
Chicago CIO Community
Inner Circle
September 27, 2023 | The Ivy Room
September 27, 2023
The Ivy Room
Collaborate with your peers
Join Chicago's top CIOs for an intimate networking dinner and facilitated discussion on key business challenges. Enjoy a relaxed evening of dinner and drinks with your peers to share best practices, make new connections and build professional relationships.
Join your peers to discuss the most critical issues impacting CIOs today:
Building the Data Foundations for AI
Leveraging AI in a Competitive Environment
Embracing the Age of AI
Chicago CIO Governing Body
The Governing Body Co-Chairs shape the discussion topics and agenda, ensuring that all content is driven By CIOs, For CIOs®.
Governing Body Co-Chairs

Deb Hall Lefevre
Starbucks
CTO

Rajeev Khanna
Aon
Chief Information Officer

Laura Kohl
Morningstar
CIO

Mike Parisi
ITW
VP CIO

Jane Possell
CNA
EVP, Chief Information Officer, Analytics, Operations

Gagan Singh
Ascension
Chief Information Officer

Tom South
Northern Trust
Executive VP & Chief Information Officer
Agenda
September 27, 2023
4:30pm - 5:30pm Executive Networking Reception
5:30pm - 6:45pm Discussion Topics
Delivering the Right Data Foundation to Put AI to Work
Hosted by IBM

Jason Federoff
Principal Data & AI Transformation Executive
IBM

Mir Ali
Head of Digital Engineering
The Kraft Heinz Company

Zach Jecklin
CIO
Echo Global Logistics

Susan Malisch
SVP & CIO
American Medical Association

Mike Parisi
VP CIO
ITW

Raj Wadhwa
Chief Information and Process Officer
Sloan
Amid the backdrop of organizations facing economic headwinds and uncertainty, it’s no secret that 2023 has been a revolutionary time for AI. Advances in AI are driving enterprises to leverage generative AI capabilities to improve business performance and create stakeholder value. However, AI is only as good as the data that fuels it. Therefore, a flexible data architecture, such as a data fabric, is needed to make trusted data accessible to AI teams so that they can drive impactful AI outcomes like tuning foundation models with proprietary data to create more powerful, customized customer service interactions.
Speed and agility have become essential components for an enterprise to make smarter, quicker decisions and CIOs must empower the organization with the right capabilities and information to maximize benefits and decrease time to value. At the core of a data fabric architecture is the integration of governance, security, observability, and data management capabilities. Once established, organizations can align their data strategy with enterprise goals to create a competitive advantage through data and generative AI.
Join your peers to discuss how CIOs create a data foundation to embrace the age of AI value creation together with actionable takeaways at the end of the evening.
Building the Data Foundations for AI
- What goals do you have around using data insights to create a more efficient business? What challenges are you facing when it comes to those goals?
- How do you create new avenues for accessible data, while fostering data literacy for quicker and smarter business decisions?
- Is your data environment mature enough to move forward with automation and/or generative AI models? What do you need to do to get there?
Leveraging AI in a Competitive Environment
- What business processes are you currently automating and how do you identify the areas of the business that should be automated?
- How do your future automation plans affect cost/resource optimization and people productivity?
- Have you identified small use cases or pilots for incorporating generative AI within the enterprise? What benefits have you realized?
- What does the future look like for generative AI in your enterprise? Are there pressures from the C-suite to implement this before your data environment is mature enough?
6:45pm - 7:15pm Networking Break
7:15pm - 8:30pm Summary Discussion & Dinner
8:30pm - 9:30pm Social Hour
Apply to Participate
Apply to participate in the Chicago CIO Community Inner Circle.
Gartner facilitates exclusive, C-level communities by personally qualifying and understanding the priorities, challenges and interests of each member.
Our selective approach maintains the high quality of the network and ensures top-level discussions with peers from the world’s leading organizations.
Each application will be reviewed, and once your participation is confirmed, you will have access to year-round community programs.
Location
Venue
The Ivy RoomMore Information
Parking
Valet parking will be validated.
Community Program Manager
For inquiries related to this community, please reach out to your dedicated contact.