Spiceworks Community Digest: Staying connected

As IT departments shrink or centralize, and as professionals climb the expertise ladder, the conversation pool gets smaller. The reality for many is becoming the “one-man show” where the only consistent collaborator is their AI assistant. A recent Spiceworks Community thread on where do you go to bounce off deep technical ideas when your colleagues don’t share your focus?

While AI has become the new “rubber ducky” for rapid, initial brainstorming, the human connection of peer communities and trusted colleagues remains irreplaceable for vetting complex ideas, validating best practices, and maintaining sanity.

The Rise of the AI Sounding Board

For many IT professionals seeking advice, AI chatbots like Copilot and Gemini have become indispensable. They are always available, never judge, and can instantly process massive amounts of information.

• 2ndSon: “I use AI for that a lot; I have it set as a ‘study partner’, it won’t offer ideas unless directly asked, but it can offer guiding questions. I mostly use it just as a way to flesh out ideas, without reading the response.”
• Jared Busch: “I first ask ChatGPT. Then based on those answers I proceed to then asks peers, or try it myself, or come here.”
• TB33T: “I do find myself asking the deep technical questions to Copilot as well.”

The AI Caveat: Verify with a Human

Despite the utility, IT pros recognize that AI is still prone to error.. This means any AI-generated solution must be human-vetted.

• John5152: “The trouble is it often gets stuff wrong and when challenged comes back with ‘you’re absolutely right! xxxxx was deprecated 10 years ago etc’.”
• PatrickFarrell: “The paid version gets it right! The public consumer version gets it wrong.”
• Ode2joy: “I just have not gotten overly conversational with it and use it to accomplish a single goal/solution and move on.”

The Human Connection

The community agreed that for complex, nuanced decisions, human interaction is a must.

• Ode2joy: “This community is exactly where I go for all of that. I don’t ever want to lose the ‘human connection’…”
• TB33T: “But I’ll come here to flesh out the full ideas and to get recommendations on best practices from those who have gone through similar circumstances. I’ll always verify with a person to be sure.”
• ich.ni.san: “Spiceworks is basically it. There is no one here to have a technical discussion with.”

Ultimately, the best strategy is a hybrid approach: use AI as a high-speed research tool and initial sounding board, but rely on your peers and online communities to provide the crucial context, experience, and ultimate validation required for any mission-critical decision.

Join the conversation and tell us your strategy!