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Belgium 01-10-2026 Squad Only Virtual english

Letting Teams Build Safely with Low-Code, No-Code, and AI Tools. ; How to enable business-led development while keeping security, architecture, and support under control.

Low-code, no-code, and AI tools are giving business teams more ability to build solutions themselves. The challenge is setting the right boundaries before fast local solutions become important operational assets. Three pressure points need attention. - Boundaries must be clear: teams need to know what they can build alone and what requires IT, security, or architecture review. - Supportability matters when a quick solution becomes business-critical. - Risk control remains necessary around data access, compliance, security, process dependency, and maintenance. The working question is simple: how do we enable business-led development while keeping security, ownership, and support under control? If you are trying to enable this safely, let’s compare approaches with others facing the same balance.

Belgium 06-10-2026 All Members Physical english

The Token Trap: Reclaiming Control of Enterprise AI

As enterprise AI transitions from experimental Proofs of Concept (POCs) into real implementations, digital leaders are encountering a shared challenge: consumption-based public cloud token billing models do not fit neatly into traditional IT budgeting. Daily token consumption can rise unexpectedly, pushing expenses through the roof while arbitrary caps quickly kill momentum for innovation. For many CIOs, this raises an open strategic question: How do we keep costs under control while further stimulating innovation? During this interactive CIONET roundtable, we will explore among peers how to navigate AI tokenomics. Rather than treating public cloud LLMs as the default path, we will investigate how different execution environments, ranging from hybrid cloud setups and targeted on-premise models to specialised edge hardware, can help balance cost with performance. This session is intentionally designed as an open peer-to-peer exchange; a space to compare notes, challenge current ways of working and architectural setups, and discuss practical approaches to building predictable, scalable AI models.

Belgium 08-10-2026 All Members Physical english

The Permanent (R)evolution

Every large organisation has been through a major transformation, and most through several. The word transformation is misleading because it suggests a beginning and an end. But organisations that do well are the ones that have given up on the idea of arriving and realise that constant change has become the new norm, and missing a single cycle leaves you permanently behind. This evening, two leaders will share how they think about this, coming from opposite directions. John Porter led Telenet through a sustained period of reinvention spanning the pandemic, a full reorganisation into tribes, M&A, and a shift to a performance driven culture. Along the way, the IT department was dissolved and technology was embedded inside autonomous tribes that run as small businesses. There is no CIO at Telenet. It is Telenet Group’s purpose to become a digital-first, customer-centric organisation. To deliver on this ambition, it has embarked on a transformation journey built on three pillars: (i) the implementation of a scaled-agile operating model (organisation), (ii) the acceleration of digitisation and automation underpinned by optimised IT systems, platforms, and strategic technology partnerships (digitisation), and (iii) a performance leadership culture focused on accountability, ownership, and a change mindset (culture). Kris Vervaet, on the other hand, has just become CIO at KBC, the bank whose mobile app has been ranked best in the world three times and whose AI assistant Kate now handles 70% of customer queries on its own. But Kris is no ordinary CIO: he ran DPG Media Belgium as CEO, and KBC went looking for someone who has led transformation rather than someone who manages technology. So while one organisation got rid of the CIO role, the other reinvented it, and both are thriving. The conversation will range across organisational and IT redesign, the rise of digital-first customer experience, the impact of AI on how every business is run, and the harder questions of culture, talent and leadership. The question for every leader in the room is what that tells you about your own role, your own operating model, and the pace at which you are prepared to keep evolving.

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Delivering a secure and agile digital transformation for Orica

Helping the Australia-based multi-national as an end-to-end trusted partner.

Overview
Like many organisations, Orica was embarking on a digital transformation. As the world’s leading producer of explosives, with over 13,000 employees and operations in over 120 countries, it was vital security sat at the centre of their strategy.

We began working with Orica back in 2015 as part of a global network and security partnership. The trusted partnership has really evolved since then as Orica have shifted their focus to become a digital and data-driven company.

The challenge
For Orica, they needed to transform to allow employees to operate from anywhere, anytime and on any device. They wanted to increase productivity and drive costs down, whilst also giving employees the ability to work flexibly at home without any issues. This proved difficult with their static and inflexible network.

Due to their global reach, Orica needed their security to keep up with the ever-increasing number of sophisticated cyber threats. They needed us to deliver a transformational SD-WAN network with associated network security services to ensure it was secure. There were a number of controls included, such as Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) solution, firewalls and secure web gateways.

Security is a key enabler sitting at the heart of our digital transformation.”

Chris CrozierCIO at Orica

The solution
We transformed their static network into a secure, agile infrastructure, shifting from MPLS to full SD-WAN.

We helped them to adopt a Zero Trust approach to their network access. This allowed for significantly more granular security policies to be applied to users, no matter where they were connecting from, whilst also enhancing user experience. We also applied user segmentation to secure certified workloads across Orica’s server estate. In addition to deploying a security policy and posture management platform, Orica transformed their traditional signature-based endpoint security by deploying new global detection and response capabilities.

The result
Users can now work anywhere, anytime. This allows Orica to be more productive, while keeping costs down. And their on-premises data centres are now cloud-enabled. Our trusted partnership with Orica means they now have the best in class security, which is central to their transformation. Chris Crozier, CIO at Orica says ‘they’ve been able to provide a tremendously valuable partnership with teams working on our MPLS to SD-WAN engagement but also the ongoing day-to-day requirements of that network. We have individual projects at scale to be able to roll out the new network requirements and support and finally we get very detailed insight depth and capability from BT to enable to business and drive the transformation that’s required’.

We’re now there as an end-to-end trusted partner. There to protect Orica’s organisation and their customers, whilst also equipping Orica with the knowledge they need in the moments that matter.

The way in which BT and Orica work together is one of true partnership… we’ve worked together to transform the initial contract to now delivering one which is a lot more digitally orientated as part of Orica’s wider transformation.”

Tris MorganManaging Director, BT Security

Technologies

Cisco SD-WAN

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.

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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.