The momentum is shifting from "shift left" to what's becoming known as "shift down": instead of placing specialized responsibilities on developers, organizations are building development platforms that present opinionated paths and implement best practices by default. That change in momentum is bound to accelerate in 2026. The effect is the same as "shift left" in terms of where things are addressed in the software lifecycle, but much of the cognitive load of implementing these domains of...

In critical IT moments, the instinct is universal: jump in, start typing, fix something — anything. But Joe challenges that reflex, arguing that immediate action is often the first step toward compounding the problem rather than resolving it.