Knowledge Hub / Huda Ahmed Mohsen

CXO Spotlight

Eng. Huda Ahmed Mohsen
Ministry of Information (Bahrain)
Chief of Information Technology

CXO Spotlight

Breaking Barriers and Building Resilience: Women’s Leadership in Cybersecurity

 

Advancing the Frontlines of Cyber Resilience

 

In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, cyber threats are more sophisticated and relentless than ever before. Organizations across industries are investing heavily in technologies and strategies to defend their networks, data, and users. Yet one of the most profound strengths in building cyber resilience is often overlooked: the leadership and impact of women in cybersecurity.

 

While women remain underrepresented in cybersecurity roles globally — and particularly in leadership positions — those who have risen to leadership have demonstrated exceptional capability in shaping strategic decisions, strengthening organisational culture, and championing risk-aware innovation. Their contributions are not only valuable but redefine what strong leadership looks like in a sector driven by complexity, strategy, and human behaviour.

 

The Strategic Value of Women Leaders in Cybersecurity

 

Cybersecurity today is no longer just a technical function; it is a strategic business imperative, influencing governance, risk management, collaboration, and enterprise culture. Women leaders consistently bring strengths that align with these broader organisational needs:

 

Holistic Decision-Making

Women often adopt a systems-level approach to problem solving — integrating technical considerations with organisational dynamics, user behaviour, and business impact. This holistic thinking is vital in defending against sophisticated threats, where success depends not only on technology but on aligning people and processes with security objectives.

 

Collaborative Leadership Across Functions

Effective security demands teamwork spanning IT, risk, legal, human resources, and executive leadership. Women’s leadership styles — often inclusive and collaborative — help break down traditional silos, ensuring that security strategies are embedded across the enterprise rather than left isolated within technical teams.

 

Risk Awareness and Governance

Governance and risk management are core elements of resilient cybersecurity. Women leaders have a strong track record in balancing ambitious innovation with prudent risk mitigation, enabling organisations to advance securely while navigating rapid technological change.

 

 

Championing Cultural Change

Security is as much about behaviour as it is about technology. Women leaders frequently emphasise awareness, education, and communication — helping organisations cultivate a security mindset among employees, partners, and leadership alike.

Bridging the Gender Gap: A Strategic Priority

 

Underrepresentation of women in cybersecurity is not simply a diversity issue — it is a strategic challenge. Research consistently shows that diverse teams produce better outcomes: they innovate more, solve complex problems more effectively, and adapt with greater agility. In cybersecurity — a domain marked by constantly shifting threats — these capabilities directly affect organisational resilience.

 

Closing the gender gap therefore enhances not just equity, but corporate strength. Bringing more women into leadership roles enables organisations to tap into a broader spectrum of perspectives, bolster strategic decision-making, and respond to emerging threats with greater insight and agility.

 

Persistent Barriers to Advancement

 

Despite progress, women continue to face systemic obstacles in the cybersecurity field, including:

Limited access to mentorship and strategic sponsorship

Unconscious bias in recruitment, evaluation, and promotion

Underrepresentation in STEM and security education pathways

Organisational cultures that may not fully support career advancement

 

These challenges are well-documented across industries, and cybersecurity is no exception. Addressing them intentionally is essential to nurture the next generation of women leaders.

 

 

Strategies for Empowering Women Leaders

 

To build a more inclusive and resilient cybersecurity workforce, organisations must adopt deliberate strategies that support women’s career growth:

 

1. Illuminate Career Pathways

Clear and visible career trajectories, supported by leadership development programs, help women envision long-term success in cybersecurity. Structured progression plans — from technical roles to strategic leadership — are essential for retention and advancement.

 

2. Invest in Mentorship and Sponsorship

Mentorship builds skills and confidence; sponsorship creates opportunity. Senior leaders should actively advocate for women’s advancement into strategic roles, ensuring that high-potential talent has access to both guidance and opportunity.

 

3. Cultivate Inclusive Workplace Cultures

Policies that support flexibility, equity in compensation, bias-aware evaluation, and diverse representation at all levels strengthen organisational performance. Inclusive cultures are not just fair — they are competitive.

 

4. Showcase Role Models

Visibility is transformative. Highlighting the achievements of women leaders — from CISOs to threat analysts and security researchers — inspires aspiring professionals and underscores the value of diverse leadership in cybersecurity.

 

 

 

Conclusion: A Call to Action for Cybersecurity Leaders

 

Women’s leadership in cybersecurity transcends representation — it cultivates strategic innovation, cultural strength, and organisational resilience. As digital threats grow more complex and interconnected, the industry cannot afford to overlook the enormous potential of women leaders.

 

 

By consciously fostering pathways for women, embracing inclusive leadership practices, and elevating diverse voices, organisations strengthen their capacity to defend, adapt, and thrive in an increasingly uncertain cyber landscape.

 

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Knowledge Hub / Eng. Sultanah Aljaser

CXO Spotlight

Eng. Sultanah Al Jaser
Chief Information Office (CIO)
Princess Nourah Bint Abdul Rahman University (KSA)

CXO Spotlight

Women in AI at Princess Nourah University

A Spotlight on the women in Tech acting as CIO

 

At Princess Nourah University (PNU), one of the largest women’s universities in the world, the rise of women in technology and artificial intelligence has become a defining mark of progress. Among the most influential figures leading this transformation is the CIO, whose exceptional work has shaped the university’s digital future and strengthened the role of women in AI-driven innovation.

 

The PNU CIO Eng.Sultanah Aljaser has earned multiple awards in recognition of her leadership, creativity, and impact within the technology sector. Her achievements reflect not only personal excellence but also PNU’s commitment to elevating women’s contributions in emerging fields such as AI, digital transformation, and educational technology.

 

One of her most significant accomplishments came during her master’s studies, where she distinguished herself by developing and activating Arabic language functionality in a virtual assistant designed to support university students. This innovation was a major step forward for AI accessibility in the region. By enabling the assistant to understand and respond in Arabic, she made digital support more intuitive and culturally relevant for students, enhancing their overall academic experience.

 

Beyond her academic distinction, she has successfully launched several developmental and technological projects at PNU. These initiatives have played a vital role in improving systems, modernizing digital services, and supporting the university’s educational process. Through her vision and leadership, she has helped create a more efficient, connected, and technology-driven environment—empowering both students and faculty.

 

Her work stands as a powerful example of what women in AI can achieve when given the space, support, and opportunity to innovate. At Princess Nourah University, her journey continues to inspire a new generation of young women to explore careers in technology, artificial intelligence, and digital development.

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2025 edition

CIO Summit

The CIO Summit 2025 brought together IT leaders to explore the evolving role of the CIO in today’s changing and challenging landscape and future

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Top speakers

Andrea Siviero

Andrea Siviero

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David Vaquero

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Sergio Merchan

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Antonio Velasco

Antonio Velasco

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Pablo Giancarli

Pablo Giancarli

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Iberia – RAO (Rhenus Air & Ocean)

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Tomás Mateos

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Pablo Aranda

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Rocío Montalbán

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Andrés Prado

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Jonathan Fuentes

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María Ángeles Vicente

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Testimonials

Testimonial #01

I found the content very relevant, and the team workshops on the second day, which is when I attended, provided valuable perspectives and experiences. I really liked the format. There was variety in both the topics and the approaches used

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Congratulations on your great contribution to the community and for bringing such inspiring presentations

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I found it to be a very dynamic and innovative format with very interesting content. Congratulations!

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Agenda

Agenda

Tuesday, September 22

CIO Summit

One Day Event

9:00 am

Registration and Welcome Coffee

9:30 am

Welcome Address & Opening

9:45 am

IDC Keynote Presentation: Scaling AI for the Agentic Future: Closing the Enterprise Gaps

As organizations accelerate digital investment, CIOs face a complex set of challenges: modernizing legacy systems, addressing rising technical debt, embedding cybersecurity, ensuring regulatory compliance, and preparing their workforce for technology-driven change

Thomas Meyer

Thomas Meyer

SVP, IDC WW Research, IDC

10:05 am

The Evolving Role of the CIO: From IT Leader to Business Strategist

The CIO role is evolving from IT leader to business strategist, driving growth, innovation, and alignment between technology and business objectives.

10:20 am

Building the Data Foundation for the AI-centered Enterprise

Establishing the data quality, architecture, and governance needed to power intelligent, AI-driven operations

10:35 am

Panel: Modernizing to Compete — The CIO Strategy for Legacy and Tech-nical Debt

This panel will explore how CIOs are transforming legacy architectures to unlock innovation and enhance competitiveness. Participants will discuss how to reduce technical debt, simplify portfolios, modernize mission-critical applications, migrate to cloud-native architectures, and balance cost and value. The conversation will also cover investment prioritization and governance in hybrid and multicloud environments.

Raúl Rivero

Raúl Rivero

CIO, Acciona

Miguel Ángel Gimare Martín

Miguel Ángel Gimare Martín

Chief Information Officer, Grupo Caja de Ingenieros

11:10 am

Unifying Secure Access: Application Virtualization and Browser Isolation

How can organizations provide secure and seamless access to virtual desktops and applications, internal web apps, and SaaS services without increasing complexity? Discover how Parallels RAS and Parallels Browser Isolation enable a unified Zero Trust workspace strategy focused on security and simplicity, while delivering the best user experience.

Víctor Canales Doval

Víctor Canales Doval

Senior Presales, Parallels RAS para España y Portugal

Jacqueline González García

Jacqueline González García

Regional Sales Manager, Parallels RAS en España y Portugal

11:25 am

Future-Proofing the Enterprise IT Portfolio

Modernization strategies for agility, scalability, and cost efficiency

11:40 am

Coffee Break

12:10 pm

Interview Ricard Guasch Sereno, CIO in Zurich Insurance España

Ricard Guasch Sereno

Ricard Guasch Sereno

CIO, Zurich Insurance España

12:20 pm

People, Culture, and the CIO Talent Agenda

People, culture, and talent are central to the CIO agenda, enabling organizations to build the skills and mindset needed to drive digital transformation.

12:30 pm

From Overspending to Value Realization

Strategies to control infrastructure costs and maximize ROI

12:40 pm

Panel: The Agentic AI Revolution — From Automation to Autonomy

This session explores how Agentic AI will transform business processes, decision-making, and operating models. CIOs and experts will examine how to govern, mitigate risks, and scale autonomous agents in real environments—from self-directed automation to systems that learn, orchestrate tasks, and make supervised decisions. The discussion will also address transparency, compliance, workforce impact, and new architectures for deploying responsible AI.

Francesc Catalán Sanmiquel

Francesc Catalán Sanmiquel

CIO and Corporate IT Director, Almirall

Alberto Lozano

Alberto Lozano

Director de Tecnología de Productos y Servicios, ING España & Portugal

1:15 pm

Digital Sovereignty and Competing in the Global AI Landscape

Competing in the global AI landscape requires balancing digital sovereignty with innovation, ensuring control over data while enabling growth and competitiveness.

1:25 pm

From Cost Center to Growth Engine: Communicating IT’s Business Impact to the Board

Communicating IT’s impact in clear business terms enables CIOs to demonstrate ROI, align with board priorities, and position technology as a growth driver.

1:35 pm

Panel: Resilience by Design — Security, Trust & Digital Sovereignty in High-Risk Environments

Enterprise resilience is becoming the cornerstone of continuity, security, and trust. This panel brings CIOs and experts together to examine how to build adaptive infrastructures, protect distributed data, ensure digital sovereignty, and maintain continuity through cyberattacks, regulatory change, or economic disruption. Panelists will explore strategies that converge security, compliance, and architecture through a “secure & resilient by design” approach.

Álvaro Ontañón

Álvaro Ontañón

CIO, Merlin Properties

1:55 pm

Cocktail Lunch

3:00 pm

Interview with End User or Expert

3:25 pm

Panel: CIO Leadership — Strategy, Culture & Value in the Intelligent Enterprise

This panel features only CIOs and end-user leaders discussing the human, strategic, and organizational challenges of transformation. It will explore how the CIO has become a business strategist—driving alignment between IT and enterprise priorities, developing digital talent, building AI-ready cultures, measuring real value creation, and leading responsible innovation. The session will foster an honest dialogue about lessons learned, governance models, friction points, and accelerating impact.

Luis Bravo Méndez

Chief Transformation Officer CIO & CISO, Grupo Envera

4:00 pm

Dialogue Partner Discussion Group

5:00 pm

Host Partner Wrap-up

5:05 pm

IDC Closure

5:10 pm

Networking Coffee

Partners

Partners

Host Partner

Strategic Partners

Tech Talk partner

Dialogue Partner

Expo Partner

Speakers

Speakers

Thomas Meyer
Keynote Speaker

Thomas Meyer

SVP, IDC WW Research

IDC

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Lapo Fioretti

Lapo Fioretti

Senior Research Analyst, EMEA AI-Fueled Business Strategies

IDC

Read bio

Ignacio Martínez De Lizarrondo

Ignacio Martínez De Lizarrondo

Data & Analytics Manager

IDC

Read bio

Raúl Rivero

Raúl Rivero

CIO

Acciona

Read bio

Ricard Guasch Sereno

Ricard Guasch Sereno

CIO

Zurich Insurance España

Read bio

Luis Bravo Méndez

Luis Bravo Méndez

Chief Transformation Officer CIO & CISO

Grupo Envera

Read bio

Francesc Catalán Sanmiquel

Francesc Catalán Sanmiquel

CIO and Corporate IT Director

Almirall

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Miguel Ángel Gimare Martín

Miguel Ángel Gimare Martín

Chief Information Officer

Grupo Caja de Ingenieros

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Alberto Lozano

Alberto Lozano

Director de Tecnología de Productos y Servicios

ING España & Portugal

Read bio

Víctor Canales Doval

Víctor Canales Doval

Senior Presales

Parallels RAS para España y Portugal

Read bio

Jacqueline González García

Jacqueline González García

Regional Sales Manager

Parallels RAS en España y Portugal

Read bio

CIO Summit

CIO Summit

The Rise of Agentic Systems

22 Sep 2026 Hotel Mandarin Oriental Ritz, Madrid
Slide
Slide
Slide

Modernize. Secure. Innovate. Lead with the power of Agentic-AI​

The IDC CIO Summit Spain 2026 is the leading event for senior technology and business executives shaping enterprise strategy and digital leadership in one of Europe’s most ambitious and fast-evolving digital economies. Designed for CIOs, CTOs, and transformation leaders, this one-day summit delivers relevant insights and practical guidance on today’s top priorities: digital modernization, cybersecurity resilience, AI and Agentic AI adoption, and aligning IT investments with measurable business outcomes in an increasingly dynamic, regulated, and sustainability-driven environment.

 

As Spanish organizations accelerate their digital transformation agendas in line with strategic plans and market evolution, CIOs face rising pressure to modernize legacy systems, manage multicloud environments, and ensure compliance with the EU AI Act, the NIS2 Directive, and other regulations. Balancing innovation, governance, and efficiency has become essential to maintaining competitiveness and trust.

#IDCCIOSUMMIT26

The next phase of transformation will be defined by the rise of Agentic AI. For CIOs, the challenge is to operationalize this technology responsibly, ensure transparency, and prepare the workforce to leverage its full potential for productivity and growth.

 

IDC analysts—together with senior IT leaders from major organizations and industry experts—will provide guidance on building resilient, secure, and sustainable IT architectures; reducing technical debt; and deploying AI—including Agentic AI—responsibly and at scale. Through keynotes, panels, and interactive discussions, the Summit equips CIOs with the research, frameworks, and leadership perspectives needed to drive trusted innovation, strengthen resilience, and accelerate Spain’s digital progress toward 2026 and beyond.

Agenda

The IDC CIO Summit is the ultimate meeting point for business and technology leaders.

Key Topics

The CIO as Business Strategist​

CIOs have evolved from operational leaders to enterprise strategists. As digital transformation reshapes every business model, technology leadership now defines competitiveness. Today’s CIO must align IT priorities with business outcomes, influence the boardroom agenda, and drive innovation that delivers measurable value.​

Modernization, Legacy and Technical Debt​

Managing technical debt is no longer just a maintenance concern, it’s a strategic priority. Modernizing legacy systems, simplifying architectures, and optimizing cost structures allow organizations to shift resources from upkeep to innovation. Streamlined technology portfolios create the agility needed to compete in a digital economy.​

The Agentic AI Revolution​

Agentic AI marks a shift from automation to autonomy. How CIOs can govern, scale, and integrate autonomous AI systems responsibly (balancing opportunity with oversight to create intelligent, self-directed enterprises.​

Resilience by Design​

Resilience is emerging as the defining capability of modern enterprises. Adaptive architectures, secure infrastructure, and integrated continuity planning enable organizations to withstand disruption (whether from economic uncertainty, regulatory shifts, or cyber threats) while sustaining growth and trust.​

Cybersecurity, Trust, and Digital Sovereignty​

As digital ecosystems expand, trust becomes a critical currency. CIOs must address cybersecurity, data sovereignty, and compliance in tandem, ensuring that cloud strategies and cross-border operations align with evolving regulations. Building digital trust creates both protection and competitive advantage.

Building the Intelligent Enterprise​

Data is the foundation of every intelligent organization. Reliable, governed, and accessible data architectures enable AI, automation, and analytics to operate at scale. Enterprises that invest in strong data foundations are better positioned to extract insight, anticipate change, and deliver smarter, faster business outcomes.​

2026 Prediction

By 2027, 55% of G1000 CIOs will be tasked to create enterprise AI value playbooks, featuring expanded ROI models to define, measure, and showcase AI impact across efficiency, growth, and innovation.​

Venue

Hotel Mandarín Oriental Ritz Madrid

Plaza de la Lealtad, 5, 28014, MadridrnrnLuxury Belle Époque palace in the city’s famed Golden Triangle of Art. With over a century of history, it epitomises style and elegance.

2026 Prediction

By 2027, G1000 organizations will face an up to 30% rise in underestimated AI infrastructure costs, driving CIOs to expand the scope of FinOps teams to optimize expenses and enhance business value. ​

Knowledge Hub

The AI homework nobody asked for (but everyone’s getting anyway)

Artificial Intelligence has officially reached the “you can do anything with it” stage of technological hype. Judging just by AI vendor narratives, and by some of the media, it’s the golden key to productivity, efficiency, optimization and innovation.

Read more

The Agentic Business Future: Driving Resilience, Sovereignty, and Innovation in EMEA

As organizations navigate an era defined by economic uncertainty, geopolitical shifts, and relentless technological change, one truth stands out: the future belongs to those who can harness AI, automation, and sovereignty to build resilience, drive innovation, and unlock growth.

Read more

EMEA’s Tech Evolution – 7 Key Themes Transforming Business in 2025

The technology landscape across Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) is changing rapidly in 2025, with innovations actively reshaping industries and creating new business opportunities.

Read more

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