IN-PERSON

Calgary CIO Executive Summit

June 17, 2025 | BMO Centre at Stampede Park

June 17, 2025
BMO Centre at Stampede Park

APPLY TO PARTICIPATE

Collaborate with your peers

Get together with Calgary's top CIOs to tackle shared business challenges and critical priorities facing your role today. Participate in this one-day, local program with peer-driven topics and interactive discussions with your true C-level peers.

Join your peers to discuss the most critical issues impacting CIOs today:

Building a Foundation for Cyber Resilience

Leveraging Data & Analytics to Improve Business Outcomes

Maximizing AI for Strategic Advantage

Calgary CIO Governing Body


The Governing Body Co-Chairs shape the summit agenda, ensuring that all content is driven By CIOs, For CIOs®.

Governing Body Co-Chairs

Ross Ballendine

Trimac Transportation
Vice President Information Technology

Jan Bradley

City of Calgary
Chief Information Technology Officer

Jason Hinchliff

Cenovus Energy
CDIO, Vice President Data & IT

Catherine Mendonsa

Mark Anthony Group
VP, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)

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 Calgary CIO community.

Peer-to-Peer Meetings

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

Agenda


June 17, 2025

8:00am - 8:30am  Registration & Breakfast

8:30am - 9:15am  Keynote

The ROI of Creativity

Noah Scalin headshot

Noah Scalin

Artist, Innovation Consultant

Guest Speaker

The World Economic Forum named creativity one of the top must-have skills for success in all industries. It is the key to thriving in this era of rapid innovation and change. But very few organizations have truly invested in the development of this essential capability. Why? Because creativity is considered too intangible to measure, too messy to fit into a strategic plan or simply something that is only for a few specially talented people.  In this engaging presentation, Artist/Author Noah Scalin pulls back the curtain on his own creative practice to explain the real ROI of creativity.

In this session, we will learn:

  • Why creativity is a crucial skill for fostering innovation at your organization
  • How to use creativity strategically for long-term impact
  • Simple strategies that anyone can use to innovate, grow and inspire others

9:15am - 9:40am  Networking Break

9:40am - 10:25am  Breakout Session

Featured Session by Gartner Executive Partner

Linda Dietrich headshot

Linda Dietrich

Executive Partner - CIO Advisory Practice

Gartner

 Details coming soon.

9:40am - 10:25am  Executive Boardroom

Future-Proofing IAM — Strategies for Enhanced Security

As organizations advance their security strategies, they face increasing complexities in ensuring proper authorization for accessing systems and application resources. Security leaders must implement the right tools and processes to guarantee that the appropriate individuals have access. Identity-first strategies are focused equally on security and business enablement.

Join this boardroom to discuss:

  • Ensuring consistent access policies
  • Balancing innovation with security to protect organizational assets
  • Evolving strategies to address the growing sophistication of cyber threats

10:25am - 11:10am  Networking Break

10:35am - 11:00am  Peer-to-Peer Meetings

Peer-to-Peer Meetings

Connect with like-minded peers in a one-on-one setting through Peer-to-Peer Meetings.

11:10am - 11:55am  Breakout Session

Modern Infrastructure Foundation — Unlocking Value in AI

David Porter headshot

David Porter

Head of Customer Value & Transformation Advisory

Google Cloud

Delivering AI and GenAI value at scale is top of mind with many CIOs while juggling the needs to maintain a secure scalable technology foundation, but how can CIOs accomplish this? Prioritizing a high-quality data, security and infrastructure foundation provides all the necessary ingredients that will unlock the greatest value in AI.

Join this session to discuss:

  • Building a value driven AI strategy
  • Delivering high-quality, well-structured data to enhance the accuracy and efficiency of AI-driven initiatives
  • Driving a modern secure AI ready infrastructure roadmap for scale, efficiency and ease of use

11:10am - 11:55am  Executive Boardroom

Translating the Value of IT

Information Technology has the potential to move from a back-office department to a crucial business driver. In order to do so, technology leaders must be able to tell a compelling story that highlights their team’s value to the rest of the organization.

Join this session to discuss:

  • Using data to communicate IT’s story
  • Elevating IT to every aspect of the business
  • Evolving from sustainers to transformers

11:10am - 11:55am  Executive Boardroom

Communicating Risk — Translating Insight Into Action

Matt Teichrob headshot

Matt Teichrob

Head of IT Security & Infrastructure

Veren

Adam Ennamli headshot

Adam Ennamli

Chief Risk, Compliance & Security Officer

General Bank of Canada

Measuring and communicating security risk is integral to reducing an organization's vulnerability to attack. To better inform the broader business, sourcing data that provides a comprehensive view of risk level and security posture is key.

Join this boardroom to discuss:

  • Translating the ‘what’ ‘why’ and ‘how’ of your cybersecurity strategy to non-IT-focused teams
  • Linking risk measurement with technical metrics to influence company decision-making
  • Taking a data-driven approach to prioritization based on the current threat landscape

11:55am - 12:30pm  Lunch Service

12:30pm - 1:05pm  Keynote

Securing Data Flow in the AI-Quantum Era

Steve Riley headshot

Steve Riley

VP & Field CTO

Netskope

Sensitive data movement can be risky but restricting it outright can create operational and security challenges. In an era of agentic AI, generative AI, and emerging quantum computing, organizations need security frameworks that protect data while ensuring agility. This session explores how modern security platforms enable secure data flow, adapt to diverse use cases and prepare for the post-quantum encryption (PQE) shift.

Join this keynote to learn:

  • How to choose the right secure access method for each use case
  • Why security must be adaptive to risk, user behavior and AI-driven interactions
  • How to prepare for post-quantum encryption and its enterprise security impact

1:05pm - 1:30pm  Break

1:30pm - 2:15pm  Breakout Session

Leading Strategic Change to Create Business Synergy

Rick Begg headshot

Rick Begg

Chief Information Officer

Bird Construction

Fergle D'Aubeterre headshot

Fergle D'Aubeterre

VP, Business Systems, BI Analytics, and Enterprise Architecture

Bird Construction

Technology and security leaders have the power to turn change into positive, permanent growth for their organization. Rick Begg, CIO at Bird Construction has been on a transformation journey with the Beam team, shifting from siloed data and legacy technology sprawl to a strong data foundation with aligned and standardized processes.

Join this session to hear about and discuss with your peers:

  • Driving operational efficiency with strategic change management
  • Establishing data and analytics frameworks to accelerate the business
  • Creating consistency in organizational systems, processes and data

1:30pm - 2:15pm  Executive Boardroom

Buy or Build? Investing Time and Resources in Applications

Neil Bradbury headshot

Neil Bradbury

Head of Technology, Information Systems

Bantrel

Steve Reece headshot

Steve Reece

CIO / Director of IT & IS

Vermilion Energy

Gartner research shows a near split of CIOs opting to build an application in-house versus buying or partnering with a third-party. Regardless of the choice, IT executives must deliver programs that are relevant and both cost and time effective to manage.

In this boardroom, you will discuss:

  • Customizing build or buy strategies that evolve with business needs
  • Maximizing the value of applications while remaining agile
  • Incorporating effective contract management to avoid vendor lock-in

1:30pm - 2:15pm  Executive Boardroom

Starting with Data — Securing a Modern Governance Program

Mike Yuen headshot

Mike Yuen

CISO

AltaGas

As organizations race to innovate and create efficiencies, establishing a secure data governance and protection program is paramount. Security leaders must ensure their data framework offers lifecycle protection while enabling the business.

Join this session to discuss: 

  • Aligning security objectives with data governance principles
  • Ensuring availability, integrity and confidentiality of data
  • Complying with data-focused regulations while creating value

2:15pm - 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 Peer-to-Peer Meetings.

3:00pm - 3:45pm  Breakout Session

Cyber Resilience Beyond Prevention

Richard Henderson headshot

Richard Henderson

Executive Director, CISO

Alberta Health Services

True cybersecurity isn’t just about stopping threats—it’s about surviving them. Richard Henderson, CISO of AHS, shares how one of the world’s largest healthcare organizations is strengthening crisis preparedness, incident response, and operational continuity to withstand evolving threats.

Join this session to learn how to: 

  • Build stronger crisis preparedness plans
  • Improve incident response and recovery
  • Adopt a layered security approach

3:00pm - 3:45pm  Executive Boardroom

The Impact of Geopolitical Shifts

Ross Ballendine headshot

Ross Ballendine

Vice President Information Technology

Trimac Transportation

Jason Hinchliff headshot

Jason Hinchliff

CDIO, Vice President Data & IT

Cenovus Energy

IT and security leaders must play a pivotal role in assessing corporate risk and taking action as necessary. The current state of geopolitical uncertainty leaves many variables for enterprise risk, including vendor reliability, supply chain consistency, and cyber threats.

Join this session to discuss:

  • Understanding the latest regulations affecting the threat landscape
  • Evaluating operations in high-risk geographies to strategize resiliency
  • Planning disaster recovery in the event of a geopolitical disruption

3:00pm - 3:45pm  Executive Boardroom

Managing OT to Fully Secure the Business

Jeneane Whyte headshot

Jeneane Whyte

Director, Information and Cybersecurity

Cenovus Energy

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

Join this session to discuss:

  • Understanding new and growing operational technology responsibilities
  • Planning and controlling your OT workload
  • Juggling IT and OT security simultaneously

3:45pm - 4:00pm  Networking Break

4:00pm - 4:35pm  Keynote

Closing Keynote

Details coming soon.

4:35pm - 4:45pm  Closing Comments and Prize Drawing

4:45pm - 6:00pm  Governing Body Reception

Governing Body Reception

Finish the day sharing lessons learned with your peers over light fare and drinks at this closing reception hosted by your governing body members.

June 17, 2025

We look forward to seeing you at an upcoming in-person gathering


Gartner cares about the health and safety of our community. Please review the following recommendations prior to attending the gathering.

Location


Venue & Accommodation

BMO Centre at Stampede Park
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Community Program Manager


For inquiries related to this community, please reach out to your dedicated contact.

Aislin Courtis

Community Program Manager

503-407-4886

aislin.courtis@gartner.com