By : Mohamed Shawky

As preparations gear up for the virtual edition of the IDC Middle East CIO Summit 2021 on February 24-25, International Data Corporation (IDC) is delighted to formally reveal the lineup of its regional CIO Advisory Council for 2021. IDC's CIO Advisory Council is an independent industry body tasked with spurring collaboration, incubating innovation, and accelerating the proliferation of new technology trends across the region.

Membership of the CIO Advisory Council is restricted to senior executives from the region's most widely respected end-user organizations. The members for 2021 include the following esteemed leaders, whose influence on the region's ICT environment extends far beyond the pioneering organizations they represent:

• H.E. Wesam Lootah, CEO, Smart Dubai Government (UAE)
• Eng. Ali Nasser Alasiri, CEO, Yesser (e-Government Program) (KSA)
• Eng. Haithem Al Faraj, Senior VP, Technology & Operations, Saudi Telecom Company (KSA)
• Fuad Al Ansari, VP, IT & General Services Division, Al Dhafra Petroleum (ADNOC) (UAE)
• Srood Sherif, Group CIO, Kuwait Finance House (Kuwait)
• Ahmad M.Almulla, Former EVP, Corporate Services, Emirates Global Aluminium (UAE)
• Darryn Warner, Executive Director of IT, NEOM (KSA)
• Saleh Saleh, CIO & Executive VP (IT, Shared Service Group), National Commercial Bank (KSA)
• Yuri Misnik, Group CTO, First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) (UAE)
• Jason Roos, CIO, King Abdullah University of Science & Technology (KSA)
• Ellis Wang, Chief Head of Technology, Transformation & Information, Mashreq Bank (UAE)

"The CIO Advisory Council provides strategic direction to IDC in terms of research coverage, thereby assisting us in our quest to provide the region's ICT professionals with a trusted, neutral, and secure source of information, advocacy, and resources for enhancing their processes and shaping the technology landscape of tomorrow," says Jyoti Lalchandani, IDC's vice president and regional managing director for the Middle East, Africa, and Turkey.

"Its members will feature prominently as we host the 14th annual installment of the IDC Middle East CIO Summit next week, sharing their first-hand experiences on how best to meet the unique challenges of these unprecedented times."

The online event will incorporate a dedicated CIO Masterclass Arena  that will feature technology-based sessions on cloud, security, and digital transformation strategies, as well as vertical-focused sessions for industries such as oil and gas, healthcare, banking, and government. Showcasing invaluable industry insights from Smart Dubai Government's Wesam Lootah and Yesser's Ali Nasser Alasiri, the government session will explore the new era of transformation that is sweeping across the region's public sector.

The CIO Advisory Council members will also sit on the judging panel for the inaugural edition of 'The CIO 50 Middle East Awards' , whose winners will be announced during the IDC Middle East CIO Summit 2021. Hosted in conjunction with IDG, the publishers of CIO.com, 'The CIO 50 Middle East Awards' will recognize the efforts of the region's top 50 senior technology executives in driving innovation, strengthening resiliency, and influencing rapid change. Individual awards will be handed out in the following categories:

• CIO of the Year – Leadership
• CIO of the Year – Innovation
• CIO of the Year – Resiliency

CISO of the Year