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The stakes have never been higher, nor the risks greater for today's CIO. Information technology is in the midst of a powerful transformation, leading to new sources of business value and new business models for the enterprise. But the change doesn't stop there.

A New Wave of Transformation
Leading-edge CIOs know their roles are taking a dramatic turn, moving beyond the traditional confines of IT. The key to survival and success now lies in the skillful ability to guide this transformative change. The CIO's challenge: to blend both business and technology capabilities in their teams and themselves and, ultimately, to build synergies across the enterprise and beyond.

Gartner's CIO Summit is specifically designed to assist forward-looking CIOs as they meet demands of transformation and prepare for the impact their role will have on the overall success of an organization's value chain. CIOs, CTOs and other top-technology executives will explore the emerging disciplines critical to organizational effectiveness, especially now as enterprises reexamine their business models and processes, reevaluate their approach to IT, and radically retool to compete on a global stage.

Intimate. Interactive. Innovative.
Join forces with Gartner analysts and the world's top CIO's in an intimate setting designed for open dialogue and high-level interaction. World class insight, tactical advice, practical implementation and peer networking all combine to form a stimulating and compelling executive learning experience. Expect to challenge and be challenged as you stretch your leadership ability and consider the new directions your role will take in an era of transformation.

Important information regarding CIO Summit attendance requirements:
This exclusive forum will bring together CIOs from both private and public institutions for tightly focused peer-to-peer exchanges, guided by Gartner's top-level analysts. Registration for the Gartner CIO Summit is open only to CIOs or equivalent-level IT executives who have ultimate responsibility for enterprise-wide -- or business division -- IT decision and budgets. Click here for further details.

Acceptance is at the discretion of Gartner. Please complete the Qualification Form. Once your application has been reviewed and approved by Gartner you will be contacted regarding payment.

Conference Chairs

• John Mahoney
• VP Distinguished Analyst
• Read Bio
  
  Most of Mr. Mahoney's 29 years of experience have been in senior management executive board positions in high-profile, world-class companies, which makes him very familiar with top leaders' perspectives. At Gartner, he has written about strategy, leadership and organization, has spoken at many high-profile events in over 30 countries and has led in-house, board-level workshops. Prior to joining Gartner, Mr. Mahoney was director of IS at the British Library, leading development of award-winning systems and a major program to embed digital technologies into the organization's culture, championing IT/business fusion, restructuring IS and the wider enterprise, and using outsourced service partners. He has experience with in commercial and public sectors.
  
  As a professional executive leader, the chief focus of this job is creating insight and practical advice by connecting our experience in Gartner with our clients’ business problems and opportunities. The primary reward is that clients clearly trust and appreciate our advice very much. The chief excitement comes from the continual transformation of the business technology world and from working with world-class clients and colleagues from many industries and locations worldwide.
  
  

• Patrick Meehan
• VP, Executive Programs
• Read Bio
  
  Prior to joining Gartner, Mr. Meehan was CIO for Phillips, dePury & Luxembourg, the fine arts, jewelry and watch division of French luxury goods holding company LVMH. In that capacity, he was actively involved in the transformation of a 320-year-old British brand (Phillips) from a literal pen-and-paper organization into a global market player, functioning seamlessly via completely revamped international finance systems, a global VPN and custom applications supporting all business processes, including trading environments.
  
  I love playing chess in three dimensions...and that's what it takes to be a CIO today! Most of all, I love to help my clients win.
  
  

Q&A with Gartner Analysts John Mahoney and Patrick Meehan; Research VPs

Summit co-chairs John Mahoney and Patrick Meehan look at some of the big questions facing CIOs today and at how you can discover solutions and build networks with peers who have similar issues at Gartner CIO Summit, December 2 – 4, 2007 in Amelia Island, Florida.

Q: Some people say the role of the CIO has limited future. Do you think that's true?
A: Absolutely not. The traditional technology delivery role of the CIO won't go away although it will definitely change. CIOs are taking on wider roles in many industries and many sizes and styles of enterprise, in both commercial and public sectors.

For example, the September 2006 Gartner/Forbes Survey of business executives found that within five years 60% of chief executives plan to make their CIOs responsible for using information as a strategic asset and 40% plan to make their CIOs responsible for business model innovation. So yes, the role will change and grow, even get renamed, but no, its future isn’t to disappear.

Q: What are the really big technology developments we should be tracking over the next 18 months?
A: Here are some, not a complete list but certainly these should be on your agenda.

• SOA is a given: application boundaries are dissolving, business process disciplines are imperative, integration is a new core IT competency and the user interface and interaction are vital.
• Information management technologies are critical for managing the info-glut and media-glut.
• Technology innovation is a constant: Web 2.0, Virtual Worlds, social software, generational adoption of technology, new devices, mashups in the hands of employees, customers and partners.
• And...don't overlook the growing impact of green IT and business sustainability issues.

Q: What's happening with emerging business models and how can we use IT to help our business profit from them?
A: A vital component of enterprise innovation and effectiveness is creation and exploitation of information assets. That can't be done without IT. Leading it requires looking holistically at information in the enterprise and its value chain and environment. The idea that IT can enable substantial business model change is returning to the foreground. Momentous industry-level changes are now in play, creating a second wave of business model innovation.

Q: As an experienced CIO, it's tough for me to find learning and development opportunities that really challenge me to do new things. How are others dealing with that problem?
A: Actually that was one of the main design goals for the Gartner CIO Summit. While there are numerous venues to accomplish this on a scale from journalistic reading to a full blown MBA program, CIOs should be acutely aware of what their needs are. They need a self awareness of their skill gaps...gaps which most notably fall in the peer relationship building and credibility domains.

CIO Summit fits neatly towards the top end of the executive enrichment scale. We seek to provide insight, but not in a "one to many" lecture format; CIO Summit seeks to present current topics and field data, and promotes peer to peer learning. That is why we've solicited leading CIOs to discuss their experiences, as well as structured break out sessions during which participating CIOs can think through their issues with peer support.

Q: I have an MBA and have held senior product development and marketing positions in my enterprise; I now find myself as CIO. What's at the Gartner CIO Summit for me?
A: While the definite trend is for seasoned IT professionals to augment their business knowledge, performance and communication skills, Summit also provides learning from the other direction...that of the business professional who needs to bridge into technology thinking.

As one leading recruiter said to me recently, "4 years ago CIOs were hired for their business knowledge; 2 years later they were fired for their lack of technology knowledge." The current state of the CIO role demands learning from both directions: business and technology. Gartner, and especially CIO Summit, demonstrates the confluence of those two trends.

View 2006 Chair Interview