null

Belgium 27-8-26 AB Members Physical english

Summer Festival: Advisory Board

CIO agendas are crowded: cost pressure, cyber, regulation, talent, data, AI, vendor dependency, business expectations. Most organisations are trying to do too much at once, and the “must-do” work often blocks the strategic work. CIONET only creates value if its agenda matches what CIOs truly need, in the right format, at the right time. The challenge Pick the few priorities that matter most for 2027, then translate them into a clear CIONET agenda. Outcome we leave with A ranked CIO agenda for 2027, and a directly aligned CIONET programme outline (themes, formats, cadence), with a shortlist of speaker and case targets.

Belgium 27-8-26 Country Members Physical english

Summerfest: From Story to Habit

How to align people, shift routines, and prove value Technology transformations often fail not because the tools don’t work, but because people don’t change their work habits. Boards want proof of value, executives want business outcomes, IT wants clarity, and employees want ease. Between these expectations, the CIO’s role is no longer just to deliver platforms; it is to tell the story that motivates people and turn that story into daily habits. This session will explore: The narrative: how to craft a simple, repeatable story that explains the “why” behind change for every stakeholder. From story to routine: practical ways to embed new behaviours through manager rituals, team incentives, and visible leadership. Reskilling and new expectations: preparing teams for evolving roles, from cross-department collaboration to AI-enhanced workflows. Measuring what matters: showing progress in speed, quality, and resilience — not just in licences bought or trainings completed. The aim is to equip CIOs with a leadership toolkit: a story that unites, habits that endure, and proof that convinces even the toughest boardroom.

Belgium 8-9-26 Invitation Only Virtual english

What an AI Architect Actually Does in Practice; Skills, responsibilities, interfaces, and career moves behind one of the most misunderstood emerging roles.

The AI architect role is becoming more visible, and the scope varies across organisations. The challenge is defining what the role owns, where it sits, and how it works with existing architecture, data, security, risk, and business teams. Three pressure points need clarity. - Role definition matters because the position can span solution architecture, data architecture, governance, integration, security, vendor selection, and business process design. - Interfaces matter because the role must connect teams while respecting existing responsibilities. - Skills matter because technical depth needs to be combined with judgement around controls, delivery choices, and operational boundaries. The working question is simple: how do we define the AI architect role so it becomes useful, credible, and connected to delivery? If this role is emerging in your organisation, let’s compare how others are defining it and where they are placing it.

Please Log In with your CIONET account first

Thanks to scalable IT, Elindus can continuously respond to changes in the energy market

EFFIX deals with everything ICT related, including the infrastructure, security and networking. Having migrated to the public cloud in Microsoft Azure, Elindus can now continuously respond to growth and developments in the energy market. Energy prices are calculated accurately to the hour to reflect changes in the energy market.

Introduction

Elindus is a 100% Belgian energy supplier to professional businesses. As an energy supplier, Elindus assists entrepreneurs with purchasing, using and managing their energy needs. With Elindus, entrepreneurs know exactly where they stand. Contracts are not tacitly renewed, invoices are set out clearly and the prices are reasonable. Elindus monitors the market closely so that it customers do not miss out on opportunities to improve their energy policies. In just 10 years, Elindus has developed into an energy supplier that makes a real difference in the Belgian energy landscape.

We seek to build a long-term relationship with our customers by addressing their concerns, advising them and keeping a close eye on their energy file to ensure that we are a reliable energy partner for true entrepreneurs! Elindus is a proactive energy supplier to the B2B segment: Be reliable - To be transparent - Be committed. - Lode Hullebusch: CCO - Elindus

The challenge

Elindus has been working with EFFIX as their ICT partner for more than six years now. The cooperation started shortly before Elindus went through its explosive growth. EFFIX began by resolving a number of operational challenges, including problems with email traffic. At the end of 2020, Elindus moved to a new location in the Elindus Arena (Waregem’s football stadium). Given the crucial importance of high reliability, speed, scalability and redundancy within the energy sector, the company also looked into the possibility of updating its ICT system at the time of the move. To meet these criteria, Elindus decided to migrate its entire ICT environment to Microsoft Azure.

The solution

Initially, a hybrid solution was chosen for the migration and upgrade, to optimize the return on the investments made by Elindus in hardware in the past. As a result, a part of the infrastructure was originally kept on the premises. The next step was a move to EFFIX’s private cloud. Elindus’ core applications have since been migrated to the public cloud in Microsoft Azure and all its employees work with Microsoft 365. In addition to scalability, the business continuity process was also taken into account in order to minimize potential downtime. For example, redundant solutions were developed for both the private and public cloud applications. Disaster recovery was also taken into consideration, including by setting up a flexible back-up procedure. to ensure that core applications are backed up efficiently several times a day.

Lastly, security is of paramount importance to Elindus. After evaluating all its business processes, a comprehensive security plan was drawn up to encompass as many potential threats as possible. This includes scanning all data before it is communicated to users to protect them against possible attacks.

In other words, EFFIX deals with everything ICT related, including the Microsoft Azure infrastructure, security and networking.

The Microsoft Partner

EFFIX is a reliable partner providing stable and high quality ICT solutions. Partnership is one of EFFIX' key words. EFFIX works with and grows alongside its customers; it does not impose default remedies but offers solutions that tie into its customer’s identity. While the process may take a little more time as a result, the commitment is considerable and ultimately delivers more. EFFIX has a dedicated service desk available 24/7 to support its customers. All its employees have extensive knowledge of ICT and that knowledge is constantly keep up to date.

Customers come to EFFIX for first-line advice with many questions. If their questions do not relate directly to their core business, the advisers will nevertheless be able to steer customers in the right direction.

The result

Elindus now has more ICT options available to it thanks to the unique opportunities offered by Microsoft Azure. With Microsoft Azure, scaling up or down is possible to meet peaks and troughs in ICT usage. This is crucial to be able to continuously respond to growth and developments in the energy market. Energy prices need to be calculated accurately to the hour to reflect changes in the energy market. This is also crucial to Elindus’s success.

EFFIX has grown alongside Elindus. It has evolved from a small ICT provider into a medium-sized business with a broad portfolio. EFFIX has contributed to Elindus’s growth and success. And in turn, Elindus has contributed to EFFIX’s own growth and success. This has created a strong mutual bond. - Christof Anckaert: CIO - Elindus

Technologies

Azure Migrate

Partners

CIONET Business Circles

Cyber Circle

CIONET’s Cyber Circle: a new three-event programme exclusively focusing on the most urgent, complex, and high-impact challenges in cybersecurity today. Launched in 2026, this initiative brings together CISOs, CIOs, and senior IT executives with a strong interest in cybersecurity for three curated gatherings each year. As part of CIONET’s trusted executive community, the Cyber Circle provides a confidential, peer-driven environment to exchange insights, share real-world experiences, and address evolving cyber threats. Each session is designed to foster strategic dialogue, strengthen resilience, and elevate cybersecurity as a core driver of business value.

Telenet Business Leadership Circle

The Telenet Business Leadership Circle powered by CIONET, offers a platform where IT executives and thought leaders can meet to inspire each other and share best practices. We want to be a facilitator who helps you optimise the performance of your IT function and your business by embracing the endless opportunities that digital change brings.

Les Rencontres

Découvrez la dynamique du leadership numérique aux Rencontres de CIONET, le programme francophone exclusif de CIONET pour les leaders numériques en Belgique, rendu possible grâce au soutien et à l'engagement de nos partenaires de programme : Deloitte, Denodo et Red Hat. Rejoignez trois événements inspirants par an à Liège, Namur et en Brabant Wallon, où des CIOs et des experts numériques francophones de premier plan partagent leurs perspectives et expériences sur des thèmes d'affaires et de IT actuels. Laissez-vous inspirer et apprenez des meilleurs du secteur lors de sessions captivantes conçues spécialement pour soutenir et enrichir votre rôle en tant que CIO pair. Ne manquez pas cette opportunité de faire partie d'un réseau exceptionnel d'innovateurs numériques !

Female Leadership Circle

CIONET is committed to highlighting and celebrating female role models in IT, Tech & Digital, creating a leadership programme that empowers and elevates women within the tech industry. This initiative is dedicated to showcasing the achievements and successes of leading women, fostering an environment where female role models are recognised, and their contributions can ignite progress and inspire the next generation of women in IT. Our mission is to shine the spotlight a little brighter on female role models in IT, Tech & Digital, and to empower each other through this inner network community.