Why We Sponsor Retail CIO Connect

Why did you choose to sponsor Retail CIO Connect in 2023?

Ryan: We sponsored the event because of the attendee job titles, there are some high calibre delegates and they’re all on our target list. We saw three things; one was the intimate setting, two, the customers who you had signed up already to speak. And for me, the final one was the pre-assigned 1-1 meetings which were high-value customers for us

What have the quality of delegates been like?

Ryan: Like I said, the job titles really stood out and I would say there is a good mix of both business and IT. You have a lot of people here driving transformation, they're thinking beyond IT and how this technology enables that transformation at the business level. The ratio of vendor to delegate was good and put everyone on an equal playing field. It’s clear everyone is here for collaboration.

Have you had any meetings so far?

Ryan: We have had 10 meetings so far and all of them should lead to a good follow-up; the conversations were great openings. Having pre-assigned 1-1 meetings of this quality is rare, and that’s really impressive, so well done.

How have the networking breaks been and have you attended any sessions?

Ryan: I’ve found everyone in the networking breaks to be open-minded, which has allowed good networking. Where you’re all quite tight-knit, it allows you to also have informal and more relaxed conversations.

I’ve been to a few sessions, I felt that each speaker was throwing out their challenges, kind of exposing themselves and then there were conversations which got everyone involved. The breakouts really got people engaged, even our table was like, “wow, everyone’s jumping in and throwing in their 10 sentences, that’s really awesome.” I think that's one key difference that I really liked compared to other conferences, is that you got participation from everyone, not just the speakers.

Would you say this event could have a positive impact on your 2023 business goals and would you say it’s important to sponsor Retail CIO?

Ryan: I certainly think this will have a positive impact on our business goals. I’ve already talked with the Retail CIO Connect team about coming to future events, because I think the format is great. We have to create a safe environment for the delegates to share, talk and discuss and see if we can potentially help them with their industry challenges, and this is the perfect climate for that.

You have a great formula here, so keep it up because I think it allows delegates to feel open minded to finding new solutions, even if they don’t know of your company, they are curious. That curiosity is what is most valuable to us.