IDC & IBM Executive Day Romania
AI and Business Transformation
In collaboration with
AI and Business Transformation
Businesses are navigating one of the most consequential technology shifts in decades. IDC underscores the urgent need for organizations to move beyond experimentation toward strategic reinvention centered around AI.
Despite the forecast for global spending on artificial intelligence reaching $570 billion in 2026, realizing that value demands more than ambition, it requires the right data foundation, the right infrastructure, and the right technology partners to turn innovation into measurable business outcomes.
At this event we will explore how organizations can harness applied technology to drive real business impact, including:
- How to deploy AI workloads fast to realize potential revenue growth while addressing challenges related to cost optimization, data compliance, and security.
- Infrastructure as a strategic enabler: How fit-for-purpose, hybrid architectures enable scalable and resilient AI deployments.
- The foundational role of trusted, well-managed data in unlocking AI’s full potential.
- Building the skills, processes, and culture required to maximize value from applied technology and innovation.
IDC & IBM Executive Day Romania
One Day Event
Registration and Welcome Coffee
Opening
Cerasela Baiculescu
General Manager, IBM Romania and Moldova
IDC keynote: From Strategy to Impact: AI, Data, and Infrastructure in Action
George Mironescu
Associate Research Director, App Development and Delivery, Europe, IDC
IBM Keynote: Turning AI Ambition into Measurable Business Outcomes
Novica Ninic
Data & Al Sales Leader for Northern, Central and Eastern Europe, IBM
Tatiana Vybostokova
AI Sales Leader for Northern, Central and Eastern Europe, IBM
End user case on AI
Panel: Digital Transformation Industry
Coffee break
TD Synnex keynote
Infrastructure Reimagined: Building the Foundation for the Quantum Age
Albert Verhoeff
Director Storage for Northern, Central and Eastern Europe, IBM
Sysco Keynote & Case Study
Fireside chat – Cancom, ASEE and ALEF
Simona Sterea
Channel & Alliance Growth Manager, ASEE
External Speaker
Closing
Cocktail Lunch
Speakers
George Mironescu
Associate Research Director, App Development and Delivery, Europe
IDC
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George Mironescu
George Mironescu is a Research Manager based in Milan, Italy, running IDC’s European Infrastructure & Private Cloud Services subscription service. In his role, George leads IDC’s research program around the European private/hybrid cloud infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) and platform-as-a-service (PaaS) services, including both professional services and cloud provisioning. He also advises clients on various strategic and tactic projects such as go-to-market design and localisation in Europe, competitive positioning, identification of prospects and opportunity mapping.
George joined IDC from Pierre Audoin Consultants (PAC), where he spend 12 years in a number of roles analyzing IT services and application software markets, including covering the cloud and platform services space in the UK and across Europe. George has led research in areas including packaged application services (e.g. SAP, Oracle, Salesforce), the UK IT services market, the European manufacturing IT landscape and the Iberian IT services market. He has led consulting projects in areas such as cloud orchestration, DevOps, cloud-based application delivery ecosystems and cloud vendor mapping & positioning. George has a BA from the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest in Marketing.
Event Sessions
One Day Event 9:40 am
IDC keynote: From Strategy to Impact: AI, Data, and Infrastructure in Action
Simona Sterea
Channel & Alliance Growth Manager
ASEE
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Simona Sterea
Simona Sterea brings over 22 years of IT&C experience to the table — bridging the gap between complex technology and real business outcomes. As Channel & Alliance Growth Manager at ASEE, she specializes in building partnerships that last, driving digital transformation, and turning strategic relationships into measurable growth. A trusted voice at the intersection of technology, people and business.
Event Sessions
One Day Event 12:35 pm
Fireside chat – Cancom, ASEE and ALEF
Albert Verhoeff
Director Storage for Northern, Central and Eastern Europe
IBM
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Albert Verhoeff
I began my IBM journey as a Level 1 Support Engineer specializing in Storage infrastructure. Being a tech enthusiast, I’ve always admired IBM’s legacy and innovative culture, a company that continuously sets technology trends over its impressive 100+ years.
I advanced through various support roles, eventually becoming a technical specialist supporting customers across Europe, traveling extensively to resolve critical infrastructure issues. Inspired by my passion for technology solutions, I transitioned into Technical Sales, educating clients about innovative infrastructure technologies and helping them overcome business challenges with tailored technological strategies. Eager to own the complete customer journey, I moved into a dedicated Sales role supporting top-tier customers across diverse industries, a position that allowed me to combine technical expertise with business acumen. Recognizing opportunities in integrating our portfolio offerings, I led an exceptional sales and technical team in the Netherlands, merging five distinct brands into one cohesive force equipped to navigate today’s rapid technological shifts.
Now, I am proud to lead the IBM Storage Brand covering the whole NCEE consisting of 35 countries, I focus on shaping a vibrant culture around this fast-growing brand through leading by example. Dad of 3, Online Gamer, Kitesurfing, Golf and techy.
Event Sessions
One Day Event 11:45 am
Infrastructure Reimagined: Building the Foundation for the Quantum Age
Novica Ninic
Data & Al Sales Leader for Northern, Central and Eastern Europe
IBM
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Novica Ninic
Event Sessions
One Day Event 10:00 am
IBM Keynote: Turning AI Ambition into Measurable Business Outcomes
Tatiana Vybostokova
AI Sales Leader for Northern, Central and Eastern Europe
IBM
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Tatiana Vybostokova
Tatiana Vybostokova is AI Sales Leader for Northern, Central and Eastern Europe at IBM, where she helps clients turn AI and data ambitions into real business outcomes. With a background spanning data science, architecture, and watsonx, she brings both technical depth and commercial insight to enterprise AI transformation.
Event Sessions
One Day Event 10:00 am
IBM Keynote: Turning AI Ambition into Measurable Business Outcomes
Cerasela Baiculescu
General Manager
IBM Romania and Moldova
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Cerasela Baiculescu
Cerasela Baiculescu is a seasoned business leader with over 20 years of experience in the IT industry, driven by a strong belief in the power of leadership to create sustainable impact. She studied at London Business School and completed an Executive MBA with ASEBUSS and Kennesaw State University, alongside extensive training in business management, corporate governance and sales.
Cerasela joined IBM in 2007 and has since held multiple customer‑facing and leadership roles, both locally and internationally, including the coordination of Central and Eastern Europe Technical Lifecycle Services. In 2022, she was appointed General Manager of IBM Romania and Moldova and currently serves as Vice President of the AmCham Romania Board of Directors.
With a strong business acumen, Cerasela is equally passionate about building organizations grounded in trust, responsibility and equity, and about using technology as a force for positive impact in society
Principal Partner
IBM is a leading provider of global hybrid cloud and AI, and consulting expertise. We help clients in more than 175 countries capitalize on insights from their data, streamline business processes, reduce costs and gain the competitive edge in their industries. Thousands of governments and corporate entities in critical infrastructure areas such as financial services, telecommunications and healthcare rely on IBM’s hybrid cloud platform and Red Hat OpenShift to affect their digital transformations quickly, efficiently and securely. IBM’s breakthrough innovations in AI, quantum computing, industry-specific cloud solutions and consulting deliver open and flexible options to our clients. All of this is backed by IBM’s long-standing commitment to trust, transparency, responsibility, inclusivity and service.
Partners
Gold Partners
TD SYNNEX
TD SYNNEX (NYSE: SNX) is a leading global distributor and solutions aggregator for the IT ecosystem. We’re an innovative partner helping more than 150,000 customers in 100+ countries to maximize the value of technology investments, demonstrate business outcomes and unlock growth opportunities. Headquartered in Clearwater, Florida, and Fremont, California, TD SYNNEX’s 23,000 co-workers are dedicated to uniting compelling IT products, services and solutions from 2,500+ best-in-class technology vendors. Our edge-to-cloud portfolio is anchored in some of the highest-growth technology segments including cloud, cybersecurity, big data/analytics, AI, IoT, mobility and everything as a service. TD SYNNEX is committed to serving customers and communities, and we believe we can have a positive impact on our people and our planet, intentionally acting as respected corporate citizens. We aspire to be a diverse and inclusive employer of choice for talent across the IT ecosystem.
Silver Partners
ALEF
ALEF Distribution Romania is a leading value-added distributor and trusted technology partner, enabling organizations to adopt and scale enterprise solutions across AI, cloud, cybersecurity, and infrastructure. By combining a strong vendor ecosystem with technical expertise and services, ALEF supports partners and customers in driving innovation, delivering complex IT projects, and creating long-term business value.
As an IBM distributor, ALEF provides dedicated expertise across IBM’s portfolio, including AI, data, hybrid cloud, and infrastructure solutions, supporting partners through enablement, go-to-market initiatives, and joint business development to accelerate solution adoption and growth.
ASEE
CANCOM
CANCOM Romania is a young company made up of experienced people who transform the IT&C component into an essential element in achieving our clients’ business objectives. Officially present on the local market for 15 years, the team brings together specialists who, in some cases, have worked together for over 20 years and have been involved in large-scale projects to digitize the private environment in Romania. CANCOM Romania delivers professional IT solutions and services to organizations operating in the financial sector, utilities, oil and gas, telecommunications, retail, as well as in the public sector. In order to implement the best solutions and systems and, at the same time, to offer those services that improve the business processes and performance of our clients, over time CANCOM Romania has concluded strategic partnerships with world-class suppliers of applications and solutions in the field of information technology and communications. IBM has always been one of our main partners, the attention we pay to collaboration being proven by our IBM Platinum partner status. In addition to IT&C infrastructure solutions and business solutions, one of the company’s priority development directions is the area of cybersecurity, a field in which our team of specialists has solid skills and references, to which is added the area of Internet of Things (IoT) solutions, in which the need for innovation is a permanent challenge for our developers to overcome.
Venue
Grand Hotel Bucharest
Grand Hotel Bucharest is iconic for luxury hotels in Romania. Located in the heart of the city, it is a famous Bucharest landmark. It was the city’s first skyscraper and the tallest building for over 30 years, and it is still one of the tallest buildings in Bucharest today. The foreign press favored it as a base during the Romanian Revolution of December 1989.
