It’s 2026, and the future is bright! We are all ready for new beginnings, new challenges and new wins this year.

ITS has gone through a number of changes over the past two plus years, including a leadership reorganization and the launch of the dedicated agency/shared services model. ITS has been called an agency “on the rise” as these changes transform how New York State approaches technology and cybersecurity, leveraging operational excellence to create innovative solutions.

On today’s episode, Chief Information Officer and Director of ITS Dru Rai will talk about how these changes have shaped New York’s future, as well as how this agency on the rise makes government work better for all New Yorkers.

Thank you for listening to the IT’S a Tech Podcast. For more information about ITS, visit our website at its.ny.gov. Follow us on X, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

2025 is drawing to a close, and at this time of year, many of us are reflecting on how we got to this moment in time. What did we set out to do? What have we accomplished? What does the future hold?

In the spirit of reflection, on this special episode of the IT’S a Tech Podcast, we will look back at some of our favorite moments from the first 10 episodes. We are all busy, and finding time to watch or listen to a favorite show can be challenging, so if you’ve missed an episode or two, then we have you covered! Some may call it a clip show; I call it a curated retrospective. Kind of like the Criterion collection, but for our podcast.

Thank you for listening to the IT’S a Tech Podcast. For more information about ITS, visit our website at its.ny.gov. Follow us on X, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

Professional development. Upskilling. Training. Mentorship. Whatever you call it, it all adds up to growing the abilities of workers and investing in a talented workforce, which in turn means investing in your business or organization.

We all seem to agree it’s important, so why can it be so challenging to make it a priority? According to Pew Research, in 2024, only 51% of employed adults polled said they have taken a class or gotten extra training in the past year. At ITS, we recognize this challenge and address it by focusing on developing skills and fostering collaboration through a variety of outlets and avenues.

One exceptional example of training and skill building includes a dedicated mentorship program, which pairs an employee at an earlier stage of their career with someone who has been with the industry or the organization for a longer period of time.

On today’s episode, Director of Training Ariel Shatsoff and Training Specialist Heather Cook talk about the importance of training, as well as how the ITS Mentorship Program has helped an agency on the rise prepare its workforce for the future.

Thank you for listening to the IT’S a Tech Podcast. For more information about ITS, visit our website at its.ny.gov. Follow us on X, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.