisations trapped in pilot purgatory. This inability to scale successful experiments means AI’s potential for improving enterprise efficiency, decision-making and innovation isn’t fully realised. So what’s the solution?

Although it’s not a magic bullet, an AI operating model is really the foundation for scaling pilot projects up to enterprise-wide deployments. Essentially it’s a structured framework that defines how the organisation develops, deploys and governs AI. By bringing together infrastructure, data, people, and governance in a flexible and secure way, it ensures that AI delivers value at scale while remaining ethical and compliant.

“A successful AI proof-of-concept is like building a single race car that can go fast,” says Professor Yu Xiong, chair of business analytics at the UK-based Surrey Business School. “An efficient AI technology operations model, however, is the entire system – the processes, tools, and team structures – for continuously manufacturing, maintaining, and safely operating an entire fleet of cars.”

But while the importance of this framework is clear, how should enterprises establish and embed it?

“It begins with a clear strategy that defines objectives, desired outcomes, and measurable success criteria, such as model performance, bias detection, and regulatory compliance metrics,” says Professor Azadeh Haratiannezhadi, co-founder of generative AI company Taktify and professor of generative AI in cybersecurity at OPIT – the Open Institute of Technology.

Platforms, tools and MLOps pipelines that enable models to be deployed, monitored and scaled in a safe and efficient way are also essential in practical terms.

“Tools and infrastructure must also be selected with transparency, cost, and governance in mind,” says Efrain Ruh, continental chief technology officer for Europe at Digitate. “Crucially, organisations need to continuously monitor the evolving AI landscape and adapt their models to new capabilities and market offerings.”

An open approach

The most effective AI operating models are also founded on openness, interoperability and modularity. Open source platforms and tools provide greater control over data, deployment environments and costs, for example. These characteristics can help enterprises to avoid vendor lock-in, successfully align AI to business culture and values, and embed it safely into cross-department workflows.

“Modularity and platformisation…avoids building isolated ‘silos’ for each project,” explains professor Xiong. “Instead, it provides a shared, reusable ‘AI platform’ that integrates toolchains for data preparation, model training, deployment, monitoring, and retraining. This drastically improves efficiency and reduces the cost of redundant work.”

A strong data strategy is equally vital for ensuring high-quality performance and reducing bias. Ideally, the AI operating model should be cloud and LLM agnostic too.

“This allows organisations to coordinate and orchestrate AI agents from various sources, whether that’s internal or 3rd party,” says Babak Hodjat, global chief technology officer of AI at Cognizant. “The interoperability also means businesses can adopt an agile iterative process for AI projects that is guided by measuring efficiency, productivity, and quality gains, while guaranteeing trust and safety are built into all elements of design and implementation.”

A robust AI operating model should feature clear objectives for compliance, security and data privacy, as well as accountability structures. Richard Corbridge, chief information officer of Segro, advises organisations to: “Start small with well-scoped pilots that solve real pain points, then bake in repeatable patterns, data contracts, test harnesses, explainability checks and rollback plans, so learning can be scaled without multiplying risk. If you don’t codify how models are approved, deployed, monitored and retired, you won’t get past pilot purgatory.”

Of course, technology alone can’t drive successful AI adoption at scale: the right skills and culture are also essential for embedding AI across the enterprise.

“Multidisciplinary teams that combine technical expertise in AI, security, and governance with deep business knowledge create a foundation for sustainable adoption,” says Professor Haratiannezhadi. “Ongoing training ensures staff acquire advanced AI skills while understanding associated risks and responsibilities.”

Ultimately, an AI operating model is the playbook that enables an enterprise to use AI responsibly and effectively at scale. By drawing together governance, technological infrastructure, cultural change and open collaboration, it supports the shift from isolated experiments to the kind of sustainable AI capability that can drive competitive advantage.

In other words, it’s the foundation for turning ambition into reality, and finally escaping pilot purgatory for good.

 

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OPIT’s Peer Career Mentoring Program
OPIT - Open Institute of Technology
OPIT - Open Institute of Technology
Oct 24, 2025 6 min read

The Open Institute of Technology (OPIT) is the perfect place for those looking to master the core skills and gain the fundamental knowledge they need to enter the exciting and dynamic environment of the tech industry. While OPIT’s various degrees and courses unlock the doors to numerous careers, students may not know exactly which line of work they wish to enter, or how, exactly, to take the next steps.

That’s why, as well as providing exceptional online education in fields like Responsible AI, Computer Science, and Digital Business, OPIT also offers an array of career-related services, like the Peer Career Mentoring Program. Designed to provide the expert advice and support students need, this program helps students and alumni gain inspiration and insight to map out their future careers.

Introducing the OPIT Peer Career Mentoring Program

As the name implies, OPIT’s Peer Career Mentoring Program is about connecting students and alumni with experienced peers to provide insights, guidance, and mentorship and support their next steps on both a personal and professional level.

It provides a highly supportive and empowering space in which current and former learners can receive career-related advice and guidance, harnessing the rich and varied experiences of the OPIT community to accelerate growth and development.

Meet the Mentors

Plenty of experienced, expert mentors have already signed up to play their part in the Peer Career Mentoring Program at OPIT. They include managers, analysts, researchers, and more, all ready and eager to share the benefits of their experience and their unique perspectives on the tech industry, careers in tech, and the educational experience at OPIT.

Examples include:

  • Marco Lorenzi: Having graduated from the MSc in Applied Data Science and AI program at OPIT, Marco has since progressed to a role as a Prompt Engineer at RWS Group and is passionate about supporting younger learners as they take their first steps into the workforce or seek career evolution.
  • Antonio Amendolagine: Antonio graduated from the OPIT MSc in Applied Data Science and AI and currently works as a Product Marketing and CRM Manager with MER MEC SpA, focusing on international B2B businesses. Like other mentors in the program, he enjoys helping students feel more confident about achieving their future aims.
  • Asya Mantovani: Asya took the MSc in Responsible AI program at OPIT before taking the next steps in her career as a Software Engineer with Accenture, one of the largest IT companies in the world, and a trusted partner of the institute. With a firm belief in knowledge-sharing and mutual support, she’s eager to help students progress and succeed.

The Value of the Peer Mentoring Program

The OPIT Peer Career Mentoring Program is an invaluable source of support, inspiration, motivation, and guidance for the many students and graduates of OPIT who feel the need for a helping hand or guiding light to help them find the way or make the right decisions moving forward. It’s a program built around the sharing of wisdom, skills, and insights, designed to empower all who take part.

Every student is different. Some have very clear, fixed, and firm objectives in mind for their futures. Others may have a slightly more vague outline of where they want to go and what they want to do. Others live more in the moment, focusing purely on the here and now, but not thinking too far ahead. All of these different types of people may need guidance and support from time to time, and peer mentoring provides that.

This program is also just one of many ways in which OPIT bridges the gaps between learners around the world, creating a whole community of students and educators, linked together by their shared passions for technology and development. So, even though you may study remotely at OPIT, you never need to feel alone or isolated from your peers.

Additional Career Services Offered by OPIT

The Peer Career Mentoring Program is just one part of the larger array of career services that students enjoy at the Open Institute of Technology.

  • Career Coaching and Support: Students can schedule one-to-one sessions with the institute’s experts to receive insightful feedback, flexibly customized to their exact needs and situation. They can request resume audits, hone their interview skills, and develop action plans for the future, all with the help of experienced, expert coaches.
  • Resource Hub: Maybe you need help differentiating between various career paths, or seeing where your degree might take you. Or you need a bit of assistance in handling the challenges of the job-hunting process. Either way, the OPIT Resource Hub contains the in-depth guides you need to get ahead and gain practical skills to confidently move forward.
  • Career Events: Regularly, OPIT hosts online career event sessions with industry experts and leaders as guest speakers about the topics that most interest today’s tech students and graduates. You can join workshops to sharpen your skills and become a better prospect in the job market, or just listen to the lessons and insights of the pros.
  • Internship Opportunities: There are few better ways to begin your professional journey than an internship at a top-tier company. OPIT unlocks the doors to numerous internship roles with trusted institute partners, as well as additional professional and project opportunities where you can get hands-on work experience at a high level.

In addition to the above, OPIT also teams up with an array of leading organizations around the world, including some of the biggest names, including AWS, Accenture, and Hype. Through this network of trust, OPIT facilitates students’ steps into the world of work.

Start Your Study Journey Today

As well as the Peer Career Mentoring Program, OPIT provides numerous other exciting advantages for those who enroll, including progressive assessments, round-the-clock support, affordable rates, and a team of international professors from top universities with real-world experience in technology. In short, it’s the perfect place to push forward and get the knowledge you need to succeed.

So, if you’re eager to become a tech leader of tomorrow, learn more about OPIT today.

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