All 2026 Conference Sessions

Gartner CIO Leadership Forum 2026 dives deep into key topics for CIOs around technology leadership, executive partnership and more to help you address your organization’s mission-critical challenges.

2026 Conference Theme

This year’s conference theme is Leadership in Motion. As AI moves from hype to enterprise-scale reality, CIOs stand at the forefront of business reinvention. 2026 brings new urgency for realizing value, responsible AI adoption, regulatory compliance, and cybersecurity resilience.  Explore our conference sessions below, all developed with this theme in mind.

Hear from Gartner Expert Brandon Germer on why CIOs can't miss Gartner CIO Leadership Forum 2026.

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Filter to see sessions that align with your interests. After registering for the conference, craft your agenda and book priority sessions — all through Conference Navigator.

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Monday, 23 March, 2026

11:00 AM - 11:30 AM GMT

Increase Executive Influence Using Business Value Stories and Human Value Stories

Gabriela Vogel, VP Analyst, Gartner
CIOs continue to struggle to influence business executives, delaying budgets and derailing progress on business outcomes. Greater success comes from mastering two types of value stories: business value stories and human value stories. Both should be used to focus on each key stakeholder. This session will provide structures and best practices for creating these stories, including GenAI prompts for inspiration. ... Show More Show Less

11:00 AM - 11:30 AM GMT

IT 2030: How CIOs Should Reinvent IT for the AI Age

Hung LeHong, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner
The IT organization will be augmented and autonomously operated by AI. But will some parts of IT disappear? Will new capabilities or teams be needed? The organization could be radically different—for better or worse. It’s up to CIOs to choose and lead IT’s reinvention by 2030. The journey starts today. Join this session to learn more. ... Show More Show Less

11:00 AM - 11:30 AM GMT

The State of AI Regulation: How to Build a Unified Strategy

Whit Andrews, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner
AI regulations are now coming in just as fast as AI new products. Some say they will stifle innovation while others argue that they are late. Either way, CIOs will have to deal with a global regulatory wave that risks sinking their AI strategy. This session will provide a global overview of AI regulation, what to expect over the coming 12 months and how to prepare for a seemingly fragmented set of requirements. ... Show More Show Less

11:00 AM - 11:30 AM GMT

Get Started on Your Autonomous Business Journey

Don Scheibenreif, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner
Autonomous business is the next business era, driven by AI and building on the foundations of digital business. But where do you start and how autonomous do you want your organization to be? In this session, we will share new research on autonomous business and discuss what organizations are doing to meet this challenge head-on. ... Show More Show Less

12:30 PM - 01:00 PM GMT

How to Create a Resilient and Flexible IT Strategy

Ian Cox, VP Analyst, Gartner
In a complex and uncertain world, IT strategy must be resilient and flexible to cope with disruption. It will also need to be reviewed and adjusted regularly to ensure alignment with changing business priorities. This session will explain how CIOs can work with stakeholders to create and evolve an IT strategy that is aligned with business goals. ... Show More Show Less

12:30 PM - 01:00 PM GMT

Master 6 Cybersecurity Board Conversations to Survive and Thrive

Paul Proctor, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner
There are times when the CIO has to have a cybersecurity conversation with the board that are critical, decisive and transformative. Six of them are “we just got hacked,” “a budget cut,” “ransomware readiness,” “AI is risky,” “technology debt,” and “cyber risk in M&A.” These are times when your influence can rise to the occasion with lasting effect or an opportunity to brush up your resume. Learn to master these conversations. ... Show More Show Less

12:30 PM - 01:00 PM GMT

Soft Skills Are the Essential Upskill Imperative in the Age of AI

Matt Hancocks, Sr Director Analyst, Gartner
As AI advances, technical skills like data science and engineering are increasingly radically augmented and automated. Success now hinges on soft skills — business domain expertise, communications — to collaborate with models and unlock value from generative and agentic AI. This session explores why these skills are emergent competitive differentiators and how to identify upskilling opportunities. ... Show More Show Less

12:30 PM - 01:00 PM GMT

How to Put a $ Value on the Business Value of IT

Bryan Hayes, Sr Director Analyst, Gartner
CIOs must forge a clear and measurable connection between IT initiatives and strategic business outcomes. Yet, one of the most persistent challenges they face is quantifying the value of IT in financial terms; how to put a $ value on IT's contribution to business outcomes? This session will equip CIOs with practical and actionable frameworks to bridge that gap, enabling them to articulate IT’s contribution in terms that drive strategic alignment and executive confidence. ... Show More Show Less

02:30 PM - 03:00 PM GMT

How AI Changes the IT Operating Model to Drive Success

Peter Skyttegaard, VP Analyst, Gartner
By rethinking the IT operating model through the lens of AI, CIOs can move beyond tactical cost reductions to unlock strategic value. This session will show how leading organizations leverage AI to drive step changes in IT operational agility, efficiency, proficiency and performance. ... Show More Show Less

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“Great sessions on effective CIO storytelling to influence C-suite.”

Anne Milkovich
CIO, NSHE

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