EMEA CIOs' Most Talked-About Topics in 2023

It has been a busy first half of the year for Evanta’s European CIO communities. Executives from across these communities were back in full swing, coming together on numerous occasions to address mission-critical priorities, ranging from data and analytics to cybersecurity strategies. 

So far, CIOs have gathered in person at two Executive Summits and four Inner Circle Dinners and grew their connections virtually during ten Town Halls and Peer Roundtables, sharing their stories, exchanging ideas, and making new connections. 

Here is a look back at some of the highest-rated sessions across these communities:

UK & Ireland CIO Town Hall: How CIOs Can Build Resilient Cultures Remotely 

In this session, Marcia Goddard, Neuroscientist and Chief Culture Officer at the Contentment Foundation, explored the science behind how the brain deals with uncertainty, as well as how the behaviours underlying resilience are the deciding factors in determining whether people and organisations can achieve growth. Joined by Graeme Hackland, Vice President of IT at PlayStation, Marcia shared how CIOs can create psychological safety in the workplace, which is at the core of preventing employee fatigue and burnout.

Here’s what a few executives had to say:

Great and engaging presenter and excellent management of the Q&A session.”

           Excellent session – very insightful!”

France CIO & CISO Town Hall: The Economic Outlook for CIOs and CISOs – How to Prepare in Times of Crisis

At this Town Hall, Carsten Brzeski, Global Head of Macro Research and Chief Economist Eurozone at ING, leveraged his expertise, exploring how geopolitical events in Europe have shaken the expected recovery across the Eurozone, creating prolonged periods of uncertainty and times of crisis for organisations and leaders. Specifically, Carsten explored how technology leaders can leverage the right information to inspire customers, employees, and fellow executives to pivot their organisations toward new ways of working amidst broader economic uncertainty. 

Italy CIO Peer Roundtable: Closing the Technical Skills Gap to Enhance Security 

At the very first Peer Roundtable for the Italian CIO & CISO community, executives came together to discuss key ideas alongside Simone Pezzoli, Group CTO at Haier Europe, Debora Guma, Global CIO at De'Longhi Group and Roberto De Paolis, Head of IT Security Partner & Security Operations at Leonardo. In this session, executives explored how having the right technical talent in the right place (and at the right time) is crucial to successful digital transformation. Specifically, executives discussed how CIOs and CISOs can collaborate effectively and upskill employees to advance in a competitive digital environment.

Program participants provided this feedback:

I think it was very interesting both to share and to receive. The people who are part of the community are senior and it shows.”

        Great conversation! Had fun and learned a lot from different perspectives.”

        Great discussion, great community!”

Nordic CIO & CISO Executive Summit – Keynote: Creating a Green IT Ecosystem to Encourage Digital Sustainability 

At this closing keynote, JP Iversen, Group CIO at Electrolux, joined Helena Babelon, Head of IT Sustainability at Electrolux to discuss how the IT function is driving sustainability across the wider business. JP and Helena explored how executives can embed sustainability into an organisation’s IT strategy and empower employees to integrate sustainability into the broader company culture. 

Executive Summit attendees shared their comments:

Great content and practical experience. The passion for the subject shone through.”

        Important and inspiring!”

        I believe a lot in this. Excellent presentation.”

Most Read Articles 

Evanta regularly shares peer-driven, CIO community insights, which you can find here. This is a glimpse of the most popular content for CIOs in European communities so far in 2023.

1. 2023 CIO Leadership Perspectives - This infographic highlights what over 900 CIOs say are their mission critical priorities, challenges and investment areas this year - results from our annual Leadership Perspective Survey.
2. Governing Body Spotlight: Manfred Boudreaux-Dehmer, CIO, NATO - This Q&A series features Evanta Governing Body Members who drive our “by CIO, for CIO” communities. Here, we spotlight Manfred Boudreaux-Dehmer, Governing Body Member of the Benelux CIO community.
3. 9 CIO Trends in 2023 - This blog identifies 9 clear trends in CIOs’ enterprise priorities, functional objectives and planned spend for 2023.
   

So, what’s in store for the second half of 2023? We have already confirmed several dates for our EMEA CIO communities, and more dates will be announced on our calendar soon. Here is what just a few community members are saying about their experiences:

Very well organised. There was a broad spectrum of industry that resulted in some interesting and enlightening discussions.”

Good table conversations, great business experience and sharing of vision.”

It was my first experience of an Evanta Programme. It was very warm and friendly. The discussions were very open.”

Do not miss the opportunity to connect with like-minded peers on your mission critical priorities and challenges - apply to join your local CIO community today.