<![CDATA[2010 - CIO MIDDLE EAST]]> Home Agenda
08:30 - 09:00 Registration and welcome refreshments
 
09:00 - 09:15 Welcome address by naseba
 
09:15 - 09:30 Opening address by the chairperson
 

Bernardo Nicoletti - Former Chief Information Officer, AIG CFG
09:30 - 10:00 Keynote address:
 

The future of technology: Have we reached the end?
The focus of this presentation will be on a certain number of challenges which are facing the companies today. First of all we want to reassess the primary focus for the CIO’s beyond cost reduction, infrastructure optimization and virtualization and vendor consolidation. The primary role should be connected with Value Creation and Innovation. Certainly costs are important in the Value equation but they are only part of the story. Looking ahead to an improved economy, we want to address the importance of technology and put technology in a context of supporting the economic recovery and speed it up for the organization.

This context is connected with fostering innovation. We believe that there are three aspects on which the CEO’s should look at the CIO’s for supporting the innovation:
-Process improvement;
-Exploitation of new technologies;
-Protection of the organization from a security point of view.

Bernardo Nicoletti - Former Chief Information Officer, AIG CFG
10:00 - 10:40 Panel discussion:
 

The CIO’s agenda for 2010.
-The evolving role of CIOs and IT leaders to a more strategic role within their organisation.
-Meeting challenges by implementing goals and strategies that impact the business as a whole, rather than IT departments exclusively.
-Spending forecasts and budget allocations for 2010.
-What are the top technology priorities for CIOs in 2010 and beyond?

Johnathan Chapman – Chief Information Officer, Georgetown University Qatar
Asad Ahmed – Chief Information Officer, SIEMENS Engineering Pakistan
Emad Khatib – Chief Information Officer, Emcredit Limited
Sudhakar Siddegowda– Chief Information Officer, M.H. Group of Companies 
10:40 - 11:00 Keynote address:
 

Changing Role of the CIO and CISO: Linking Business with IT Strategies and Plans.
-Focus is shifting to align IT strategy with business
-New emerging trends like cloud computing and virtualization
-What’s needed to properly evaluate security risk, prioritize security activities and make the case for security project funding
-The ability to support the business with Risk Management by making good decisions based on business risk

Randolph Barr – Chief Security Officer, QUALYS
11:00 - 11:30 Keynote address:
 

Getting to the Heart of your BI Infrastructure

This presentation will highlight the distress signals for a Data Warehouse project and discuss the options and directions to take. Relying on proven and total solutions will definitely reduce the risks, the cost and enable everyone to become a decision maker.

Yves Khoneisser - General Manager, Professional Services – Sybase Products
11:30 - 13:00 Coffee break, executive networking and pre-scheduled one-to-one meetings
 
13:00 - 14:00 Networking luncheon
 
14:00 - 14:50 Panel discussion:
 

To cloud or not to cloud: The great IT debate.
-Projecting the growth of cloud computing.
-Opportunities and challenges in cloud computing and virtualisation.
-Tackling common challenges including: Data governance, manageability, monitoring, reliability, availability, and virtualisation security.

Moderator:
Ahmad AlMulla - Vice President-IT, Dubai Aluminium

Panelists:
Bassem Aboukhater – Regional IT Director (MENA), Leo Burnett Group
Sherif Mansour - Chief Information Officer, Tamweel PJSC
Mehmet Erkek - Chief Information Officer, REIDIN.com
14:50 - 15:20 Keynote address:
 

Benefitting Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) to ensure smooth operations after a crisis
Ghanem Elshahry – Head of InfoSec and Risk Management, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank

-Evaluating precautions, prevention measures in building relevant DRP.
-Choosing the right DRP according to type of business, processes involved and level of security needed.
-Defining and classifying your ‘recovery time objective’ (RTO) and ‘recovery point objective’ (RPO) after disaster occurs.
-Integrating a ‘wireless area network’ (WAN) in DRP, as in duplicating important data across WAN in a timely and in a cost-effective manner.
15:20 - 15:30 Closing remarks by conference chairperson
 
15:30 - 17:00 Coffee break, executive networking and one-to-one business meetings
 
Day two - Thursday May 13th 2010
08:30 - 09:00 Registration and welcome refreshments
 
09:00 - 09:15 Opening address by the chairperson
 
09:15 - 10:00 Panel discussion:
 

World-class IT governance in the public sector.
-The role of IT governance in the public sector.
-IT projects and initiatives to enable government organizations to provide better public services more effectively, efficiently and sustainably.
-Local compliance to facilitate smooth operations in a government organisation.

Dr. Hashem Al-Refai - Former Director General, eGovernment Authority of Ras Al Khaimah
Abdul Razack Dileep – Head of IT, Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council
Dr. Ahmed Albarrak - Chairman, Medical Informatics, College of Medicine, King Saud University
10:00 - 10:30 Keynote address:
 

Economic Future for Data and Information Management
Lynn Collier - Director File & Content Solutions EMEA, Hitachi Data Systems

Unprecedented pressure on resources: financial, human and technology, have resulted in the world having to view data and information management in a new way.  Understanding and capitalising on the beneficial economic impact of technology solutions will enable customers to tame the monster of data growth and establish a robust, agile infrastructure from which to manage all elements of data storage and information management.  Too much NAS proliferation?  Under utilised SAN infrastructure?  Capacity in the wrong place for the wrong applications and service levels being impacted?  Struggling to implement a sustainable content depot and bridge into the Cloud? 
 
Hear how Hitachi Data Systems will offer a strategic economic plan to satisfy the need for financial Return on Investment and to establish an agile infrastructure which will enable and support your business in the coming years.
10:30 - 11:30 Coffee break and executive networking
 
11:30 - 12:00 Keynote address:
 

Drafting your game plan: Where do we go from here?
- Career progression for leading CIOs.
- Advancing your roles and responsibilities to develop a more strategic function in the future of your organisation.

Chris Potts – Corporate Strategist & CIO Futurist, Dominic Barrow
12:00 - 12:30 Keynote address:
 

E- Health, Interoperability, and Mobility: Future prospect
-Trends in the healthcare sector and HIS Implementations, integrations and challenges.
-Communication (message Format) Standards.
-Integration example (standard approach).
-Integration New era: E-health portal.
-The goals of the approach.

Dr. Ahmed Albarrak – Chairman, Medical Informatics, College of Medicine, King Saud University
12:30 - 13:00 Keynote address:
 

Measuring the business value of IT

There’s an old management saying: You can’t manage what you don’t measure. Many organizations face the challenge of measuring the business value of their IT investments and maximizing the business value of IT investments is the primary objective of good IT governance. A number of formal measurement methodologies exist for measuring the business value of IT. By employing a credible methodology that measures projected business value as well as the actual value delivered, organizations can significantly improve their IT investment returns. Firms should pick a methodology suited to their environment and include it as part of an overall governance framework embedded in IT portfolio management.

-How the business value of IT can be measured
-Credible IT Value methodologies in use by different organizations
-Comparison of the methodologies and recommendations
-Making fact-based IT decisions

Khurram Ali - Head of IT, Al Futtaim Logistics
13:00 - 14:00 Networking luncheon
 
16:15 - 17:00 Execurtive networking and open business meetings
 
]]> Why Attend • Explore the latest IT technologies at the exclusive CIO strategies Mid-East event.

• Meet IT leaders from Fortune 1000.

• Discover the latest IT strategies on advancing implementation and aligning IT processes with overall corporate strategies.

• Get ahead by turning recession into your catalyst for success.

• Find out how the CIO’s role has changed and what the current focus for CIO’s should be.

• Meet directly with IT decision makers and capitalise on the vast growth of the Middle East region.

• Increase business opportunities through networking opportunities.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN THE IT INDUSTRY
(From a recent Gartner report called the 'Gartner Perspective: IT Spending 2010')

• In 2009 only Japan, the Middle East and Africa showed positive, flat growth in IT spending.

• Worldwide IT spending is expected to return to growth in 2010 as revenue is projected to reach US$3.3billion, a 3.3% increase from 2009.

• Hardware is the easiest segment of IT spend to cut from budgets, as there is no ongoing spend to support. Hardware spending in 2010 will be flat, with spending totalling US$317bn.

• Cost optimisation will benefit alternative software acquisition models as organisations will look for ways to shift spending from capital expenditures to operating expenditures.

• Software spending is projected to return to growth in 2010, with revenue reaching US$231bn, a 4.8% increase from 2009.

• Worldwide IT services spending is forecast to reach US$816bn, a 4.5% increase from 2009.

• There will be a return to more sustained growth in IT spending in 2012 and 2013 as the economic recovery unfolds.

• In the next two years, IT vendors should reassess rapidly changing customer news and opportunities, rebalance priorities between customer acquisition and retention, provide realistic business return on investment statistics, benchmarks and proof of concept as well as revaluate and refine partnership programmes, relationships and strategies.

WHY THE MIDDLE EAST?

• IT expenditure in the Middle East and Africa is projected to increase by 5.6% in 2010, to US$217.1billion.

• The establishment of Dubai Internet City – featuring 100% foreign ownership and sales, as well as tax exemption – has encouraged development of the technology sector in the region.

• The Middle East remains a strong area of development, with focus shifting from growth to cost reduction, optimisation and efficiency.

WHY THE MIDDLE EAST?

• IT expenditure in the Middle East and Africa is projected to increase by 5.6% in 2010, to US$217.1billion.

• The establishment of Dubai Internet City – featuring 100% foreign ownership and sales, as well as tax exemption – has encouraged development of the technology sector in the region.

• The Middle East remains a strong area of development, with focus shifting from growth to cost reduction, optimisation and efficiency.

]]> News Top Ten CIOs Middle East Award

November 16th, 2009 - The CIO Strategies Middle East Event has presented the CIO Strategies Awards to ten top CIOs and IT executives.

The Awards ceremony – which took place on Monday, November 16th, 2009 at the JW Marriott in Dubai, UAE – recognized the achievements of the MENA region’s IT leaders.

According to naseba Group – producer of the CIO Strategies Middle East Event – the Awards celebrate IT leaders who “through a combination of technological and leadership skills paired with incisive vision, have advanced their organization"s strategic goals”.

The Awards’ evaluation process was based on “leadership, achievement, measurable outcomes, innovation and overall contribution to the company and industry”.

To read the full article, visit http://www.siemens.com.pk/press_middle-east-cluster-award.html

 

CIO Strategies Middle East Event presents the CIO Strategies Awards

November 18th, 2009 – (…) The Awards’ evaluation process was based on “leadership, achievement, measurable outcomes, innovation and overall contribution to the company and industry”.
Patrick Neaf, Divisional Senior Vice President, Mercator – the IT subsidiary of the Emirates Group – walked away with an award for “implementing their most successful IT Project, Calogi – Cargo Logistics. According to naseba: “Calogi is an innovative solution for the cargo industry that takes a fresh look at the landscape and creates an online community of industry players linked in real time using the fabric of information technology and the web”.

To read the full press release, visit http://www.zawya.com/Story.cfm/sidZAWYA20091118103644/CIO%20Strategies%20Middle%20East%20Event%20presents%20the%20CIO%20Strategies%20Awards%20/

 

Ajman Bank CIO recognised as regional top 10 by CIO Strategies Middle East Event

November 23rd, 2009 - The CIO of Ajman Bank, the emirate’s first Islamic commercial bank, has been presented with a CIO Strategies Award, one of only ten to be awarded in the region at the CIO Strategies Middle East Event. (…)
Ashraf Shokry, CIO of Ajman Bank was presented with the award for “supporting the bank by introducing state-of-the-art technology to cost effectively deliver services to customers”.
Commenting on the accolade, Shokry said, “Customer service is paramount at Ajman Bank and our work in the IT Division has been central to delivering a great customer experience. From our website to ATM service, SMS and mobile banking services and forthcoming IVR, it is all about building relationships and giving our clients faster, easier 24/7 access to best serve their banking needs. It is an honour to have been recognised amongst my peers and grateful to my team and the leadership at Ajman Bank for their ongoing support.”


To read the full article, visit http://www.eyeofdubai.com/v1/news/newsdetail-36827.htm

 

]]> Testimonial "The event has proved an excellent for CIO with common goals and share best practices."
CIO, Siemens Engineering Pakistan

"Great and rare opportunity to meet with the most powerful C-level IT decision makers."
CIO, Emirates Airlines

"A great event to learn, explore, brain storm and network."
Group IT Manager, National Food Product Co.

"Very well orgnaised and the topic selection was very appropriate."
CIO, Wataniya Airways

"Great Networking opportunity. Good forum to share experience from leaders in the industry."
Group CIO, Al Rostamani Group

"Great networking opportunity with sessions that provide good insight into the real issues facing IT from notable speakers."
Vice President of IT, Dubai Alumininum,

"Informative and good opportunity to network and discuss solutions."
Senior Vice President, AL hilal bank

"Informative, productive and well organized. A very formal and organised way for CIOs  from the region to interact and share ideas."
Group IT Manager, Tanmiya


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