With more than 350 of the region’s most influential ICT leaders in attendance, the IDC Middle East CIO Summit 2019 closed last week with a ceremony to mark the second edition of the IDC CIO Excellence Awards.
At a time when innovation is becoming the hallmark of competitive success, IDC sought to recognize the efforts of those individuals and organizations that have excelled in conceptualizing and delivering game-changing digital transformation initiatives across the Middle East.
Jyoti Lalchandani
“CIOs are coming under mounting pressure to disrupt their organizations in a meaningful and constructive way, reinventing the experiences of customers, partners, and employees alike with the help of innovation-accelerating technologies like artificial automation, robotics, blockchain, and the Internet of Things,”
says Jyoti Lalchandani, IDC’s group vice president and regional managing director for the Middle East, Turkey, and Africa.
“This pressure will see spending on digital transformation initiatives across the Middle East and Africa top $25 billion this year, so it’s only right that the pioneering efforts of the region’s most successful and innovative digital leaders are highlighted and publicly acknowledged in this way.”
IDC had been accepting nominations across 5 categories since November and received a total of 135 submissions from 86 different organizations. These submissions were whittled down to a shortlist that saw senior IDC analysts conduct interviews with all 86 organizations as part of the judging process. IDC’s CIO Advisory Council for the Middle East then reviewed the nominations, with the winners and finalists in each category revealed below:
CIO of the Year
Ghinwa Baradhi
Winner: Ghinwa Baradhi, CIO, HSBC, MENA & Turkey
Finalists: Mohammed Sater, Head of IT, Mumtalakat Holding Company; Abdulaziz S. Al-Ghufaili, CTO, Saudi Industrial Development Fund; Amani AlJassmi, Director of Information Technology, Dubai Health Authority; and Thanos Papadimitriou, Group Director of Information Technology, Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone
CISO of the Year
Saqib Chaudhry
Winner: Saqib Chaudhry, CISO, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi
Finalists: Asma Omar Mohammed Muallemi, CISO, Dubai Municipality; Sultan Altukhaim, CISO, Capital Market Authority, Saudi Arabia
Best Customer Experience Transformation
Winner: Dubai Police
Finalists: Union Insurance; Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority
Best Business Operations Transformation
Winner: Jazeera Airways
Finalists: Abu Dhabi Municipality; Tatweer Buildings Company
Best IT Service Transformation
Winner: Engineering Office, Dubai
Finalists: Al Masah Capital; Daman
Commenting on her experience at the IDC Middle East CIO Summit 2019, IDC’s CIO of the Year, Ms. Ghinwa Baradhi, stressed the importance of facilitating greater collaboration between IT teams and their line-of-business counterparts.
“It’s been an amazing two days and we learned a lot,”
said Baradhi.
“The role of the CIO is continuously evolving. We need to help businesses drive growth, efficiency, and customer experience, whilst working hand-in-hand with them to create customer-centric digital transformation journeys.”
IDC would like to thank the esteemed members of the CIO Advisory Council for being part of the judging process:
H.E. Wesam Lootah, CEO, Smart Dubai Government
Fuad Al Ansari, Vice President of IT, ADNOC Refining
Brigadier Khalid Nasser Al Razooqi, General Director of Artificial Intelligence, Dubai Police
Yahya Abdulrahman, Former Executive Director of IT & Communications, Saudi Electricity Company
Ahmad Almulla, Executive Vice President of Corporate Services, Emirates Global Aluminium
Dr. Salim Al Ruzaiqi, CEO, Information Technology Authority, Oman
Featured image credit: IDC
