Panel 1 – IT Strategy

This panel will discuss how CIOs are evolving IT strategy from a back-office function into a core business driver, aligning roadmaps to outcomes like customer experience, risk reduction, and productivity. Expect discussion on balancing transformation with operational resilience, reducing complexity and tech debt through modernisation, and building the right governance and operating model to deliver change at scale across highly regulated, high-expectation environments.

Panel 2 – The Business of Technology

This panel will discuss where IT budgets are going in 2026, and how technology leaders are responding to tougher questions from boards and executives about ROI, cost-to-serve, and measurable value. The conversation will explore shifts in funding priorities, rationalisation of tools and vendors, the growing weight of security and compliance as “non-negotiable” spend, and how CIOs are making investment decisions in a world of rising cloud, SaaS, and AI operating costs.

Panel 3 – AI and automation

This panel will discuss how organisations are moving AI and automation from pilots into practical, repeatable business outcomes, including real-world use cases. Expect a focus on the foundations required to scale responsibly (data, governance, guardrails, skills), the challenge of tech becoming obsolete faster than ever, and the ethical and workforce implications of AI, particularly in high-impact sectors where trust, bias and accountability matter most.