In this episode, Ilissa Miller, Founder and CEO of iMiller Public Relations, shares how nearly three decades in digital infrastructure have given her a unique perspective on the evolution of data centers, connectivity, and the growing challenges surrounding AI-driven infrastructure development. Drawing on her experience as a communications strategist, industry advisor, and Chair of OIX’s Digital Infrastructure Framework Committee, Ilissa explains why the future of digital infrastructure depends as much on trust, transparency, and community engagement as it does on technology.
Ilissa discusses the changing role of iMiller Public Relations, from shaping industry messaging and introducing new concepts like edge data centers and master-planned data center developments to helping organizations build stronger relationships with the communities where they operate. She emphasizes that successful projects begin with listening, educating, and creating fact-based conversations that address public concerns before misinformation and fear take hold.
The conversation explores some of the industry’s most pressing issues, including AI infrastructure, responsible data center growth, site selection, zoning, power, water usage, and the balance between economic development and community interests. Ilissa explains why developers must prioritize thoughtful planning, transparent communication, and responsible resource management to earn public trust while supporting the next generation of digital infrastructure.
Looking ahead, Ilissa believes the future of data center development will be shaped by collaboration between developers, communities, policymakers, and infrastructure leaders. As AI continues driving unprecedented demand for digital infrastructure, she believes the organizations that succeed will be those that combine innovation with responsible growth, meaningful stakeholder engagement, and a long-term commitment to building infrastructure that benefits both industry and the communities it serves.
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About
Ilissa Miller is the Founder and CEO of iMiller Public Relations, host of NEDAS Live!, and Editor-in-Chief of Data Center POST. With nearly 30 years of experience across public relations, marketing, sales, product development, and digital infrastructure, she advises companies on strategy, messaging, market positioning, and growth across the data center, cloud, telecom, internet, edge, managed services, and network sectors.
Ilissa is also the creator of Groundswell™, iMPR’s community engagement and project-risk communications framework designed to help infrastructure developers, municipalities, and stakeholders navigate public sentiment, local opposition, education, and trust-building around critical infrastructure projects. Her perspective is informed not only by decades of industry experience, but also by her public service as a two-term elected Trustee in the Village of Mamaroneck in Westchester County, New York.
A recognized voice in the global digital infrastructure community, Ilissa serves on the Forbes Agency Council and on the Board of OIX, where she chairs the Digital Infrastructure Framework Committee. She also holds advisory and leadership roles with industry organizations focused on advancing connectivity, digital infrastructure, and community-centered planning.
When you work with iMPR you work with a team of passionate individuals eager to help companies make their mark on the world. We appreciate the important work that the mission critical and digital infrastructure industry is undertaking to reshape the world for a brighter and better connected future.
Table of Contents
Facts Only
* Ilissa Miller is the Founder and CEO of iMiller Public Relations.
* She has nearly three decades of experience in digital infrastructure, public relations, marketing, sales, product development, and digital infrastructure.
* Ilissa served as Chair of OIX’s Digital Infrastructure Framework Committee.
* The conversation explored AI infrastructure, responsible data center growth, site selection, zoning, power, and water usage.
* Developers must prioritize planning, communication, and resource management to earn public trust.
* The future of data center development will be shaped by collaboration between developers, communities, policymakers, and infrastructure leaders.
* Ilissa Miller is the host of NEDAS Live! and Editor-in-Chief of Data Center POST.
* She created Groundswell™, a framework for community engagement and project-risk communications.
Executive Summary
Ilissa Miller, Founder and CEO of iMiller Public Relations, draws on nearly three decades in digital infrastructure to discuss the evolution of data centers and connectivity, particularly concerning AI-driven development. Her experience as a communications strategist and industry advisor informs her view that the future of digital infrastructure relies on trust, transparency, and community engagement alongside technology. She discusses shifting the role of public relations from messaging to building relationships by emphasizing the need for listening, education, and fact-based conversations to address public concerns proactively.
The discussion covers pressing industry issues such as AI infrastructure, responsible data center growth, site selection, zoning, resource usage (power/water), and balancing economic development with community interests. Miller suggests that successful infrastructure projects require developers to prioritize thoughtful planning, transparent communication, and responsible resource management to secure public trust. Ultimately, she believes the future is shaped by collaboration among developers, communities, policymakers, and infrastructure leaders who combine innovation with responsible growth and stakeholder engagement.
Full Take
The narrative centers on a critical shift in the perceived locus of infrastructure success: moving from purely technological execution to socio-political consensus building. The core tension lies between the rapid, capital-intensive demands of AI-driven digital expansion and the slower, consensus-driven requirements of community trust and environmental stewardship. Miller’s framework suggests that operational excellence in infrastructure will be gated not just by engineering capacity but by the ability to manage public perception—a concept formalized in Groundswell™. This implies a pattern where technical decisions are inherently political; ignoring community concerns introduces systemic risk to development timelines, often resulting in reactive mitigation rather than proactive integration. The implication is that responsibility demands embedding stakeholder engagement into the initial planning phases, positioning communication and social license as foundational infrastructure layers rather than peripheral concerns. The system privileges centralized, rapid innovation unless constraints imposed by decentralized public realities are explicitly integrated into the cost and timeline calculations.
Bridge Questions: What specific metrics can be developed to quantify the return on investment for community trust within large-scale infrastructure projects? How can institutional structures be redesigned to formally integrate stakeholder feedback mechanisms into regulatory pathways rather than treating engagement as an add-on? If collaboration is the future, what incentives exist for policymakers and developers operating at different scales (local vs. global) to prioritize shared outcomes over siloed objectives?
Sentinel — Human
The text reads like a professionally curated summary of an interview, effectively synthesizing the interviewee's expertise into a coherent narrative about infrastructure, trust, and development.