IDC Mauritius CIO Summit 2023

Analyst Spotlight
A New Approach to Security in the Post-Pandemic World

Frank Dickson
Group Vice President, Security & Trust, IDC

As we enter 2023, we can finally, for the most part, put reactionary moves due to COVID-19 behind us as the disease moves from a pandemic to an endemic part of daily life. We have accepted that digital transformation moved at a feverish pace, transitioning our enterprises to digital first years before we anticipated. The possibilities of remote work gave way to the reality that hybrid work is here to stay. These are truths that we have accepted.

The economic headwinds we are experiencing have re-energized a trend that was muted by the pandemic. The C-suite appreciates the value and importance of security both now and into the future. C-level executives are actively planning continued investments in security to ensure the viability of their enterprises. However, C-level executives are growing tired of the continually growing financial appetite of security and are looking to reduce spending when and where possible. They are demanding accountability for the spend; in essence, they are looking for secure outcomes that are measurable and meaningful.

The result of this security confluence is a migration of approaches. The breach detection mindset of the past is giving way to a view that positions security as a way of improving an organization's cyber-risk posture, a posture that is tightly coupled with the goals of the organization and decreasing business risk. In its 2023 Future of Trust FutureScape, IDC predicted that by 2025, 45% of CEOs, fatigued by security spending without predictable ROI, will demand security metrics and results measurement to assess and validate investments made in their security program.

The IDC Mauritius CIO Summit 2023 will look to address security in this new reality. We will help guide you in working with the CEO and boards of directors as we transition to delivering secure outcomes and a trusted organization to our executive constituencies.

Analyst Spotlight
Thriving in the Digital-First Economy

Ranjit Rajan,
Vice President, Research (META), IDC

The pandemic-driven pivot to digital-first strategies by organizations across the Middle East continues well after the pandemic has subsided. Indeed, many leading organizations are now making the transition from enabling digital transformation to actually running a digital business.

In line with this shift, they are increasingly focused on deriving a larger share of revenues from digital products, services, channels, and platforms, with 50% of the CIOs surveyed by IDC across the Middle East saying this is now a major priority for their organizations.

The same survey revealed that 70% of Middle East CIOs will be prioritizing the digitalization of operations (process automation, reengineering, and productivity improvements) over the next 12-18 months, while more than half will also be focused on delivering insights at scale across their organizations by building capabilities in data and enterprise intelligence.

The region will continue to face several headwinds throughout 2023, including volatile demand, high inflation, interest rate hikes, supply chain uncertainties, and currency fluctuations. In order to navigate these storms of disruption, organizations will need to invest in strengthening their digital resiliency so they are better positioned to not only survive but thrive in new market environments as conditions continue to change.

Giga/Mega projects that envision futuristic, highly digitalized cities and communities — such as NEOM in Saudi Arabia — will provide a blueprint for accelerated digitalization across the region in 2023 and beyond. Such projects will set the pace as they develop greenfield digital infrastructure and platforms, leveraging advanced technologies like AI/ML, IoT, edge, and 5G to create innovative tech-enabled use cases and customer experiences.

The rise of the digital economy and the emergence of digital-native firms in segments such as fintech, ecommerce, D2C (direct to consumer), aggrotech, and edtech, among others, have accelerated the disruption of supply chains in several industries, driving the development of new business models, digitally augmented customer experiences, and automated operations.

At the same time, governments across the Middle East have launched numerous strategies and policies to support the growth of the digital economy, with a focus on developing the infrastructure, innovation platforms, skills, and regulations required to support the expansion of digital businesses.

One such example is the UAE government's 'Digital Economy Strategy'. Launched in 2022, this initiative aims to double the contribution of the digital economy to the UAE's GDP from 9.7% to 19.4% over the next 10 years, and it is already bearing fruit.

Indeed, the number of digital companies operating in the country is expanding significantly, with the fintech, ecommerce, and D2C segments leading the charge. These companies are disrupting business models and value chains, driving incumbent players to develop new innovation models, engage in ecosystem partnerships, and launch or acquire digital spin-offs.

In order to thrive in this new world, a digital-first mindset is essential, coupled with a vision to build a data-driven organization that is ingrained with a culture of innovation. Leveraging cloud as a foundational platform, developing a data and intelligence plane powered by AI and advanced analytics, and enabling ubiquitous, consumption-based digital infrastructure will all become critical technology priorities.

Analyst Spotlight
Cloud Overspend and the Role of CloudOps and FinOps

Matt Eastwood,
Senior Vice President, Worldwide Research, IDC

Over the past few years, IDC has seen investments in cloud grow rapidly as enterprises build their digital footprints. In many cases, this growth has occurred without the proper governance necessary to ensure resources are optimized appropriately. And the impact on budgets has been significant, with cloud now representing 35-40% of a typical IT budget. Additionally, the typical enterprise is reporting that their cloud overspend can be upwards of 25-35% today. Customers are clearly struggling to understand how to best optimize cloud spend for architectural and business benefit while also allocating cloud costs to the correct team.

One of the ways that enterprise IT customers are tackling this challenge is through the implementation of CloudOps and FinOps. CloudOps is the practice of optimizing and managing the use of cloud resources, while FinOps is the practice of managing financial aspects of cloud operations. Together, these practices allow customers to better understand their cloud usage and costs, and to identify areas where they can reduce expenses effectively.

For example, by using CloudOps tools, customers can monitor and adjust their usage of resources such as storage and computing to ensure they are only paying for what they need. Additionally, FinOps techniques such as forecasting and budgeting can help customers plan and control their spending, preventing unexpected or unnecessary cloud charges.

As a result of these efforts, many enterprise IT customers are seeing significant reductions in their cloud expenditures and can more effectively allocate their IT budgets to other areas of the business. This can mean the difference between a project being viable or not. It also allows these users to have a better understanding of what they pay for and predict future costs, which can help them avoid financial surprises and make more informed decisions. And as many organizations deal with financial headwinds in the market, the time to implement or augment internal CloudOps and FinOps functions is now.

Analyst Spotlight
The Three Core Pillars of Efficient Digital Infrastructure

Mark Walker,
Associate Vice President, IDC

Pandemic-induced transformation has enabled governments and enterprises across all industries to deliver their products and services through digital channels. The sheer pace of this transformation has been a once-in-a-lifetime experience worth living through. As we move forward into 2023, the digital world has become the norm for most industries and organizations.

Analyst Spotlight
The Three Core Pillars of Efficient Digital Infrastructure

Mark Walker,
Associate Vice President, IDC

Pandemic-induced transformation has enabled governments and enterprises across all industries to deliver their products and services through digital channels. The sheer pace of this transformation has been a once-in-a-lifetime experience worth living through. As we move forward into 2023, the digital world has become the norm for most industries and organizations. This requires them to constantly innovate and improve their digital offerings to meet changing customer expectations, making a digital-only approach the default strategy for many. Indeed, three out of five UAE organizations surveyed by IDC rank the need to digitalize their operations as their utmost digital priority.

The implementation of highly responsive, resilient, and agile infrastructure is the foundation for any digital-first/only organization. IDC defines this as digital infrastructure, and our Future of Digital Infrastructure Framework helps technology suppliers to position their infrastructure products and services. It also assists technology buyers in defining their road maps for infrastructure transformation, enabling them to attain their ultimate digital infrastructure goals.

The framework is built around three core pillars:

Cloud-Native Technologies: This refers to any modern network, compute, and storage infrastructure, as well as software solutions and technologies delivered at cloud scale and with cloud attributes. These technologies enable frictionless governance, data management and mobility, and security compliance for enterprise workloads across the edge, core, and cloud, thus proactively preparing enterprises to face the interconnected uncertainties of the new world order.

Autonomous Operations: This is a model that allows organizations to run their infrastructure services in a highly automated and self-sufficient manner. This enables more efficient and reliable operations, freeing up resources and enhancing the overall customer experience. To achieve the most advanced level of autonomous operations, organizations can use a combination of modern programmable infrastructure with an API-enabled automation control plane coupled with a suite of cloud-native tools such as full stack observability, intelligent monitoring, asset management, configuration management, application performance management, and end-user experience management. Such an API-driven control plane enables DevOps teams to increase their developer velocity. Additionally, the IT service management function can be enhanced by adopting a proactive approach using AIOps augmented with AI/ML models, helping to significantly reduce the time to detect, respond to, and resolve incidents.

Ubiquitous Consumption: This refers to the utilization of digital infrastructure building blocks based on business objectives, regardless of the location of consumption or the method of delivery. This can include the consumption of resources at the edge, core, or cloud, as well as whether they are shared or dedicated. Essentially, it is about being able to consume the necessary digital resources in a flexible and adaptable manner so that they can be used to achieve desired business outcomes.

The future of digital infrastructure is an exciting one, and it will be interesting to see how organizations continue to leverage these developments to drive their digital-only journeys.

Partner Spotlight
The Impact of ZTN on the Global Cybersecurity Landscape

Ezzeldin Hussein,
Regional Solutions Engineering Director, SentinelOne

Zero trust network (ZTN) architecture has had a significant impact on the global cybersecurity landscape. By shifting from a traditional perimeter-based security approach to a more dynamic and granular model.

Partner Spotlight
The Impact of ZTN on the Global Cybersecurity Landscape

Ezzeldin Hussein,
Regional Solutions Engineering Director, SentinelOne

Zero trust network (ZTN) architecture has had a significant impact on the global cybersecurity landscape. By shifting from a traditional perimeter-based security approach to a more dynamic and granular model, ZTN addresses several critical cybersecurity challenges, such as:

Minimizing Lateral Movement: One of the primary benefits of ZTN is its focus on strict identity verification and access control. By adopting a "never trust, always verify" approach, ZTN significantly reduces the potential for lateral movement within a network. Even if an attacker gains access to one part of the network, they are unable to move freely and escalate privileges without further authentication.

Protecting Against Insider Threats: Insider threats, whether unintentional or malicious, pose a significant risk to organizations. ZTN mitigates this threat by implementing access controls based on individual user identities and contextual factors. It ensures that each user's access privileges are strictly defined and continuously verified, minimizing the potential for unauthorized actions or data breaches.

Enhancing Data Security: With the increasing amount of sensitive data being stored and transmitted across networks, protecting data is paramount. ZTN enforces data-centric security measures by implementing encryption, data loss prevention (DLP) policies, and data access controls. By allowing access only to authorized users and devices, ZTN reduces the risk of data exposure and unauthorized data transfers.

Combating Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs): APTs are sophisticated attacks that often go undetected for extended periods, targeting specific organizations or individuals. ZTN helps prevent APTs by implementing continuous monitoring and authentication, effectively reducing the attack surface and making it more difficult for attackers to gain prolonged access to critical systems.

Mitigating Credential Theft: Many cyberattacks involve the theft of user credentials, such as through phishing or credential stuffing attacks. ZTN mitigates the risk of credential theft by implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA) and strong authentication protocols. This makes it significantly harder for attackers to exploit stolen credentials and gain unauthorized access.

Adapting to Dynamic Environments: Traditional security models struggle to accommodate the dynamic nature of modern IT environments, such as remote work, cloud services, and third-party integrations. ZTN's adaptive and context-aware approach enables secure access and authentication regardless of the user's location or device, providing more flexibility without compromising security.

Partner Spotlight
The Increasing Role of Generative AI in the Digital Economy

Karthik Ananda Rao,
Chief Technical Evangelist, ManageEngine

From writing to art and music, generative AI has evolved to a stage where it can create a wide range of content based on even the most arbitrary human inputs. The pace at which this tech has grown is truly remarkable. Sure, rudimentary models have existed for decades, but it's only in recent years that we've seen models with advanced generative capabilities.

Partner Spotlight
The Increasing Role of Generative AI in the Digital Economy

Karthik Ananda Rao,
Chief Technical Evangelist, ManageEngine

From writing to art and music, generative AI has evolved to a stage where it can create a wide range of content based on even the most arbitrary human inputs. The pace at which this tech has grown is truly remarkable. Sure, rudimentary models have existed for decades, but it's only in recent years that we've seen models with advanced generative capabilities.

While the more immediate applications of generative AI are, of course, in the creative space, there's no doubt it can also play a vital role in the digital economy when harnessed properly.

In a recent update, OpenAI announced that it had added ChatGPT and Whisper (its speech recognition model) to its API, allowing organizations to integrate them into their websites.

ChatGPT's impressive NLP (natural language processing) and NLG (natural language generation) capabilities, paired with Whisper's speech-to-text capabilities, can be leveraged by organizations to improve customer service. This is already a largely automated process, operating on predefined inputs that, depending on the nature of the request, are resolved automatically or escalated to a human service agent. Organizations integrating ChatGPT and Whisper into their customer service bots can automate this process even further, limiting the need for human intervention to only special cases.

Like any disruptive AI technology, there's a fear that generative AI could replace human jobs. This is true, but as of now only applies to repetitive and straightforward tasks — less so entire jobs. Whereas there are many disciplines that require judgement and an understanding of nuance and context, where humans have the upper hand due to our capacity for non-linear reasoning and decision making. Moreover, the introduction of AI likely won't be limited to removing jobs from the market; for example, the World Economic Forum predicts that AI could create 95 million new jobs in the coming years.

To conclude, it's natural to be apprehensive about new technology, especially those as disruptive as generative AI. But this tech isn't meant to replace us; it's meant to assist us. So why not welcome it with open arms? Over 100 million people have with ChatGPT alone. As time goes on, other products and use cases will arise to assist in the digital economy, and these will in turn create more jobs, just like the digital revolution did a few decades ago.

8:00	Registration & Networking
9:30	IDC Welcome Address
	Mark Walker Associate Vice President, Sub-Saharan Africa, IDC
9:35	Opening Speech
	Vrigesh Futta Executive Director, Mauritius Emerging Technologies Council
9:50	Introduction & Felicitation of Advisory Council

9:55	Advisory Council Panel: The Evolving Role of the CIO
	The Future CIO must go beyond their usual focus on operational efficiency – they need to help the business cope with macro challenges like geopolitical instability, new supply and energy disruptions, and significant economic uncertainty. They will also be critical execution leaders as lines of business and operational teams struggle with micro challenges like changing client expectations and significant price instability in raw materials and labor. Sudheer Prabhu CTO, CIM Group (Mauritius), CIM Group Rishi Sewnundun Group CIO, MUA Hubert de Ravel Chief Digital Officer, New Mauritius Hotels Atma Beeharry Senior Executive Officer, SICOM
10:40	Charting a Data-driven Digital Strategy
	As organizations strive to become exponential organizations, charting a data-driven digital strategy has become imperative. This approach includes leveraging data to provide real-time metrics and insights to support decision making and drive continuous improvement while elevating the customer experience. Gauri Nayak Director, Deloitte Consulting
	Ask Questions, Rate Sessions & Stand a Chance to Win a Passport Cover
11:00	Securing Digital Transformation: Empowering Mauritius' Future
	This insightful session delves into the crucial topic of securing the digital transformation in Mauritius. The presentation explores how advanced cybersecurity solutions can empower organizations to navigate the challenges and risks associated with their digital journeys. Attendees will learn how innovative technologies, powered by AI and machine learning, provide unparalleled threat detection, prevention, and response capabilities. From protecting critical assets to ensuring regulatory compliance, the presentation details a comprehensive approach to cybersecurity that enables organizations to embrace digital transformation with confidence. Ezzeldin Hussein Regional Solutions Engineering Director, SentinelOne
	Ask Questions, Rate Sessions & Stand a Chance to Win a Passport Cover
11:15	A CXO's Journey to Zero Trust
	The more the traditional perimeter blurs or dissolves, the more zero trust comes into focus. At its core, zero trust aspires to eliminate persistent trust and enforce continuous authentication, least privilege, and microsegmentation. This approach reduces the threat surface and minimizes the threat windows during which attackers can inflict damage, helping to protect against everything from simple malware to advanced persistent threats. For most organizations, achieving a 100% zero-trust state is a pipe dream. However, any implementation of zero trust controls should substantively help minimize the attack surface. This session explores how understanding the barriers to zero trust will help CXOs forge the best path to optimally securing their environments, including upgrading from legacy applications and architectures to ones that support zero trust. Michael Byrnes Solutions Engineer Director, BeyondTrust
	Ask Questions, Rate Sessions & Stand a Chance to Win a JBL Portable Bluetooth Speaker
11:30	Tea/Coffee & Networking Break
12:10	IDC Keynote: The Future of Enterprise Innovation
	Join IDC's Jyoti Lalchandani, as he outlines what CIOs need to do now — and in the future — to create an enabling environment for long-term sustainable innovation. This fast-paced keynote will highlight research on building a culture of trust, examine the move toward industry ecosystem innovation, and highlight the impact of decentralization. It will also explain why line-of-business investment is a springboard and not an end state. Jyoti Lalchandani Group Vice President & Regional Managing Director (META), IDC
12:40	Cybersecurity Threat Landscape: How to Mitigate the Risk?
	The presentation focuses on the most relevant cyberthreats for SMBs and Enterprises, uncovering the highlights of recent investigations as well as statistics based on incident responses and surveys conducted by Kaspersky in order to better understand the changes of the threat landscape. We’ll cover such relevant topics as ransomware and supply-chain attacks and will definitely formulate the basic concepts of Mature Security Posture that is vital for any company to stay protected against the evolving threats. Dmitry Galov Head of Global Research and Analysis Team (GReAT), Russia, Kaspersky
	Ask Questions, Rate Sessions & Stand a Chance to Win a Passport Cover
12:55	Simplify Your Application and Network Security Across Multi-Cloud Environments
	In today's rapidly evolving digital landscape, enterprises are increasingly adopting a multi-cloud strategy to leverage the benefits of flexibility, scalability, and cost effectiveness offered by different cloud providers. However, the multi-cloud environment introduces complex challenges, particularly in ensuring robust application and network security across diverse cloud platforms. This session thus aims to provide insights, strategies, and best practices to tackle these security challenges head on. Gary Peel Cloud Business Development Manager, Fortinet
	Ask Questions, Rate Sessions & Stand a Chance to Win a Passport Cover
13:10	CIO Panel: Talent Development & The Demand For New Skills: How Do You Structure Your Team Optimally
	As the world of work continues to evolve and organizations shift to hybrid work models, new challenges and opportunities present themselves. How can technology leaders leverage these shifts to enhance online and virtual experiences and strengthen competitiveness by developing people, talent, and skills? This panel session will examine how the technology talent market has changed and compelled organizations to leverage innovative work models. It will highlight the latest trends in hiring and managing talent amid the move toward hybrid work policies. In addition, panelists will discuss how organizations can change themselves and their team structures to leverage the current situation and enhance productivity. The session will conclude by highlighting how organizations can address the shortage of skilled technology professionals, given that the shift to distributed workforces has enabled them to retain global talent. Mark Walker Associate Vice President, Sub-Saharan Africa, IDC Patrice Herve Head of Technology, Mauritius Commercial Bank Kevin Sumputh Chief Security Officer, ABSA Ali Gopal Group Cybersecurity Manager, Eclosia Group Sandeep Chagger Group COO, Peach Payments
13:55	Felicitation of Partners & End-User Speakers
14:00	Lunch and Networking/Close of Summit

IDC Mauritius CIO Summit 2023

In 2023, we are going further, together!Join us for the 9th Edition.

IDC Mauritius Advisory Council 2023

Delegate Journey

Key Topics

Impact of Sustainability on Technology Vendor

Application Modernization strategies

Effective Hybrid Cloud Deployment

Developing an AIOps strategy and practices

Full stack Observability

Leveraging Low Code / No Code platforms

Orchestrating Digital Infrastructure for hybrid environments

Charting a Data-driven digital strategy

Intelligent automation

Predictive analytics strategies

Zero Trust security approaches

Cybersecurity Policies & Regulations and Compliance

5G impact – network architectures, market strategies and use cases

Earn CPD Points

Venue

Agenda

Filter Topics

Registration & Networking

IDC Welcome Address

Opening Speech

Introduction & Felicitation of Advisory Council

Advisory Council Panel: The Evolving Role of the CIO

Charting a Data-driven Digital Strategy

Ask Questions, Rate Sessions & Stand a Chance to Win a Passport Cover

Securing Digital Transformation: Empowering Mauritius' Future

Ask Questions, Rate Sessions & Stand a Chance to Win a Passport Cover

A CXO's Journey to Zero Trust

Ask Questions, Rate Sessions & Stand a Chance to Win a JBL Portable Bluetooth Speaker

Tea/Coffee & Networking Break

IDC Keynote: The Future of Enterprise Innovation

Cybersecurity Threat Landscape: How to Mitigate the Risk?

Ask Questions, Rate Sessions & Stand a Chance to Win a Passport Cover

Simplify Your Application and Network Security Across Multi-Cloud Environments

Ask Questions, Rate Sessions & Stand a Chance to Win a Passport Cover

CIO Panel: Talent Development & The Demand For New Skills: How Do You Structure Your Team Optimally

Felicitation of Partners & End-User Speakers

Lunch and Networking/Close of Summit

Speakers

Partners

Proceedings

Protected content

Photo Gallery

Knowledge Hub

Analyst SpotlightA New Approach to Security in the Post-Pandemic World

Analyst SpotlightA New Approach to Security in the Post-Pandemic World

Analyst SpotlightThriving in the Digital-First Economy

Analyst SpotlightThriving in the Digital-First Economy

Analyst SpotlightCloud Overspend and the Role of CloudOps and FinOps

Analyst SpotlightCloud Overspend and the Role of CloudOps and FinOps

Analyst SpotlightThe Three Core Pillars of Efficient Digital Infrastructure

Analyst SpotlightThe Three Core Pillars of Efficient Digital Infrastructure

Partner SpotlightThe Impact of ZTN on the Global Cybersecurity Landscape

Partner SpotlightThe Impact of ZTN on the Global Cybersecurity Landscape

Partner SpotlightThe Increasing Role of Generative AI in the Digital Economy

Partner SpotlightThe Increasing Role of Generative AI in the Digital Economy

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In 2023, we are going further, together!
Join us for the 9th Edition.

Analyst Spotlight
A New Approach to Security in the Post-Pandemic World

Analyst Spotlight
A New Approach to Security in the Post-Pandemic World

Analyst Spotlight
Thriving in the Digital-First Economy

Analyst Spotlight
Thriving in the Digital-First Economy

Analyst Spotlight
Cloud Overspend and the Role of CloudOps and FinOps

Analyst Spotlight
Cloud Overspend and the Role of CloudOps and FinOps

Analyst Spotlight
The Three Core Pillars of Efficient Digital Infrastructure

Analyst Spotlight
The Three Core Pillars of Efficient Digital Infrastructure

Partner Spotlight
The Impact of ZTN on the Global Cybersecurity Landscape

Partner Spotlight
The Impact of ZTN on the Global Cybersecurity Landscape

Partner Spotlight
The Increasing Role of Generative AI in the Digital Economy

Partner Spotlight
The Increasing Role of Generative AI in the Digital Economy