13th Australian CIO Leaders Summit /CISO Workshop by Dr Erdal Ozkaya
Be part of this years upcoming gathering where you will able to engage with the country’s leading IT professionals on the
As some of you know after nearly 7 years in Dubai , I moved back to Australia (home) and I am extremely excited to announce that I will be speaking in the Australian CIO Leaders summit, in Melbourne , which is going to be a face to face event. Details
CISO Workshop by Dr Erdal Ozkaya
When : July 27
Where: Crown Conference Center Melbourne
Registration : https://focusnetwork.co/cioleadersaustralia.com/
Update : Because of the latest lock down in Melbourne (Victoria) the event has been postponed to July 27 , please be aware :
More about CIO Leaders Summit
The 13th CIO Leaders Australia Summit will take place on the 27th of July 2021 at the Crown Conference Centre in Melbourne. The Summit will once again become THE MEETING PLACE for more than 150 of the country’s leading CIOs, Heads of IT, IT Directors and Technology Leaders and provide unrivalled networking opportunities.
This year’s Summit theme will look at ‘Shifting from Information to Innovation’ and this message will be delivered via a number of keynotes, workshops and targeted roundtables discussions taking place throughout day.
Attendees will have the opportunity to personalize their own agenda and maximize their time out of the office by engaging in only the most relevant sessions for their business. Our networking drinks function will provide the chance to interact face to face with peers in a very relaxed setting.
Whilst we are all adjusting to the ‘new norm’ and adapting to the challenges and opportunities that COVID-19 brought for us all, we are committed to deliver a great event in a well-managed and safe environment.
We have introduced new event protocols to safeguard the health and wellbeing of all our sponsors, attendees and staff whilst continuing to deliver strong opportunities and engagements.
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https://youtu.be/dyEI-fykPjU?si=dh5kuLHLUlWcflLg
CISO Insight
Industry events remain one of the most effective ways for security leaders to stay current, build peer networks, and discover approaches that no vendor whitepaper can teach. The hallway conversations between sessions — where practitioners share what actually worked and what failed — consistently deliver more actionable intelligence than the formal presentations themselves.
Why Cybersecurity Events Matter for Practitioners
The cybersecurity industry moves at a pace where knowledge has a short half-life. Techniques that were cutting-edge 18 months ago may already be outdated. Threat actors evolve continuously, and defenders must keep pace. Industry events — conferences, summits, forums, and workshops — serve as concentrated knowledge-transfer mechanisms where practitioners can absorb months of industry developments in days. Beyond the formal agenda, events create opportunities for informal knowledge exchange that drives real operational improvement. CISOs discussing challenges over coffee, incident responders comparing detection approaches, architects debating implementation strategies — these peer interactions produce insights impossible to replicate through online content alone.
Building a Strategic Approach to Industry Engagement
For CISOs managing limited time and travel budgets, being selective about events is essential. The most valuable events combine technical depth with strategic relevance, attract genuine practitioners rather than just vendors, and provide structured networking. Regional events often deliver more value per hour than mega-conferences because the community is smaller and more focused. I recommend mixing one or two large international events with several focused regional forums for the best balance of breadth and depth. The connections made at these events prove invaluable during incident response, technology evaluations, and career transitions.
Frequently Asked Questions
How should CISOs choose which cybersecurity events to attend?
Prioritise events that align with your current strategic priorities, attract peers from your industry sector, and provide opportunities for genuine peer interaction beyond vendor presentations. Look for strong speaker curation, hands-on workshops, and structured networking opportunities.
What is the ROI of attending cybersecurity conferences?
The return comes in multiple forms: peer intelligence that informs strategy, vendor evaluations from practitioners, talent pipeline development, and professional growth. CISOs who invest in event attendance consistently report that connections made prove valuable during incidents, evaluations, and transitions.
Related reading: Visit our CISO Career Hub or explore the Cyber Resilience Hub for frameworks and resources.