IN-PERSON

Vancouver, BC CIO Executive Summit

October 8, 2024 | Vancouver Marriott Pinnacle Downtown Hotel

October 8, 2024
Vancouver Marriott Pinnacle Downtown Hotel

Governing Body Agenda Location Partners Contact

Governing Body Co-Chairs

Rob Davidson

Pacific Blue Cross & PBC Solutions
CISO

David Royer

West Fraser
CISO

Greg Sieg

Ledcor
SVP & CIO

Tim Swanson

FortisBC Energy
Director, Corporate Security & Business Continuity

What to Expect

Interactive Sessions

Hear from CIO practitioners and thought leaders on how they're solving critical challenges impacting your role today in Keynote sessions, and join smaller, interactive discussions with your peers in Breakout and Boardroom sessions.

Community Networking

Make new connections and catch up with old friends in casual conversations during dedicated time for networking designed to better acquaint you with your Vancouver, BC CIO community.

Peer-to-Peer Meetings

Connect with like-minded peers in a private, one-on-one setting through Evanta's Peer-to-Peer Meetings. You will be matched with peers in your community based on your shared interests and priorities.

Agenda

October 8, 2024

morning afternoon evening

7:45am - 8:30am Registration & Breakfast

8:30am - 9:15am Keynote

Leading Resilient Teams Through Unpredictable Adversity

Lisa Thompson

Author of "Finding Elevation: Fear and Courage on the World's Most Dangerous Mountain"

Guest Speaker

Lisa Thompson is a high-altitude mountaineer and former healthcare executive who beat cancer months before standing on the summit of Everest. Lisa later became the first all-American woman to summit K2, which is considered the deadliest mountain in the world. In her talks and book, “Finding Elevation,” Lisa shares the experience of climbing the toughest mountains in the world and the importance of teamwork, resilience and defining boundaries.

Join this keynote session to learn about the importance of:

Embracing change and overcoming challenges
Creating a supportive environment inside and outside the office
Defining clear roles and goals to build a strong, communicative team

9:15am - 9:40am Networking Break

9:40am - 10:25am Breakout Session

Optimizing Cybersecurity Resources in a Dynamic Threat Landscape

Nahid Asani

Regional VP, Security Experts

Fortinet

In today’s rapidly evolving threat landscape, enterprises face a barrage of new malware and ransomware attacks. In addition, organized threat actors are increasingly leveraging AI to automate attacks, exploit the latest vulnerabilities and adapt their methods based on real-time feedback.

Join this session to explore:

Optimizing limited resources and budgets to combat threats
Implementing automation to reduce detection and prevention times
Leveraging a unified platform approach to enhance cybersecurity efforts

9:40am - 10:25am Executive Boardroom

AI Data Readiness — A Blueprint for Success

David Porter

Head of Customer Value & Transformation Advisory

Google Cloud

Momchil Karov

Director, Information Security

Vancouver Community College

Dodii Villareal

Director, Information Technology

Dometic

Achieving AI data readiness is crucial for organizations aiming to leverage machine learning effectively. By prioritizing high-quality, well-structured data, companies can enhance the accuracy and efficiency of their AI systems. Implementing robust data management practices, including collection, preprocessing and validation, supports scalable and reliable AI applications, driving innovation and maintaining a competitive edge in the tech industry.

Join this session to discuss with your peers:

Prioritizing high-quality, well-structured data to enhance AI system accuracy and efficiency
Implementing robust data management practices
Focusing on scalable and reliable AI applications to drive innovation and maintain a competitive edge

9:40am - 10:25am Executive Boardroom

Risk to the Nth-Party Degree

Peter Ling

VP, Global Cybersecurity Partnerships & Cyber Resilience Programs

RiskRecon - A MasterCard Company

Wyman Chin

SVP & CIO

Pacific Blue Cross

Rob Davidson

CISO

Pacific Blue Cross & PBC Solutions

Third party relationships are closest and may prove to be the most tangible risks to your business, yet the whole supply chain of your business partners still pose a substantial threat. Most organizations’ vendor relationships extend to the 8th party. CISOs need to understand this web of connectedness in order to better manage and communicate enterprise risk.

Join this session to discuss:

Gaining visibility into risk across the whole supply chain
Strategies for effective risk management and monitoring business partners
Overcoming resource challenges to prioritize third-party and extended supply chain risk

10:25am - 11:05am Networking Break

10:30am - 10:55am Peer-to-Peer Meetings

Peer-to-Peer Meetings

Connect with like-minded peers in a one-on-one setting through Evanta’s Peer-to-Peer Meetings. You will be matched with peers in your community based on your shared interests and priorities.

11:05am - 11:50am Breakout Session

Modern Workforce, Modern Security Strategy

Julia Lomakina

Senior Product Manager

Google Chrome Enterprise

In the age of remote and hybrid work, employees now spend the majority of their time in the browser or in virtual meetings. The workforce is more mobile and distributed than ever before. At the same time, we are seeing an increase in cyber attacks and a higher average cost of data breaches. We must think more about protecting users right where they interface with web threats, the browser, without disrupting productivity.

Join this conversation with your peers to discuss:

The browser's role in a business's security strategy
Zero trust architecture
Managing resources for cybersecurity in a time of economic uncertainty

11:05am - 11:50am Executive Boardroom

From Cybersecurity to Cyber Resiliency in the AI Era

Shari Wallace

CIO

Greater Vancouver Realtors

Martin Palacios

Chief Information And Security Officer

Paper Excellence

Digital data has never been more critical to business success, and cybersecurity breaches — from infrastructure weaknesses like recent updates to outright attacks— have never been more costly. As we adapt to AI-driven advancements in the digital landscape, what cybersecurity principals are evergreen, and what needs to change.

Join this boardroom conversation to discuss:

Best practices to support cyber resiliency in any organization
How to prioritize security investments in a threat-rich environment
The security features that are non-negotiable in a work-from-anywhere world—on-device, in the cloud, and beyond

11:05am - 11:50am Executive Boardroom

Delivering an Analytics Strategy that Packs a Punch

Chris Allen

VP, Information Technology

Pattison Food Group

Steve Little

Vice President, Technology and Innovation

Lundin Mining

As leaders seek to drive business value from data and analytics initiatives, they face both cultural and technical challenges. CIOs must partner with the business in creating a long-term analytics strategy that enables the organization to make data driven decisions.

Join this session to hear perspectives on:

Evolving data governance efforts to power accuracy in reporting and analytics
Overcoming technical obstacles and cost pressure to ensure analytics programs get prioritized
Building a business case to create a strategy that has measurable outcomes and results

11:50am - 12:35pm Lunch Service

12:35pm - 1:10pm Keynote

Zero Trust, AI, and the Evolving Nature of Cyber Risk

Sanjit Ganguli

CTO in Residence

Zscaler

Michael Cavallin

Manager, Cyber Risk & Security

bcIMC

GenAI is the latest in a line of emerging technologies that promise revolutionary advancement across a variety of business functions but introduce significant risks. Zero trust architecture augmented by AI/ML capabilities can be the key to capturing value while reducing risk, eliminating cost and complexity, and increasing agility. How can CIOs and CISOs embrace zero trust security across the organization to harness the power of emerging technologies?

Join this session to discuss:

Implementing zero trust architectures to secure users, workloads, and IoT/OT devices, addressing critical security shortcomings
Reducing risk, eliminating cost and complexity, and increasing agility through AI/ML-augmented zero trust architectures
Articulating the organization's cyber risk posture, controls, and mitigation strategies to internal stakeholders, including the board of directors

1:10pm - 1:35pm Break

1:35pm - 2:20pm Breakout Session

Interactive Session ― Which Side are You On?

Jordan Labun

Director of IT, Ocean Brands

Jim Pattison Group

Angela Polanski

Director, Technology

Tolko Industries

Join a friendly discussion and debate with peers to challenge your ideas on hybrid working, SaaS and GenAI ethics. Explore the concept of polarity and determine if you can have the best of both worlds.

Join this session to:

Build community through interactivity
Expand your thinking on polarizing topics
Understand the journey your peers are on

1:35pm - 2:20pm Executive Boardroom

What Are We Doing? ⁠― Navigating Cyber Insurance

Mark Basco

Director, IT & Cybersecurity

Adentra Group

Jeff Coolen

CIO

Lordco Auto Parts

The cyber insurance application process is taking longer and has become more complicated in the last few years. Premiums are rising. Leaders from organizations big and small are questioning the value of cyber insurance.

Join this session to discuss with your peers:

Different perspectives on the changing cyber insurance industries
Strategies to protect both your organization and its leaders from cyber-related risks
Open conversations about the struggles and benefits of investing in cyber insurance

1:35pm - 2:20pm Executive Boardroom

Succession Planning ― Future-Proofing IT Leadership Roles

Sonny Sarai

Director, Information Security

Pattison Food Group

Clay Stooshnoff

Director, IS Applications & Delivery Services

FortisBC Energy

Succession planning is critical for CIOs and CISOs to ensure continuity and resilience in leadership roles. By identifying and developing internal talent, organizations can mitigate risks associated with unexpected departures and maintain strategic momentum.

Join this boardroom to strategize on:

Establishing a roadmap for leadership transition
Assessing current capabilities and providing targeted development opportunities
Ensuring leadership continuity and organizational resilience

2:20pm - 3:00pm Networking Break

2:25pm - 2:50pm Peer-to-Peer Meetings

Peer-to-Peer Meetings

Connect with like-minded peers in a one-on-one setting through Evanta’s Peer-to-Peer Meetings. You will be matched with peers in your community based on your shared interests and priorities.

3:00pm - 3:45pm Breakout Session

Managing OT to Fully Secure the Business

Rob Antonishen

Director, Cyber Security & Compliance

BC Hydro

Steve Little

Vice President, Technology and Innovation

Lundin Mining

For most organizations, the number of connected, essential devices is growing by the second. In response, the CISO's jurisdiction is changing just as rapidly. Now, in the case of any security issue, the rest of the C-suite may be looking to you for answers.

Join this session and start understanding:

Your new or growing operational technology responsibilities
What you can do to smoothly plot and control your OT workload
How you can best juggle IT and OT security simultaneously

3:00pm - 3:45pm Executive Boardroom

Delivering Business Value through AI Investments

Chris Denton

Director, Digital Platforms

Best Buy Canada

Dharmesh Gandhi

CIO

BC Hydro

Tim Swanson

Director, Corporate Security & Business Continuity

FortisBC Energy

As AI technologies evolve, the opportunities are pushing businesses into a new era of efficiency and competitiveness. CIOs and CISOs must create a comprehensive strategy that leads with business outcomes and takes into account data security. Whether organizations are creating an in-house tool or looking at vendor platforms, now is the time to assess current capabilities and identify areas where AI can add value.

Join your CIO and CISO community to discuss:

Identifying and aligning business needs and use cases for AI implementation
Zeroing in on the right AI investments for the organization
Assessing data security and privacy to fully harness the power of AI

3:00pm - 3:45pm Executive Boardroom

Less is Never More ― Maximizing Resources for Cost Optimization

Alex Buhler

Chief Technology Officer

INDOCHINO

Gráinne McElroy

Deputy CIO, Medicine & Chief Architect

University of British Columbia

Hilary Sinclair

Director, IS & Technology

VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation

In this environment, cost optimization must be an always-on discipline. Leaders need to pursue cost optimization through both function-specific and enterprise-wide programs and connect cost optimization efforts to the organization’s larger objectives.

Join this session to learn more about:

Identifying, vetting, and prioritizing opportunities to maximize value
Developing an effective cost optimization strategy for long-term value
Building a consensus among leaders throughout the organization

3:45pm - 4:10pm Break

4:10pm - 4:45pm Keynote

Maximizing AI Potential ― A Follow-Up Discussion

Tim Swanson

Director, Corporate Security & Business Continuity

FortisBC Energy

Chris Denton

Director, Digital Platforms

Best Buy Canada

This keynote aims to provide actionable insights and foster an understanding of how to effectively integrate AI into your strategic framework. In an earlier boardroom, executives explored the foundational strategies for AI implementation. Now, it's time to delve deeper into the practical aspects of maximizing AI's impact within your organization.

Join this fireside chat to further discuss: