Esports continues to grow at an astounding pace. And I continue to see more districts reach out to me to talk about setting up a league at their schools. One of the first questions that comes up is: How do we arrange competition? Do we join an already-established third-party league; do we join a nonprofit third-party league like North American Scholastic Esports Federation (NASEF); or do we create our own?

While each option has its strengths and weaknesses, I’d like to focus on building your own league as there’s more of a journey to it. Setting up your own esports league has some challenges along the way, but I think the benefits are well worth it.

Distributed the laptops? Check. Wireless mice? Check. Warm, snuggly pajamas with your company’s logo? Check. Your organization is ready for work from home. Except… you need to also extend your network to support this workforce. That’s where the real struggle is: where the hard-working IT professionals are having to support a massive influx of remote users, often without having the luxury of scaling out infrastructure or redesigning edge networks.

I want to outline a few suggestions that could help in these kinds of situations.

IT support is critical for smaller hospital and healthcare providers facing major challenges in delivering care and sourcing necessary equipment. Tom Stafford, chief technology officer for CDW Healthcare and former CIO of Halifax Health, recently hosted a panel discussion detailing what healthcare leaders are doing to prepare for business disruptions as a result of the current health crisis. This discussion featured health system directors, along with practice leads from CDW Healthcare.

A common concern among CIOs today is operating their IT departments as a business. In a way, these CIOs are beginning to think like COOs. And as they do, they’re implementing changes that lead to improvements in their operations. They’re managing their workflows more strategically and effectively, and that pays dividends for customers. As IT leaders bolster IT operations, they’re also adding value to their companies.

So how can an IT team intent on internal improvement ensure that its transformation helps the company as whole? I tell my clients to tackle such initiatives in three distinct steps.

Healthcare is facing unprecedented challenges in delivering care right now. IT support is key as hospitals and care providers grapple with evolving threats and difficulties in sourcing necessary equipment. Tom Stafford, chief technology officer for CDW Healthcare and former CIO of Halifax Health, recently hosted a panel discussion detailing what healthcare CIOs and directors are doing to prepare for business disruptions as a result of the current health crisis. This discussion featured current and former health system CIOs and directors, along with practice leads from CDW Healthcare.

Look at nearly any new offering from the largest names in technology — Google, Amazon, Microsoft and others — and you’re likely to find an accompanying environmental and sustainability initiative.

There’s been a growing awareness in recent years about the impact of energy use by corporate data centers, both on the environment and on organizations’ bottom lines. Public cloud hyperscalers have recognized this concern and have responded by optimizing their environments to help organizations meet their spending and sustainability goals.

As you make decisions about where to place your IT workloads, keep the following considerations in mind.