How should midmarket IT leaders budget for AI when cybersecurity, infrastructure and core applications are still demanding investment? In this episode of Ready.Set.Midmarket! Adam Dennison and Samara Lynn of MES Computing are joined by Tom Allen of Computing and Demetrios Xarhoulakos, Director of IT at DeSimone Consulting Engineering, for a practitioner-level discussion of 2027 IT spending priorities. The conversation digs into the realities behind the budget numbers: making the case for cybersecurity when prevention is difficult to quantify, finding room for rapidly growing AI costs, managing AI governance and training, evaluating vendors, and proving ROI to the CFO. Demetrios Xarhoulakos also explains how his team evaluates AI investments by looking at measurable productivity gains and whether employees continue using a tool after the initial excitement wears off.
In this episode:
Why cybersecurity remains a top spending priority
How AI is complicating traditional IT budget categories
The challenge of forecasting AI and token costs
Why AI governance and training need to accompany investment
How a lean IT team evaluates vendors and security tools
What measurable AI ROI can look like in professional services
How IT leaders can make the investment case to the CFO
🎧 Ready.Set.Midmarket! brings together IT leaders and industry experts to talk about the technology decisions, challenges and opportunities shaping midmarket IT.