SAPinsider Technology Executive Forum
SAPinsider Technology Executive Forum
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Agenda

October 22 - 23, 2025 | Phoenix, Arizona

Join us at SAPinsider EMEA 2025 in Copenhagen to explore how to get more from the SAP technologies you already use, while understanding what’s next. Go beyond the hype to focus on real-world results, evolving roadmaps, and strategies that help you manage migration and maximize post-migration success across finance, security, GRC, integration, data, and more.

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Tuesday, October 21, 2025
6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Welcome Reception
Wednesday, October 22, 2025
8:00 AM - 9:00 AM
Registration and Morning Coffee
 
 
9:00 AM - 9:15 AM
Welcome and SAPinsider Technology Leadership Research
 
 
9:15 AM - 9:45 AM
Keynote - Economic Expectations in an Unsettled World

There are a number of complicated and critical issues contributing to the current global economic volatility. In this keynote, we’ll dive into macro-economic and geopolitical issues such as inflation, tariffs, wars, and cautious business sentiment, the impact these issues have on companies, and the role that C-level changes in technology play in the big picture.

 
9:45 AM - 10:15 AM
The CIO Agenda – Challenges and Opportunities 

What is the CIO’s strategic agenda for the next 24 months? SAPinsider will discuss our latest research findings, followed by our panel of Technology Leaders sharing their own experiences around key priorities such as increasing efficiency, implementing an AI strategy, lowering IT costs, data visibility, integration, and more. We’ll dig into the complexities of these different, and often competing, priorities and how you can successfully navigate your priority list over the next year.

Speakers:

Steve Birgfeld, Blue Diamond Growers
Aravind Kashyap, Riddell Sports
Marty Menard, Pacific Coast Companies
Jamie Bedard, SAPinsider
Robert Holland, SAPinsider
10:15 AM - 10:45 AM
Networking Break
 
 
10:45 AM - 11:15 AM
Working Roundtable Session on Top CIO Issues

Following the CIO Agenda panel we’ll work together in roundtable groups to identify the top issues on your own agenda for the coming year and the challenges and opportunities you see. Then each table will present their priorities and discuss them with the whole group.

 
11:15 AM - 11:45 AM
Inside the SAP S/4HANA Journey: Stories from the Front Lines

SAP S/4HANA is more than a migration — it's a business reinvention lever. In this open, high-trust roundtable, SAPinsider will first explain our research on real adoption rates for SAP S/4HANA, RISE, and Cloud solutions, then senior IT leaders will share what’s worked, what hasn’t, and what they would do differently if starting today. This is your chance to gain unfiltered insight into how CIOs are navigating complexity, accelerating value realization, and aligning SAP transformation with board-level goals.

Speakers:

Laxman Challa, Southwest Gas Corp
Ron Gilson, NTT DATA Business Solutions Inc.
Aravind Kashyap, Riddell Sports
11:45 AM - 12:15 PM
Negotiating and Winning Strategic Alignment with SAP: Insights from the CΙO Trenches

Enterprise value from SAP doesn’t come from the software alone – it comes from the strength of the agreement and the relationship. In this discussion, CIOs share hard-won insights from negotiating and managing high-stakes SAP agreements that build in value, flexibility, and predictability. From indirect access and license optimization to renewal protections and long-term flexibility, you’ll walk away with peer tested strategies to lower costs, maximize ROI, and minimize risk in your next SAP agreement and turn SAP from a vendor into a strategic partner.

Speakers:

Laxman Challa, Southwest Gas Corp
Ron Gilson, NTT DATA Business Solutions Inc.
Panos Kollias, SAP
12:15 PM - 1:15 PM
Lunch Roundtables
 
 
2:15 PM - 3:00 PM
Working Groups: Making the SAP S/4HANA and Cloud Journey

This peer-led working group is for those that are on the road to the Cloud and SAP S/4HANA or still contemplating the right path. We’ll dig into the issues discussed above, plus clean core, migration tools, and more, all through the lens of those in the throes of the SAP S/4HANA migration.

 
2:15 PM - 3:00 PM
Working Groups: Beyond S/4 - The Road to True Business Transformation

This peer-led working group is for those that have completed the SAP S/4HANA migration and are asking, now what? We’ll discuss what’s on your mind when it comes to true business transformation, automation, AI, and much more that’s geared to help you push forward down the road to fully realized digital transformation.

 
3:30 PM - 4:15 PM
Making AI Real with SAP: The Execution Layer Between Vision and Value

While many organizations have AI strategies, few have crossed the chasm to sustained impact. This session explores what it takes to move from proof of concept to operational scale — aligning talent, technology, and governance to turn AI from vision into measurable business value.  You’ll hear how leading enterprises are embedding AI into execution — not just roadmaps — to drive results across lines of business.

Speakers:

Steve Birgfeld, Blue Diamond Growers
Aravind Kashyap, Riddell Sports
Panos Kollias, SAP
Stijn Stabel, TVH
4:15 PM - 5:15 PM
Keynote: The AI Inflection Point: What’s Next, What Matters, and What CIOs Must Do Now

We’re past the hype — and into the hard choices. This keynote offers an unfiltered look at the AI forces reshaping enterprise value, competitive dynamics, and leadership priorities. From agentic systems to adaptive enterprises, discover what trends matter most — and what actions senior IT leaders must take to stay ahead of the curve.  Expect bold predictions, real-world implications, and a candid look at what separates tech experimentation from true transformation.

 
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Reception & Dinner
 
 
Thursday, October 23, 2025
9:15 AM - 9:45 AM
Securing the Intelligent Enterprise: Rethinking Cyber Strategy in the Age of AI

As AI reshapes the enterprise, it’s also transforming the threat landscape — from deepfakes and automated attacks to insider risk and data poisoning. In this fireside chat, security and technology leaders unpack how they’re evolving their cyber strategy to match the scale and speed of AI-driven change. Hear how forward-thinking organizations are balancing innovation with protection, and where CIOs and CISOs are aligning to safeguard trust, resilience, and continuity.

Speakers:

Marty Menard, Pacific Coast Companies
Harald Reiter, Apple
9:45 AM - 10:15 AM
Leading in the Age of AI: The CIO’s Role in Talent & Transformation

AI is not just changing how we work — it’s reshaping who does the work, and what roles technology leaders must now play. This session promises a lively discussion on how the CIO is becoming a key player in talent strategy: driving workforce planning, redefining skills, and reshaping the structure of IT itself. We’ll explore how AI adoption is transforming leadership, team dynamics, and organizational design — and what CIOs must do to lead both people and platforms through this next wave of enterprise change.

Speakers:

Marty Menard, Pacific Coast Companies
Stijn Stabel, TVH
10:15 AM - 10:45 AM
Networking Break
 
 
10:45 AM - 11:15 AM
2026 and Beyond: The Bold Decisions Shaping the Next Era of SAP and Enterprise IT

What will define technology leadership over the next 24–36 months? In this closing panel, enterprise technology executives look ahead — sharing predictions, priorities, and hard-won insights on what it will take to lead through accelerating AI, platform shifts, and the reinvention of enterprise IT. Expect a candid conversation on what's coming — and what CIOs must start planning for now to stay ahead of both opportunity and disruption.

Speakers:

Steve Birgfeld, Blue Diamond Growers
Marty Menard, Pacific Coast Companies
Robert Holland, SAPinsider
11:15 AM - 11:45 AM
Closing Panel Discussion – What Have We Learned and What Comes Next? 

We’ll summarize the learnings from the past 2 days and take on any final questions or discussion points. Leaders from our partners will join the panel so we can get their take on where we’re headed and their vision for the future of ERP technology.

Speakers:

Jamie Bedard, SAPinsider
1:30 PM - 5:00 PM
Golf Outing and Group Activities
 
 

Two days. Lasting Connections. A community shaping the future.

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