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CIONET - What's next

Connecting ambitious digital leaders and businesses around the globe.

Catch up on the upcoming CIONET Events

             
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Germany Oct 7, 2025 Country Members Virtual german

Online: KI-CHECK: Wo steht dein Unternehmen?

Alle nutzen KI, aber keiner weiß wie effektiv! Im Jahr 2025 sind wir als IT-EntscheiderInnen gefordert die Wünsche der Fachbereiche an Künstliche Intelligenz zu managen. Welche KI dient als Copilot für unsere Mitarbeitenden, inwieweit hat diese Zugang zu Firmenwissen und könnten wir heute bereits sinnvoll einen KI Agenten in die IT Systemlandschaft einbinden? Unser Business Partner Scheer PAS spricht als Anbieter einer Process iPaaS Plattform mit hunderten Unternehmen jedes Jahr über IT-Integration. In dieser Online-Session besprechen wir erste Reifegradmodelle zu KI, wo der deutsche Mittelstand sich befindet und wie wir die nächste Innovationsstufe erreichen. Wir teilen praktische Erfahrungen aus dem Marktumfeld und planen unsere nächsten Schritte in der Adaption von KI.

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Netherlands Oct 7, 2025 AB Members Physical dutch

Advisory Board Meeting

De Advisory Board van CIONET NL komt samen. We bespreken de planning voor 2025 en discussiëren over specifieke en door de board aangedragen onderwerpen.

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Spain Oct 8, 2025 Country Members Physical spanish

DATA Quest 2025

En un mundo cada vez más acelerado y competitivo, la gestión y el análisis de datos ya no son suficientes. Las grandes compañías deben avanzar hacia un enfoque basado en eventos, impulsado por la automatización y la analítica predictiva, para anticipar cambios, prevenir riesgos y capitalizar oportunidades.

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Belgium Oct 9, 2025 Country Members Physical english

Belgium's Got Talent '25 - CIONET Belgium: Community Event

Today’s IT world moves faster than ever. New tools, new ways of working, constant updates!  The real challenge? Making sure your people stay in the loop, up to speed, and ready to move. That’s why this year’s edition of Belgium’s Got Digital Talent is all about mastering knowledge flow, how to share the right know-how with the right people, at the right time. No more teams working in silos. No more vital info getting lost.We’re diving into practical ways to keep your teams smart, agile, and aligned. Whether you're leading an IT team, shaping digital strategy, or hiring tech talent, this event will give you the ideas, tools, and energy to turn fast change into a competitive edge.

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Netherlands Oct 9, 2025 Invitation Only Physical dutch

Cognizant CIO Vision Dinner: Gen AI & Smart Industry

CIO Vision Dinner: GenAI & Smart Industry – Van Predictive naar Proactief

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UK Oct 9, 2025 Country Members Physical english

Mastering Digital Sovereignty: From the Network to the Data

Join us on the evening of 9th October for dinner and discussion in the company of experts from BT and Cisco. Hosted at an exclusive venue, this is the perfect opportunity to network, exchange ideas with your peers and leave with actionable insights.

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Recent Cases

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Discovering Nordzucker: The Beginning Of An Exciting Partnership With Stefanini

Recognizing the need for a fresh approach to fuel innovation and efficiency, Nordzucker partnered with Stefanini to reimagine their IT landscape. After nearly two decades of working within the ITIL framework without achieving desired performance metrics, the company embraced a bold "greenfield" strategy.

A Rich History Spanning Over 185 Years

Nordzucker is a name that resonates with history and progress. With roots dating back over 185 years, this international sugar company has grown from its humble beginnings in a single German sugar factory to become a significant player across Europe and Australia. Today, it boasts 21 sugar factories staffed by around 3,900 employees, collectively producing more than 200 products.

 

 

The Path to Progress: Nordzucker’s Inspiring Transformation Journey

In the dynamic world of business, transformation is more than a necessity—it’s an opportunity to redefine what’s possible. For Nordzucker, one of Europe’s leading sugar producers, the turning point sparked a bold quest for improvement. That’s where we, Stefanini, came in—a global technology solutions provider ready to take on the challenge, whose collaborative spirit and expertise aligned seamlessly with Nordzucker’s goals.

 

Redesigning Processes: A Fresh Start with Greenfield Thinking

Nordzucker relied on the ITIL framework to manage their IT operations. However, performance reviews revealed that their systems and processes needed a reinvention, not just an update. Adopting a greenfield approach, the team started with a clean slate—rethinking their process.  It was about fostering collaboration and co-creation between the two teams.

Oana Chetves, Business Development Manager at Stefanini, reflected on this pivotal phase: “I remember that throughout all the meetings we highly appreciated the transparency from all the Nordzucker team which helped us put together the proper solutioning in place.”

 

Tackling Challenges: Turning Obstacles into Opportunities

Nordzucker faced operational challenges as low resolution rates at the first support level led to increased workloads, backlogs, and longer ticket resolution times—a frustrating experience for end-users. Nordzucker implemented ServiceNow as their new IT Service Management (ITSM) tool. This strategic decision enabled them to establish a 24/7 team for comprehensive incident management. They also introduced SophieX, an advanced voice translation service available in multiple languages, including Danish, Swedish, Finnish, Lithuanian, Polish, and Slovak.

This innovative solution made support more accessible, bridging language gaps and elevating user satisfaction.

 

Building Strong Partnerships: Trust as the Cornerstone

What stood out was not just Stefanini’s technical expertise but also their speed, responsiveness, and preparedness during global engagements. Michael Riepshoff, Head of IT Operations at Nordzucker, shared his appreciation: “We were looking for someone to guide us on this journey, with broad experience, that has the ability to co-innovate with us. The speed delivered in getting back to our requests and also the level of preparedness for all the colleagues in Stefanini that were involved was quite outstanding. “

This partnership was built on mutual trust and a shared commitment to excellence. By aligning their visions and focusing on seamless execution, Nordzucker and Stefanini created a foundation for sustainable growth and long-term success.

 

Looking Ahead: Writing the Next Chapter

With these transformative steps, Nordzucker has not only streamlined their operations but also taken steps into enhancing the experience for their end-users. As they continue on this path, the future holds endless possibilities for growth and innovation.

Together with Stefanini, Nordzucker is embracing challenges with confidence, turning them into opportunities to innovate and excel. This journey is far from over. As they carve out new milestones and redefine success, Nordzucker’s transformation story stands as a testament to the power of vision, partnership, and resilience.

Checkout our CIONET COOKBOOK

cookbook

Embark on a culinary journey through the ever-evolving world of digital leadership with our third edition of the CIONET Cookbook: Recipes for Digital Success. Unveiling the intricate trilemma faced by today’s Master Chefs, our trailblazing European CIOs address a challenge at the nexus of customer interests, digital transformation strategies, and IT modernisation. Their secret? Synchronising the gearing between customer, business, and technology to create a frictionless movement through the digital landscape.

The CIONET Cookbook uses the analogy of a five-star restaurant to explain the importance of optimally integrated technology, with the CIO as Master Chef. In order to provide the best service to its customers, a top restaurant must have the right atmosphere, an inviting menu, a well-equipped kitchen, talented and committed front-of-house and kitchen staff and smooth-running processes that ensure an enjoyable experience for diners.

CIONET TV

 
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Kalman Tiboldi - CTO & Founder at GemOne-TVH - Simplify or Die: Why Complexity Is the Real IT Challenge

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Isabelle Droll - CIO for Airline, Corporate, Hotels & Resorts and Sustainability at TUI - Data, Diversity, and Destinations

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Sharon Prior - CIO in transition - How Great Tech Leadership Begins with Business Thinking

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José Antonio López, Group CIO at TOUS - Jewels, Data & AI: Inside the Digital Transformation of TOUS

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Tom Tanghe - General Manager ITC EMEA at Daikin Europe - Reinventing the CIO Role

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CIOFEST 2025 - From Order Taker to Proactive Disruptor

CIONET Reports

 
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How CIOs drive game changing results at scale?

The role of the CIO has evolved from managing systems to shaping outcomes: growth, resilience, and competitive edge are now won or lost in the technology arena. Today ’ s CIOs must balance stability with innovation, control costs while attracting scarce talent, and modernise legacy infrastructure while adopting emerging technologies.

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A research proposal_AI and the Human Experience

As AI transitions from a specialised tool to an all-pervasive force, understanding its profound implications for our human lives is no longer merely academic but an urgent imperative for social well-being and strategic preparedness.

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Cybersecurity in critical infrastructure

Geopolitical tensions have dominated the headlines for over two years now. In this context, the cyber threat landscape is also evolving rapidly. The protection and security of critical infrastructure – both physical and digital – is becoming increasingly important.

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Staying ahead of trends and connecting with other CIOs was never easier.

In our new app, our members connect with other digital leaders from around the world to find better solutions to their challenges.

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Anna Kopp (1)

Anna Kopp

Head of IT Germany and Regional Office Lead Munich, Microsoft

“The CIONET App allows us to learn from eachother and and find the courage to be authentic by hearing stories from others! Thanks to Tobias and the whole team for bringing us together:-) ”
Mauricio Amaro

Mauricio Amaro

IT Director, IT Thinker

“The main things that I would like to get from our community of Digital Leaders are: networking, share experiences, share best practices and successful cases, and comments and recommendations about providers.”
Vijay Anand

Vijay Anand

Vice president IT & Compliance, VisionaryRCM (A Carlyle Grp Company)

“The CIONET app provides a really cool platform to network and share insights.”

About CIONET

CIONET’s mission is to help IT executives become more at ease and above all more successful in their jobs. So they can do more than just keep up with change but ultimately define it. CIONET opens up a whole new universe of opportunities in IT management.

With the largest membership of corporate digital leaders across Europe, Latin America, US and Australia, CIONET has the expertise and pioneering vision to solve or address any IT management challenge.

Why join CIONET?

From our local and global events, from our publications and research to our executive education programmes, everything we do is aimed at making sure digital leaders maximise their potential.

Connect

with digital leaders who share your interests, who face the same challenges, who care about the same topics.

Share

stories, experiences, and ideas around our shared mission.

Learn

from our exclusive events, publications and research.

Find

inspiration, thought-provoking conversations, expert perspectives and exclusive first-hand content each and every day

Grow

and make better, more well-informed decisions on how to lead your digital business.

Maximise

your potential. Realise your ambitions.

About CIONET

Join CIONET

We'd love to welcome you as the newest member of our CIONET community where Digital Leaders unite. 

You can either send us a registered handwritten letter explaining why you'd like to become a member or you can simply talk to us right here!

Contact us

Would you like to know more about CIONET, membership or partnership opportunities? Do you have feedback or any other question? Send us a message!