16 - 20 October 2011 | Orlando, FL

More than 8,000 CIOs and senior IT executives were in Orlando to learn how to re-imagine IT. Read what they said about the value of attending. “My aha moment was realizing the IT world around us is no longer confined to buildings, workspaces or fixed devices. It’s really about anywhere, anytime, 100% mobile. So from [...]

On behalf of Gartner’s 4,500 employees worldwide, we thank all of our attendees and sponsors for making this year’s Symposium/ITxpo our greatest ever. Your enthusiasm, insights and willingness to share with peers are why this is, always has been, and always will be the world’s largest and most important gathering of CIOs and senior IT [...]

Identity and access management (IAM) is a specific IT discipline with profound enterprise implications. The difficulty in building an IAM program is how we conceptualize it. Rather than viewing identity access as a technology problem to be solved, we should see it as a set of challenges involving process and intelligence gathering. Exploring the common yet [...]

Since 2008, there has been a steady increase in the number of organizations considering establishing an Enterprise Program Management Office (EPMO). In her discussion designed for advanced practitioners, Gartner analyst Donna Fitzgerald explored what an EPMO looks like, how it operates at various stages of organizational maturity, and what makes it different from an IT PMO. [...]

“You have to be a masochist to be an IT person,” according to FedEx’s CIO Robert Carter. Though delivered tongue-in-cheek, that was one of many observations this transformational IT leader offered up in Wednesday’s keynote interview conducted by Gartner analysts Chris Howard and Graham Waller. Carter, who manages more than $1 billion in spending each year, [...]

When it comes to understanding the effect of “disruptive technology,” Harvard Professor Clayton Christensen, who coined the phrase more than 15 years ago, is the go-to source. In a compelling keynote Wednesday, he discussed how disruption is continuously afoot in every market and eventually comes to redefine the competitive landscape of nearly every industry from automobile [...]

Saying that you have an applications portfolio is like saying you have a property portfolio. You may own a couple of shacks in the back woods or luxury condos in major metropolises around the world. Applications come in all shapes and sizes and range from the simple to the highly complex. Yet, given the central role [...]

Outsourcing is getting more complex. Alternative services are altering the landscape; the change rate in organizations is becoming faster while the gap between what outsourcing relationships actually deliver vs. expectations is widening. In this new era, successful sourcing strategies will differentiate winners from losers. Tactical, ad hoc approaches will no longer satisfy the increasing complexities of [...]

At the Swan Meal Pavilion on Thursday for both breakfast and lunch, we’ll have the tables organized by the roles that underpin Symposium’s track structure, and we’ll also have tables for small & midsize business (SMBs) and for non-profits and associations. So be on the lookout for tables of your peers around the following: ROLES [...]

Before joining VMware in 2008, Paul Maritz served as president of the cloud infrastructure and services division at EMC after the company’s acquisition of Pi, where he was the founder and CEO. Prior to that he spent 14 years at Microsoft, his last role being executive vice president of the Platforms Strategy and Developer Group [...]

What does the manner in which a CIO wields power say about him or her as a leader? An awful lot, according to Gartner analyst Tina Nunno. Nunno’s Tuesday session on CIO Power Politics drew upon just-released research based on CIO case study interviews with more than 30 CIOs from the Americas, EMEA and the Asia/Pacific [...]

By 2015, 80% of newly installed wireless networks will be obsolete because of a lack of proper planning. How can you prevent your organization’s wireless network from being counted among them? That was one of the central questions driving Paul DeBeasi’s Tuesday session on all things wireless. He advised attendees to be aware of these four [...]

Social media isn’t just for fun anymore. It’s a new business channel that can connect and engage powerfully with current and potential customers, partners and influencers. A social presence has become business critical and de rigueur. But are organizations getting it right? Can they articulate the benefits they hope to achieve? Gartner analyst Carol Rozwell provided [...]

Come on. We saw you. Swaying in your seats to the music. Feet tapping rhythmically to the beat. Even a couple of fist pumps. Yeah — we saw you. Below is the playlist you heard as you were waiting for the Gartner Opening Keynote to begin Monday morning. This is one of our most popular requests [...]

There’s a lot to see and do here and, so, it’s only natural you’re going to miss a session you want to see. Or don’t quite catch exactly what the speaker said in a session you did attend. Or maybe you just have a passing curiosity about another of the sessions in the agenda, but didn’t [...]

The Gartner Opening Keynote explored what it means to re–imagine IT and create the leadership needed to drive business success in today’s new normal. In his opening comments, Peter Sondergaard, Global Head of Gartner Research, described an era of mass collaboration driven by the consumerization of IT. To thrive in this environment, IT leaders must re-imagine [...]

Information volume, velocity and variety – as well as the business hunger for better data – is forcing a change in information infrastructure. To understand the magnitude of the change, organizations must look at the entire cycle of information – access, storage, management, governance, analysis, collaboration and sharing. In this Monday session, Gartner analysts Yvonne Genovese [...]

The inexorable march of technology leads to the digitization of everything. Just take a look at the stats: 30 billion pieces of content were added to Facebook in September; worldwide IP traffic will quadruple by 2015, and 32 billion searches were performed last month – not on Google, but on Twitter. What new disruptive trends [...]

CEOs have identified economic and business growth as their highest priority in a persistent climate of economic concern. How does that translate in the trenches? Over the next decade, greater demands will be placed on the shoulders of CIOs and the IT organization – well beyond traditional cost cutting. How should CIOs respond? Gartner analyst Ken [...]

In the Swan Meal Pavilion on Tuesday during both breakfast and lunch, each table will have different colored tablecloth that will signify one of several industries. We invite attendees to make their way to the Swan Meal Pavilion for breakfast and lunch on Tuesday to discuss with industry peers some of the themes, findings and takeaways [...]

Changing the way medicine can be delivered for the better is a hot-topic driving recent headlines – and a contentious point in a national conversation on how traditional financial models impact quality, care and rewards in the healthcare industry. With the advent of Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) – mandated by the Affordable Care Act – healthcare [...]

Social media is unleashing a wave of creative production that’s transforming our world. Clay Shirky, NYU professor and prominent commentator on new technology, calls this fast-growing trend   “cognitive surplus” – the combining of user participation to set large collaborative projects in motion. Shirky challenged audience members at his Sunday Mastermind Keynote to reserve judgment on [...]

Is your mobile strategy a ticking bomb? Could be you’re scattering your efforts across lots of mobile projects rather than focusing on a single mobile financial services strategy to leverage revenue. The difference is critical, especially now as context and location determines how customers build interactions with banks. What to do? Gartner analyst Stessa Cohen encouraged [...]

Things used to be simple. Then they started to get complicated. And now they’re even more so. Chalk it up to the new reality manufacturers and retailers have to deal with – context-aware computing.  With the Internet and E-commerce becoming a mainstream channel for multichannel retailers, and with the emergence of mobile devices and social media, [...]

In the Swan Meal Pavilion on Monday during lunch, each table will have different colored tablecloth that will signify a topic for discussion. We invite attendees to make their way to the Swan Meal Pavilion for lunch on Monday to discuss the following hot topics, technologies and management disciplines! -          Cloud Computing -          Enterprise Architecture Program [...]

Interested in hearing more from the Gartner analysts leading your sessions today? Gartner Research provides deep insights on the key initiatives you are working on today tailored for your specific role and industry. Stop by Gartner Solution Central to learn about Gartner’s research offerings that provide you with access to our world-class analyst team. Pick 3 [...]

Please note the following important changes in location or timing of existing sessions, or the addition of new sessions. These sessions will be incorrect or absent in the printed Event Guide you received in your attendee bag. Below are the corrected times and locations, and the added sessions. SUNDAY   New Locations: N02c, Net IT Out: [...]

Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2011 commences at 12:30 pm Sunday October 16 with the aptly named “Super Sunday,” a half-day of programming and networking aimed at providing you the critical industry context for the week. On Sunday and throughout the week, we run 10 concurrent industry-specific tracks, and we end Super Sunday with our not-to-be-missed networking bonanza, [...]

Interested in hearing more from the Gartner analysts leading your sessions today? Gartner Research provides deep insights on the key initiatives you are working on today tailored for your specific role and industry. Stop by Gartner Solution Central to learn about Gartner’s research offerings that provide you with access to our world-class analyst team. Pick 3 [...]

Occupying a special and vibrant spot in the ITxpo Solution Showcase is our Emerging Technologies Pavilion. Now in its second year, the Pavilion features 33 sponsors. The Emerging Technologies Pavilion is a hotbed of innovation and activity, including demonstrations and theater sessions highlighting new and exciting solutions and providers. Look for sessions highlighted as “Emerging Technologies” [...]

Gartner Symposium/ITxpo is big. Really big. There is a lot going on, and it’s all going on in a lot of different places. If you’re new to Symposium/ITxpo, haven’t attended in a few years, or even if you were here last year (a lot has changed), it’s a good idea to get situated. Symposium/ITxpo Orientation sessions [...]

A little Rockin’ Rollercoaster here. A little Tower of Terror there. Ample food and drink in between. The most anticipated night of the week is our Special Tuesday Evening Event, which this year will be held at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. This will be a night to remember even for those of you familiar with the park. [...]

Be on the lookout for Gartner Cool Vendors in the ITxpo Solution Showcase, designated by the special Cool Vendor emblem on their booths. Gartner Cool Vendors — there are nearly 20 of them participating this year — are intriguing and impactful up-and-coming providers designated as “Gartner Cool Vendors” in a series of Gartner Research reports that [...]

In and among all the other things on your plate, you can’t overlook the careful management of your megavendors. And not just the strategic ones you’ve had in your shop for years, but a good hard look at the newcomers … those vendors who’ve established themselves as part of the new guard, looking to work alongside, [...]

They’re everywhere. Literally. Whether you’re looking to understand, manage, exploit … or merely survive … the explosion of devices inside and outside your organization, we’ve got advice for you. Below is a sample of the sessions you’ll find at Symposium/ITxpo focused on helping you manage the mania that is today’s device proliferation:       Pocket Power: Directions [...]

Since we were kids, our way forward was always helped by an assessment of how mature we were at this or that, and then an understanding of what we had to learn and do to become more mature. It’s not all that different for organizations, and Gartner’s ITScore models are designed to help you do [...]

If you leave Symposium/ITxpo 2011 with just the thoughts and advice you absorb from the event’s myriad sessions, you’ve missed the conference’s biggest benefit … the best practices and lessons learned that literally thousands of fellow attendees can share with you, and you can share with them. Analyst/User Roundtables are among our most popular “formal” ways [...]

Knowing who you are, what you’re doing, where you’re doing it, and a little bit of history about what you and others have done in the past in similar situations … well, that’s the basis for a revolution called context-aware computing. At the confluence of mobility, location awareness, and other maturing technologies, context-awareness is something you’re [...]

There are lots of reason to go green. To save energy. To save face with (or appeal to) customers and constituents. To save money. Whatever your reason, we’ve got a series of sessions focused on helping you go green:       Tutorial: Green IT — What Next?        Gartner’s Sustainability Scenario         Energy Efficiency and Technology [...]

We’re pleased to announce our Super Sunday program will culminate with a Mastermind Keynote with noted social computing visionary Clay Shirky. The keynote will run from 5:30 – 6:15 PM in the Grand Harbor Ballroom at the Yacht & Beach. Clay Shirky is today’s leading voice on the social and economic impact of internet technologies. [...]

Workshops at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo are great opportunities to get hands-on and interactive with Gartner analysts and your peers as you work as a group through a task, a strategy plan, a process improvement, or any of a series of conundrums at the heart of each workshop. Come prepared to contribute as well as absorb best practices [...]

Symposium/ITxpo attendees enjoy complimentary shuttle service among the primary hotels that serve the event, all of which are listed below in the route schedule. Within the hours noted below on each day, shuttles will run approximately every 20 minutes. Shuttle Time Schedule       Sunday, October 16: 8:30 a.m. – 9:30 p.m.       Monday, October 17: [...]

There’s no better way to evalute vendors than partaking in a Gartner Magic Quadrant Theater on the ITxpo showfloor and then following up with individual visits to the booths of the vendors featured in that Magic Quadrant! First, attend this session Monday from 5:30 – 5:50 pm Monday October 17 in ITxpo Theater C (this specific [...]

Transforming exploding amounts of information into something that can be used to make decisions … or, analytics … is hot right now. Always has been, really. But not all organizations have a grasp of how to do analytics well. This collection of sessions at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2011 is designed to help organizations improve their analytics [...]

Risk-adjusted value management is a new area of Gartner research debuting at Symposium/ITxpo 2011! And what better time than in this volatile environment? Risk-Adjusted Value Management integrates risk, performance and value management to effectively translate vision into action. It redefines value management by extending the traditional focus on lagging financial indicators with a new broader [...]

Gartner Maverick sessions are designed to leave convention behind and explore what’s possible … if not probable … up to and including considerations of the ludicrous. Why? Because thinking in terms of what “could be” is where some of the most impactful, breakthrough ideas will come from for your organization. Take a walk on the wild [...]

There’s no better way to evalute vendors than partaking in a Gartner Magic Quadrant Theater on the ITxpo showfloor and then following up with individual visits to the booths of the vendors featured in that Magic Quadrant! First, attend this session Monday from 5:30 – 5:50 pm Monday October 17 in ITxpo Theater C (this specific [...]

The world has changed. Advanced technology is literally in the hands of every individual … your customers, your employees and your competition. We stand at a critical point of departure and a time to reinvent IT leadership. In IT’s postmodern role, users are creators as well as consumers. Business leads technology strategy. Customers drive product plans. [...]

In these volatile times, who can afford to pen suboptimal contracts with technology and service providers? We’re guessing no one. So, if you’re in the throes of a new contract negotiation, or renegotiating an existing contract, Symposium/ITxpo’s Contract Negotiation Clinics can help. Contract Negotation Clinics at Symposium/ITxpo are 60-minute, interactive sessions whereby a Gartner analyst [...]

Clayton Christensen is among today’s most influential, thought-provoking and inspirational speakers. Don’t miss this newly added keynote on Wednesday evening! Clayton M. Christensen is the Kim B. Clark Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School, and is widely regarded as one of the world’s foremost experts on innovation and growth. In 2000, Christensen [...]

There’s no better way to evalute vendors than partaking in a Gartner Magic Quadrant Theater on the ITxpo showfloor and then following up with individual visits to the booths of the vendors featured in that Magic Quadrant! First, attend this session Monday from 5:30 – 5:50 pm Monday October 17 in ITxpo Theater C (this specific [...]

Be sure to capture all the value onsite at Symposium.  Gain immediate access to Gartner Research, Video, Webinars and other features via the QR codes included in select presentations, signage throughout the venue, and more. Simply scan the QR code using your mobile phone or tablet and you’re there. Need a Quick Response (QR) Code [...]

Arm yourself with the latest weather forecast as you pack for Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2011. Click here to see the weather in Orlando.

What’s even better than the mobile version of the Symposium/ITxpo website? A full-function app, that’s what! On-the-go attendees can now build, save and reference their personal agendas on the official Symposium/ITxpo app. It’s free! Simply search for “Gartner Events” on the Apple App Store, the Blackberry App World or the Android Market. Or visit these [...]

In 2010, our focus was squarely on making the successful transition from recovery to growth. Twelve months later, the challenges for IT leaders are even greater, requiring you to re-imagine how you embrace new technologies for competitive advantage. Faced with increasing demands from customers and employees, and competitors who are acquiring higher levels of IT [...]