Description and Talking Points

Any conversation that makes it to the board better be good. Attention is the scarcest resource in the boardroom, so to claim some, the conversation proffered had better concern something board members care about, such as risk, growth, innovation, or crisis. Topics of this gravitas tend to get past the pre-filtering layers of executive committees working to preserve the board’s precious time for the things that matter most. Rob Ford (our speaker) is going to make the case that cloud governance is a conversation that exceeds this bar and belongs squarely in the boardroom, and he will explain why, and what that conversation should look like.

Robert Ford (our speaker) is going to make the case that cloud governance is a conversation that exceeds this bar and belongs squarely in the boardroom, and he will explain why, and what that conversation should look like.

First Things First: Positioning the Cloud Correctly

Before we dive into cloud governance, it is critical that the boardroom has shared purpose, context, and urgency regarding the cloud and the role it plays in fueling their digital ambition:

• All roads digital lead to and from the cloud

• Cloud is an organizational transformation initiative, rather than a place

• Innovation is more than incremental improvement (or natural evolution)

The Boardroom Conversation

What should the boardroom conversation look like? Here are five good questions to start with:

• Do we have the confidence to experiment, innovate, and disrupt more?

• Do we have the confidence to accelerate what’s working best?

• Are we confident we can mitigate risks and keep customer trust?

• Are we confident our resources are optimized and focused on what’s important?

• Do we have confidence in our ability to make informed, tech-forward decisions?

Speakers:

• Robert Ford, VP - Enterprise Strategy, CoreStack, is going to make the case that cloud governance is a conversation that exceeds this bar and belongs squarely in the boardroom, and he will explain why, and what that conversation should look like.

• Karyn Price, Industry Principal, Frost & Sullivan, as the moderator and thought-leader.