IDC Women Transforming Technology Summit Educate, Engage, and Empower

Digital Event | October 7, 2021

Overview

Over the past decade, the pursuit of diversity and inclusion (D&I) has gained considerable momentum, shining a light on the critical role of women in technology. Globally, numerous women have assumed leadership positions in the industry with great success, confirming the belief that diverse organizations perform better, hire better talent, have more engaged employees, and retain workers better than those that do not focus on D&I.

At its very core, digital transformation is about cultural change. Beyond the technology aspect, change management is key, and there should be a clear focus on creating a diverse organization. Indeed, according to IDC research, more than 80% of C-suite executives think that D&I policies will have at least some impact on their business.

IDC research also indicates that at least 35% of organizations worldwide have D&I requirements as T&C criteria for IT suppliers, underlining their corporate commitments to strengthening efforts on social topics – as more clients want to work with partners and vendors that share their values. 

Diversity is a hot topic in the tech industry — and because it’s discussed frequently, it can be easy to feel that things have already changed. However, women remain largely underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) roles around the world.

At IDC, we are committed to setting new benchmarks for the industry, and through the IDC Women Transforming Technology Summit we aim to provide a platform that will help accelerate the implementation of D&I best practices across the region.

Masterclass Arena

 

The inaugural edition of the IDC Women Transforming Technology Summit will feature a Masterclass Arena. Here, you will find a selection of CXO best-practice presentations, fireside chats, and panel discussions as respected industry pioneers and thought leaders share insights into the successful digital transformation strategies applied within their own organizations.

 

Her Excellency Thuraya Mohammed Al-Hashimi

Executive Director Digital Data Enabling Sector, Federal Competitiveness & Statistics Centre (FCSC) (UAE)

Dr. Shadha Al Amri

Head of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Department, University of Technology and Applied Science Muscat, (Oman)

Hajar AlMaazmi

SVP & Head of Information Technology, Ajman Bank (UAE)

Laila Al Hadhrami

Smart City Development Manager at National Energy Center (Oman)

Abeer Khedr

Director of Information Security, National Bank of Egypt

Nani M. Butti

Director of Information System, Ministry of Youth and Sport Afairs (Bahrain)

Seham El Behissy

Products and Connected Services - AMIP, Renault Group (UAE)

Areej Al Shaibani

Director of Human Resources Development, Oman Ministry of Transport, Communication, and Technology (Oman)

Dr. Moza Suwaidan

Director Strategy & Innovation Department /Director General Consultant, Smart Dubai Government, Digital Dubai (UAE)

H.E. Mubaraka M. Ali Ibrahim

Acting CIO, Emirates Health Services Establishment (UAE)

 

Agenda

Time Event & Speakers
11:00

IDC Welcome Address

Ronita Bhattacharjee

Vice President - Conferences, IDC Middle East, Africa, & Turkey
11:10

DX Strengthened Through Diversity in the Workplace

Nagia El-Emary

Country Director (Egypt) & Senior Consultant (MEA), IDC

Dr. Mudhi Aljamea

Dean STC Academy/VP Saudi Telecom Company (STC)

Auriel E. Rawlings

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Advisor, FedEx Express, Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa (UAE)

Dina Amin

Head of Marketing (META), Google Cloud

Ensuring diversity in the workplace is no longer merely a compliance issue. It is a necessity to represent a largely diverse customer base to ensure achievement of Digital Transformation, business and economic growth.

12:00

CEO Panel: A View of D&I Strategy from the Top

Jyoti Lalchandani

Group Vice President & Regional Managing Director (META), IDC

Dr. Raghavan Seetharaman

Chief Executive Officer, Doha Bank

Dr. Saeeda Jaffar

Senior Vice President and Group Country Manager, Visa (GCC)

Rola Abu Manneh

CEO, Standard Chartered Bank (UAE)
Despite the growing number of IT organizations that say implementing diversity and inclusion (D&I) in their workforce is a business imperative, the proportion of women and minorities still averages under 25% of all employees, particularly in technical roles. New hiring and retention metrics are emerging, as are rising customer and supplier expectations, meaning the vast majority of IT organizations will have to rethink their overall diversity strategies, KPIs, and goals. According to IDC research, already more than 80% of C-suite executives think that D&I policies will have at least some impact on their businesses. This high-level panel discussion will highlight the importance of employee experience measures, present structured ways to report and measure D&I performance, and explain how organizations are implementing diverse recruitment and retention goals, quantifying the impact of executive management and boards in making effective company-wide changes and creating the right setting for a D&I-driven organization.

13:20

Panel Discussion: Resilience and Transformation Underscore Smart Cities in the New Normal

Ranjit Rajan

Vice President, Research (META), IDC

Dr. Moza Suwaidan

Director of Strategy & Innovation, Digital Dubai (UAE)

Sara Al Zarooni

Director of Data Management & Compliance Affairs, Digital Dubai (UAE)

Mariam AlMuhairi

Head, Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution UAE, Dubai Future Foundation (DFF) (UAE)
13:20

IDC Women Trailblazers: A Diversity Journey to Success

Meredith Whalen

Chief Research Officer, IDC

Mary Conroy

VP of Marketing, Worldwide IT Executive,Industry Research & CEC, IDC

Eva Au

Managing Director, IDC Asia/Pacific

Debbie Bernardi

Chief Human Resources Officer, IDC
The Women Trailblazers panel features a group of female IDC leaders who will discuss in depth their achievements and best practices across technology, HR, marketing, and other lines of business. This panel will focus on the unique diversity challenges women face in today's workplace and the milestones of their own journeys to becoming IDC executives.

14:00

Challenges and Choices in Developing and Sustaining an IT Culture of Success – An IT Leadership Roundtable

Timothy Scannell

Vice President, Strategic Content CIO Executive Council/IDC

John Hill

CIO & Senior Vice President, Business Planning, Carhartt (USA)

Hernando Celada

CIO, ChenMed (USA)

Sarah Naqvi

Executive Vice President & CIO, HMSHost (USA)
The past 18 months or more have been challenging for IT leaders confronted with the need to manage a dramatic change in workforce dynamics. Other pressing challenges have included the need to maintain operational efficiencies, shift to a more product-oriented mindset to better align with business objectives, and replace or upgrade outdated technology infrastructures to become more resilient and flexible considering the uncertainties that may lie ahead. The most critical trials on the horizon include managing and motivating people, attracting new talent, driving innovation, leveraging enabling technologies, enhancing the customer experience, and establishing a more intelligent, intuitive, and diverse technology and business ecosystem. In this session, IT leaders from three different industries will provide their own first-hand insights into these challenges in an open and candid discussion that will focus on the demands and opportunities facing IT decision makers this year and into 2022.

14:40

Parallel Track Sessions (Parallel Sessions)

Session A: Workshop-Hitting Home: Conquering Women-to-Women Bias and Aggression in IT

14:40 - 15:40

Session A: Hitting Home: Conquering Women-to-Women Bias and Aggression in IT

Kathryn Marston

Group Vice President, Customer Experience and Operations, IDC

Bennetta Raby

Executive Coach, Organizational and Culture Transformation, Runnvation LLC and CIO Executive Council Coach

Session B: Cybersecurity Requires a Multidisciplinary Diverse Approach to Problem Solving

14:40 - 15:40

Session B: Cybersecurity Requires a Multidisciplinary Diverse Approach to Problem Solving

Arwa Alhamad

Head of Cyber Security, Sanabil Investment (Saudi Arabia)

Dr. Reem Faraj Al-Shammari

Digital Transformation Leader, Kuwait Oil Company (Kuwait)

Hessa Al Nahdi

CISO, Department of Culture & Tourism Abu Dhabi (UAE)

Abeer Khedr

Director of Information Security, National Bank of Egypt (Egypt)

Workshop-#IamRemarkable

14:40 - 15:40

Workshop - #IamRemarkable

Marwa Khost Jarkas

Communications Manager, MENA, Google Cloud
Session A: Workshop-Hitting Home: Conquering Women-to-Women Bias and Aggression in IT
14:40 - 15:40

Session A: Hitting Home: Conquering Women-to-Women Bias and Aggression in IT

Session B: Cybersecurity Requires a Multidisciplinary Diverse Approach to Problem Solving
14:40 - 15:40

Session B: Cybersecurity Requires a Multidisciplinary Diverse Approach to Problem Solving

Workshop-#IamRemarkable
14:40 - 15:40

Workshop - #IamRemarkable

15:40

IDC Women Transforming Technology Summit Felicitation Ceremony

Speakers

Ronita Bhattacharjee

Vice President - Conferences, IDC Middle East, Africa, & Turkey

Nagia El-Emary

Country Director (Egypt) & Senior Consultant (MEA), IDC

Dr. Mudhi Aljamea

Dean STC Academy/VP Saudi Telecom Company (STC)

Auriel E. Rawlings

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Advisor, FedEx Express, Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa (UAE)

Dina Amin

Head of Marketing (META), Google Cloud

Jyoti Lalchandani

Group Vice President & Regional Managing Director (META), IDC

Dr. Raghavan Seetharaman

Chief Executive Officer, Doha Bank

Dr. Saeeda Jaffar

Senior Vice President and Group Country Manager, Visa (GCC)

Rola Abu Manneh

CEO, Standard Chartered Bank (UAE)

Ranjit Rajan

Vice President, Research (META), IDC

Partners

Game Changer Partner
Workshop Partner
Associate Partner (Jordan)
Associate Partner (Kuwait)
Associate Partner (Lebanon)
Associate Partner (Middle East)
Associate Partner (Middle East)
Associate Partner (UAE)
Associate Partner (UAE)
Associate Partner (UAE)
Associate Partner (UAE)
Associate Partner (UAE)
Media Partner
Media Partner
Media Partner

General Information

 

Digital Event

 

Thursday, October 7

 

11:00AM (Gulf Standard Time)

 

Language
English

Registration Fee
Free of Charge: For End Users (not IT + Consultant companies)

Contact

For More Information, contact: Sughand Tolani - Conference Director

Mobile: +971 56 414 5987 | Email: stolani@idc.com

While this event will celebrate the role of women in technology, all members of the end-user community – both male and female – are welcome to join us as champions of diversity in the workplace.

Women Transforming Technology Summit Felicitation Ceremony

 

 

IDC Business & Digital Transformation Leaders of the Year

Contact Us

Ronita Bhattacharjee

Vice President - Conferences, IDC Middle East, Africa, & Turkey

+971 4 391 2747

Priyanjali Sarkar

Senior Sales Manager - ME, IDC MEA

+971 506591324

About IDC

57 Years | 1300 Analysts | 110 Countries

International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. With more than 1,300 analysts worldwide, IDC offers global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries. IDC's analysis and insight helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community to make fact-based technology decisions and to achieve their key business objectives. Founded in 1964, IDC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of International Data Group (IDG), the world's leading media, data and marketing services company. To learn more about IDC, please visit www.idc.com.