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CISOXMinneapolis

05 Nov 2026

Hyatt Regency Minneapolis, MN, USA

Welcome to CISOXMinneapolis, the premier event crafted exclusively for accomplished CISOs across Minneapolis and the broader Midwest. Step into the forefront of modern cybersecurity leadership as we navigate an evolving threat landscape and uncover new opportunities to safeguard enterprise resilience. Join us at CISOXMinneapolis, where visionary security leaders come together for transformative discussions, strategic insights, and collaborative solutions to the critical challenges shaping the future of cybersecurity and enterprise risk management.

intro

Speakers

Accelerate your network growth

Secure up to twelve exclusive meetings with relevant leads at CISOXIreland maximising your opportunity to forge valuable connections and drive business growth.

Become a sponsor

Learn from industry titans

Immerse yourself in thought-provoking discussions, as top leaders share their expertise and provide you with invaluable insights to propel your strategic initiatives forward.

Forge meaningful Connections

Engage with industry peers, thought-leaders, and solution providers to foster meaningful connections and explore collaborative opportunities that drive innovation and growth.

Agenda

Discover what awaits you at CISOXMinneapolis.

Registration & Networking Breakfast

Welcome & Opening Remarks From EDS

Opening Panel: The Execution Gap - The Reality Between Strategy and Success

  • Vinny Silva
    Senior Vice President of Technology Solventum
  • Carlos Tongesai
    IT Director - Cyber Risk and Governance Medtronic
  • Frank Ross
    Director, Cybersecurity Andersen Corporation

Application Modernisation and Legacy System Migration

Spotlight Forum: The Workforce of Today - Balancing Human Expertise with Intelligent Automation

  • Ross Clanton
    Vice President Technology Strategy and Delivery Foot Locker
  • David Clemens
    VP Data COE and WGOO MH IT Winnebago Industries
  • Kyle Kuehlwein
    Senior Director - Technology Operations Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC

Tech Tale: Reducing the IT Skill Gap - Creative Approaches to Hiring, Training, and Retention

With IT talent shortages persisting, CIOs must find new ways to develop and retain skilled professionals. This session explores unconventional methods for addressing the IT skills gap.

Key Takeaways:

How to build an internal talent pipeline through upskilling.
The benefits of cross-training and role rotation in IT teams.
Leveraging automation to offset talent shortages.

AM Break & 1:1 Xchange

Roundtable Xchange: Discussions on Shared Challenges




  • The Resilient CISO: Planning for the Inevitable and Recovering Faster
    Ransomware and other disruptive cyberattacks are no longer a matter of if, but when. This executive workshop helps CISOs and security leaders build cyber resilience by focusing on preparedness, business continuity, and rapid recovery. Through peer discussion and insights from industry leaders, attendees will learn how resilient organizations minimize disruption, recover faster, and maintain operational confidence in the face of inevitable attacks
    Key Takeaways:
    • How to define, measure, and strengthen cyber resilience.
    • Proven approaches for reducing downtime and accelerating recovery after an attack.
    • A practical resilience playbook informed by peer discussion and real-world ransomware scenarios.
  • Communicating the Attack Surface to the Board

  • Enhancing Incident Response and Recovery Plans

In this interactive session, our event partners will take the lead in initiating and facilitating conversations centered on challenges and solutions within the industry. Attendees can expect dynamic discussions where diverse perspectives are shared, fostering collaborative problem-solving and the exploration of innovative solutions to common industry hurdles.

Tech Tale: Organizational Change Management in Technology Transformations

  • Rahoul Ghouse
    CIO ECMC Group

ECMC Group migrated their internal technology portfolio to the AWS CLOUD and re-architected it as a SaaS platform for generating new business. This was a significant change for a company in the financial services industry, given that the technology ecosystem is critical to company success. The rewards from this initiative would have been high, but the impact of failure would also have been catastrophic. Furthermore, a transformation of this magnitude was a first for the company, therefore it was critical to build confidence within business leadership that it could be done, and within the IT team that they could deliver. This talk will focus on the criticality of change-leadership for technology-enabled initiatives, how it was orchestrated in this situation and the lessons learned that eventually led to a successful outcome.

Aligning IT Strategy with Business Goals and Objectives

The process of aligning IT strategy with business goals and objectives is vital, due to the synergistic relationship between technology initiatives and organizational success. Through insightful analysis and practical strategies, attendees will gain invaluable insights into maximizing the strategic impact of IT investments to drive sustained business growth and competitive advantage.

PM Break & 1:1 Xchange

Fireside Chat: Technology Cost Optimisation - Managing Risk While Making the Most of What You Have

  • Kenny Vargas
    Head of Software and Data Engineering Piper Sandler
  • Guru Sathyanath
    Senior Director - IT UnitedHealthcare

As technology costs continue to rise and vendors increase licensing, subscription, and service fees, technology leaders are under growing pressure to deliver greater value with finite budgets. Cost optimisation is no longer just about reducing spend, it’s about making smarter investment decisions, eliminating waste, negotiating greater value from suppliers, and ensuring every technology investment delivers measurable business outcomes. In this fireside chat, we’ll explore how technology and security leaders balancing innovation with financial discipline, managing risk while optimising spend, and proving ROI in an environment where doing more with less has become the new normal.

 

Key discussion points:
• How are organisations responding to increasing technology, cloud, software, and vendor costs while continuing to innovate?
• How do leaders reduce costs, consolidate platforms, and rationalise investments without increasing operational, cyber, or business risk?
• What metrics, business outcomes, and commercial value resonate most with executives and secure continued investment in technology?

Enhancing Cybersecurity Defences For Today's Complex Threats

Delve into strategies for bolstering cybersecurity defences amidst the ever-evolving landscape of complex cyber threats. Through an exploration of advanced technologies and proactive methodologies, attendees will gain insights into fortifying their systems against emerging cyber risks.

Tech Tale: The Leadership Accountability Test

  • Kris Boike
    Head of Information Security Dorsey + Whitney LLP

A quick tale that explores how this technology transformation plan owner kept the board accountable to its original targets, success measures, and promised business value. Transformation rarely unfolds under static conditions; market shifts, emerging technologies, operational pressures, and stakeholder demands tested strategic discipline. Navigating change management, especially when the transformation is lengthy, required strong oversight. Effective leaders distinguish necessary adaptation from distraction. By integrating technology risk management, enterprise risk management, and change management into the transformation governance, the transformation owner provided decision-ready insight, exposed the consequences of departing from outcomes, and preserved ownership of tradeoffs. This disciplined approach helped boards to resist the temptation to chase shiny objects, forced to redefine success after the fact, or allow short-term pressures to erode long-term value.

PM Break & 1:1 Xchange

Community Conversations

  • Phillipa Engebretsen
    Senior Vice President - Enterprise Platforms Financial Analytics U.S. Bank
  • Rebecca Gallik
    IT Director, Data, AI and Digital Health Medtronic
  • Sam Stevens
    Director Information Security Essentia Health
  • Turning Data into Traceable Business Value: From Insight to Impact

     

    Organizations have more data than ever, but generating real, traceable business value remains a challenge. Join this roundtable to discuss how technology leaders are transforming data into actionable insights, improving decision-making, increasing organizational transparency, and delivering measurable outcomes that support strategic business objectives.

  •  The Governance Balancing Act: Enabling Innovation While Managing Risk

     

    Strong governance should accelerate innovation, not slow it down. As AI adoption, regulatory demands and business expectations continue to grow, technology leaders must strike the right balance between control and agility. Join this roundtable to share practical approaches for embedding governance that supports innovation, enables confident decision-making and delivers long-term business value.

  • Are We Solving the Wrong Security Problems? Why Mature Programs Are Built on the Basics

     

    We spend a lot of time talking about AI, XDR, identity threats, attack surface management, and the latest vulnerabilities. But how many of those problems are actually symptoms of weak governance, poor asset management, unclear ownership, or ineffective risk management? Join peers to discuss why strong security programs are built on a solid foundation.

In this final discussion break out, fellow Enterprise Leaders guide discussions on their favourite topic, fostering an environment of open exchange, exploration of diverse perspectives and experiences. Attendees can anticipate engaging conversations driven by shared interests, offering valuable insights and opportunities for collaborative learning and networking.

Using Zero Trust to Contain Ransomware & Improve Cyber Resilience

The implementation of Zero Trust principles as a proactive strategy to contain ransomware threats and enhance cyber resilience has proven to be effective in enterprise protection. By leveraging granular access controls and continuous authentication, organizations can mitigate the impact of ransomware attacks and strengthen their overall security posture.

Closing Panel: The Big Three - What Should Technology Leaders Prioritise Going Into 2027?

  • Shoney Sivan
    Director of IT Graco
  • Eric Pawlowski
    Director of IT and Cyber Security Dessert Holdings
  • Daniel May
    Senior Director Information Security Choice Hotels International

As organisations prepare to implement their strategies and technology roadmaps for 2027, technology leaders face a common challenge: everything can’t be a priority. In this closing discussion, our panel of IT and Security leaders will reveal the three priorities they believe will have the greatest impact in the year ahead. From AI and cybersecurity to data, talent, governance and operational resilience, this interactive discussion will challenge conventional thinking, highlight where leaders are doubling down, and explore what organisations should stop doing to make room for what matters most.

Key Takeaways:
• The three strategic priorities technology leaders believe will have the greatest impact on enterprise success going into 2027.
• Where leaders are focusing investment, attention and resources to drive innovation, resilience and measurable business value.
• Which initiatives leaders are rethinking or leaving behind as they prepare their organisations for the next phase of transformation.

Closing Remarks

Drinks Reception

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Location

1300 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis, MN 55403, USA

1300 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis, MN 55403, USA

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FAQs

Who attends?

Attendance is reserved for C-Suite executives and Senior Executives within Cybersecurity, including Chief Information Security Officers, and other senior security decision-makers from a wide array of industries. Joined by our select sponsor partners, enriching networking opportunities and offering cutting-edge solutions.

What does my delegate pass include?

Thanks to our sponsors, your access is entirely complimentary, providing you with full-day access to all presentations, exclusive networking sessions, personalised one-to-one meetings, delectable catering, and an open bar for added networking.

What are the one-on-one meetings?

These 25-minute meetings provide invaluable opportunities to discover new solutions and expand your network with leading innovative providers that can help solve your current or future complex challenges.

What is the dress code?

Professional business attire is appropriate.

Do I need to prepare anything?

No preparation is needed on your part. We take care of all the final details. Simply arrive at the specified time, date, and location, and we’ll handle the rest to ensure you have a seamless and enjoyable experience.

Why attend?

Our events offer unparalleled experiences where interactive sessions spark innovation, keynotes unveil insights from industry luminaries, and exclusive one-on-one meetings with best-in-breed solution providers unfold in some of the world’s most prestigious venues. This unique format ensures that your challenges are addressed directly, providing invaluable insights, connections, and maximising value for your time. With a compact schedule featuring a variety of presentations, you’ll gain a comprehensive view of the latest innovations and have ample opportunity to network with like-minded peers—all under one roof, and in just one day. This fosters collaboration and forges invaluable connections among executives with a genuine influence, setting the standard for elite gatherings in the industry.

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