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2016 Agenda
Thriving in the Digital Economy

Here are the current proposed panels for this year. Want to discuss a panel topic? Check out the discussions on LinkedIn

7:00 am - 8:00 am
Kresge Courtyard Tent
7:00 am - 8:00 am
Kresge Courtyard Tent
8:30 am - 9:30 am
Kresge Auditorium
8:30 am - 9:30 am
Kresge Auditorium
Thriving Through Digital Ecosystems

Moderator:

Speakers:

Why ecosystems? Because MIT research found that companies with 50% or more of their revenues from digital ecosystems had higher revenues and higher profit margins than their industry’s average. Ecosystems move beyond linear supply chains to partnering with providers of complementary products and services (or sometimes competitors) to create a better customer experience, among other benefits. We’ll share MIT case studies and survey results and facilitate a conversation with digital leaders on how they are each brokering connections with their firms, customers and partners.
9:30 am - 10:30 am
Kresge Auditorium
9:30 am - 10:30 am
Kresge Auditorium
How the On-Demand/Gig Economy is Redefining the Future of Work

Moderator:

Speakers:

Rapid changes in technology are affecting the types of work we do and the way in which work is organized. The future of work in general, and the emerging On-Demand Economy in particular, are major research focus areas for the MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy. This panel will bring together top academics in the field to share their knowledge and perspectives on recent trends in the organization of labor, including
  1. The role of the On-Demand Economy in a Changing Labor Market;
  2. Winners and Losers from Disruption by On-Demand Businesses, and
  3. Creating a new Social Contract for Work in the Second Machine Age.
10:30 am - 11:00 am
Kresge Courtyard Tent
10:30 am - 11:00 am
Kresge Courtyard Tent
11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Kresge Auditorium
11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Kresge Auditorium
Big Data 2.0: Next-Gen Privacy, Security, and Analytics

Moderator:

Speakers:

The first wave of big data has hit, creating great opportunities but also cracks in company security, worries about customer data privacy, and showing the limitations of current analytics. The second wave of big data is gathering strength now. The thought leaders and practitioners on this panel will discuss what Big Data 2.0 may look like, what security measures companies may have to take, how improved analytics can help us achieve stronger insights, how consumers are demanding a new privacy contract, and how some cutting edge companies are shining a light on this future.
12:00 pm - 1:15 pm
Sala de Puerto Rico - 2nd floor, Stratton
12:00 pm - 1:15 pm
Sala de Puerto Rico - 2nd floor, Stratton
Lunch Breakout: Who Will Lead Digital Transformations in Your Business?

Moderator:

Speakers:

As digital technologies permeate every nook and cranny of business, organizations will need an increasingly diverse set of digital leaders. CIOs who step up to a digital leadership role within their organizations can expect to contribute increasingly in a number of valuable ways, perhaps even assuming their organizations über digital role with responsibility for all things digital. Those who are unable to step up may find themselves subordinate to the emerging roles of Chief Digital, Data and Analytics Officer, or to the CMO, CFO, or COO, their portfolio limited to the infrastructure and corporate systems. This panel will consist of CIOs and other digital leaders discussing their roles within their firm’s senior leadership team.
12:00 pm - 1:15 pm
Twenty Chimneys - 3rd floor, Stratton
12:00 pm - 1:15 pm
Twenty Chimneys - 3rd floor, Stratton
Lunch Breakout: IoT, The New Ecosystem

Speakers:

The Internet of Things (IoT) has become an increasingly important part of all  aspects of our personal and professional lives. The connected world requires a dramatic increase in the amount of network and services capabilities available to end users. This is sparking a new gold rush in the ecosystem development world.
12:00 pm - 1:15 pm
Rockwell Cage, Main Court
12:00 pm - 1:15 pm
Rockwell Cage, Main Court
Birds-of-a-Feather Networking Lunch 2016
If you have not selected one of the Lunch Breakout sessions, please join us for a Networking Lunch, on the Main Court of Rockwell. We will have working lunches set up at tables, with “Birds of a Feather” topics posted on signs. Feel free to sit at a table about a topic of interest. Many tables will be facilitated by an ‘expert’ (speaker, sponsor, organizer) who will help lead a lively and interesting discussion. Be prepared to share business cards and get to know other Symposium attendees. It is a chance to network, talk shop and learn something new.
1:15 pm - 2:15 pm
Kresge Auditorium
1:15 pm - 2:15 pm
Kresge Auditorium
Best Practices for Managing a Digital Innovation Portfolio

Moderator:

Speakers:

Many global companies are feeling growing pressure to rapidly respond to local business demands. MIT research has found that IT units are supporting these demands competitively in two fundamentally different ways: (1) reusing technology and business components, and (2) engaging in off-platform experiments. In addition, to practice both types of innovation simultaneously, they are engaged in new collaborations with internal and external stakeholder groups to create a simple and relevant set of reusable components; foster their reuse; and engage in and learn from experiments. This panel discussion with leading CIOs will explore best practices for managing a portfolio of innovations.
1:15 pm - 2:15 pm
Kresge Little Theater
1:15 pm - 2:15 pm
Kresge Little Theater
Developing your Organization’s Skills for the Digital Future

Moderator:

Speakers:

Are AI and robots eating jobs? Yes--some jobs more than others. But even as automation replaces some workers, it will enhance the roles of others. Companies will need people who can work closely with technology, as well as those who can do what computers cannot. How can CIOs develop a workforce that will thrive in the digital age? Which skills will be valued and which ones will be replaced? Does college still matter? Will on-demand workers replace full-time employees? Join our eclectic panel-–experts in AI and jobs, Human Resources, alternative skill development, and digital leadership--as they describe what the coming changes in skills, jobs, and careers mean for CIOs and their companies.
1:15 pm - 2:15 pm
Mezzanine Lounge - 3rd floor, Stratton
1:15 pm - 2:15 pm
Mezzanine Lounge - 3rd floor, Stratton
Enrich Your Products & Services with Data Wrapping

Moderator:

Speakers:

Commoditization pressures and shifting consumer expectations have inspired many companies to use data and analytics to enrich their core products and services, a phenomenon that we call "wrapping". Companies wrap offerings with information to differentiate them and to add value to customers, which increases product- or service-related outcomes that include price, sales, and loyalty. The best companies build distinctive competencies for wrapping. This panel will investigate the competencies found in high-performing firms—and identify effective ways that firms are coordinating and structuring to accommodate this emergent approach for driving value from the firm’s data assets.
1:15 pm - 2:15 pm
Sala de Puerto Rico - 2nd floor, Stratton
1:15 pm - 2:15 pm
Sala de Puerto Rico - 2nd floor, Stratton
Mitigating Cyber Risks in the Growing World of Internet-connected Devices

Moderator:

Speakers:

The number of Internet-connected Devices (IoT) is expected to increase from about 4 billion to over 20 billion devices by 2020. This will create wonderful new capabilities, but also more cyber risks due to the increased number of attack surfaces and the growing expertise of hackers and the thriving black market for stolen data and malware. How can your organization mitigate cyber risk? How can innovative new technologies and methods help? Where should the governance of cybersecurity fit in your organization? Pres. Obama has just proposed to allocate $19B to cybersecurity in latest budget - is that enough and how can it help your organization? This panel will address the strategic, managerial, and operational issues of cybersecurity.
2:15 pm - 2:45 pm
Kresge Courtyard Tent
2:15 pm - 2:45 pm
Kresge Courtyard Tent
2:45 pm - 3:45 pm
Kresge Auditorium
2:45 pm - 3:45 pm
Kresge Auditorium
The Perfect CIO: Empowering Business Partners and Serving Customers

Moderator:

Speakers:

With technology and customer requirements changing at such a fast pace, CIOs have to respond, innovate, and make evidence-based decisions, not only within their own organization but increasingly for the whole company. More than ever, this requires extensive collaboration with customers and among different functions within the company. How do CIOs empower their business partners across the company? We’ll discuss the top priorities of high performing CIOs and the business outcomes for which they should be increasingly held accountable.
2:45 pm - 3:45 pm
Kresge Little Theater
2:45 pm - 3:45 pm
Kresge Little Theater
Redesigning the Digital Workplace

Moderator:

Speakers:

The digital workplace is about a fundamentally different way of working. Influence, networks, and dynamic decisions become much more important than power, hierarchies, static decisions, processes, and rules that made sense in a slow-moving, traditional environment. We will challenge some of the popular beliefs around collaboration and discuss how high performing firms are combining a series of management levers (the 6-Ss: symbols, space, systems, social, sustaining leadership, systemic learning) to build digital workplaces that simplify working life. We will also discuss the actions CIOs should take to create or improve the digital workplaces within their own companies.
2:45 pm - 3:45 pm
Mezzanine Lounge - 3rd floor, Stratton
2:45 pm - 3:45 pm
Mezzanine Lounge - 3rd floor, Stratton
Transform Your Business Through IoT

Moderator:

Speakers:

We are entering the era of the connected business model. Potentially, any asset, person, product, process, or source of data can be connected, making a reality of the long forecast connected house, car, factory and ecosystem. Smaller and cheaper sensors—embedded technology in products like cars, oil wells, wearables, and business processes—will become the norm over the next decade. All this connectedness has the potential to radically change business models and the competitive landscape. Are you ready to capitalize on the transformational potential of IoT?
2:45 pm - 3:45 pm
Sala de Puerto Rico - 2nd floor, Stratton
2:45 pm - 3:45 pm
Sala de Puerto Rico - 2nd floor, Stratton
How Blockchain Will Transform the Digital Economy

Moderator:

Speakers:

Blockchain is gathering momentum, transcending beyond bitcoin. It has the promise of propelling the ledger, one of the oldest and most important concepts in finance, into the Internet age. It also has the potential of improving cybersecurity, digital identity and audit trails. Applications range from smart contracts to supply chain management, automation and artificial intelligence. We’ll discuss how blockchain may upend your business model and revolutionize the way you do business.
3:45 pm - 4:00 pm
Kresge Lobby
3:45 pm - 4:00 pm
Kresge Lobby
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Kresge Auditorium
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Kresge Auditorium
The Owner’s Guide to Platform Strategies

Moderator:

Speakers:

Uber. Airbnb. Amazon. Apple. PayPal. All of these cutting-edge businesses are built on platforms: two-sided markets that are revolutionizing the way we do business. As digital networks increase in ubiquity, businesses that do a better job of harnessing the power of the platform will win. Whether platforms are connecting sellers and buyers, hosts and visitors, or drivers with riders, this session will discuss the “owner’s manual” for creating a successful platform business. But not every company can become a platform, so much of this session will be spent on helping practitioners measure where they are in a platform ecosystem, and how they can benefit from that position – or move to a different one.
5:00 pm - 5:15 pm
Kresge Auditorium
5:00 pm - 5:15 pm
Kresge Auditorium
Can Big Data Substitute for Experiments?

Speakers:

In today’s business world, managers are using data to drive decisions in ways never envisioned. At the same time, companies are conducting experiments with online users every minute of every day for insight, improved engagement, and heightened transaction volume. Which is better? Why? When?
5:15 pm - 5:30 pm
Kresge Auditorium
5:15 pm - 5:30 pm
Kresge Auditorium
A Tale of Two Machine Ages

Speakers:

The evidence is mounting: as we move deeper into the second machine age, we're learning that it's the best of times in many important ways. But, we also face substantial new challenges. Over the years McAfee's closing keynote has become a tradition of the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium. In this 2016 edition, he'll share some of his latest thinking on the opportunities and challenges of our rapidly changing, technology-fueled world.
5:30 pm - 7:00 pm
Kresge Courtyard Tent
5:30 pm - 7:00 pm
Kresge Courtyard Tent