Innovation is vital to Alberta’s prosperity, but demonstrating its value is complex. Unlike infrastructure projects where results are immediate and visible, innovation unfolds over longer timelines and its outcomes are influenced by many interconnected factors. Tracing outcomes back to a single investment is rarely possible. This keynote will highlight common challenges and share how Alberta Innovates is developing a Value for Investment approach that balances accountability with the realities of long-term impact.

In this session, we will explore:

• The time lag between investment and innovation impact.
• Why measuring outcomes across diverse sectors requires both flexibility and consistency.
• The tension between short-term accountability and long-term outcomes.
• How Alberta Innovates is building a Value for Investment Framework to support transparent measurement and reporting.
• Why shared stewardship — across government, researchers, entrepreneurs, and citizens — is essential.

Alberta’s investment in advanced data centres is not just about infrastructure—it’s about building the foundation for an AI-powered public sector and a more competitive economy. With new projects underway, the province is setting the stage for smarter services and broader economic impact.

This session will unpack the strategic value of data centres, highlighting how they’re enabling AI transformation in government while fueling growth across Alberta’s innovation ecosystem.

• Unpack how new data centres are designed to support scalable, AI-ready environments
• Understand how improved data infrastructure can transform government responsiveness and service delivery
• Examine the economic ripple effects—jobs, investment, and innovation—these builds will catalyze
• Discover how Alberta is positioning itself as a national leader in digital infrastructure
• Learn what this means for future-ready government operations and resilient communities

• Agentic AI
• BMC Helix Agentic AI for ServiceOps multiplies productivity
• BMC Helix supports your journey to best-in-class results
• Global Business Support Transformation & HelixGPT
• AWS and BMC Helix

Digital transformation has become a cornerstone of modern government, but success isn’t always easy to define. Beyond new platforms and portals, the real measure lies in whether transformation delivers outcomes that matter to citizens, staff, and partner organizations. This discussion will examine how to assess effectiveness across short- and long-term horizons, ensuring digital projects remain outcome-driven and sustainable.

This session will give you tools to apply new approaches on how you can measure progress, align partner outcomes with technology, and embed cultural readiness for lasting transformation.

• Define digital transformation in practical, outcome-oriented terms
• Measure effectiveness with both quantitative metrics and qualitative insights
• Align partner priorities with digital initiatives to ensure shared success
• Build organizational cultures that embrace change and avoid common pitfalls

Roberta Flis

Assistant Deputy Minister - Digital Design and Delivery Division, Ministry of Technology and Innovation, Government of Alberta

James McKee

Executive Director - Product and Delivery, Ministry of Technology and Innovation, Government of Alberta

Gabriel Potter

Director, Product and Delivery, Ministry of Technology and Innovation

Cole Cioran

Managing Partner II, Info-Tech Research Group

Chris Robinson Moderator

Principal Architect, AOT Technologies

Public sector modernization efforts often face internal friction—from lengthy approvals to unclear roles and cautious risk cultures. This session will help you unlock progress by addressing these barriers without compromising integrity or oversight.

This session will give you tools to apply new approaches on how you can accelerate modernization, align stakeholders, and move forward with confidence inside complex structures.

• Uncover hidden drivers of friction that slow down innovation and delivery
• Clarify internal roles, mandates, and approval processes to streamline efforts
• Apply risk-informed decision-making to push forward responsibly
• Build momentum for change while maintaining accountability and trust
• Strengthen internal alignment to support smarter, faster execution

Dorothy Eng

Chief Executive Officer, Code for Canada

Joel Agustin

Executive Director, Information Technology Services, Alberta Innovates

Pavel Medvedev

Principal Solution Engineer, Salesforce

Curtis Nybo Moderator

Director, Consulting Expert - Artificial Intelligence and Quantum Computing, CGI

Organizational change efforts and unanticipated disruptions in our work environments will often promise transformation—but the real shift starts with people, the ground-floor view. From varying leadership styles and complex team dynamics to communication gaps and diverse personality preferences, human factors are often the biggest influence on whether innovation efforts stall or succeed.

This fireside chat offers us reminders in what specifically is driving the show here. That is:

• Reminders in how we can address transformational efforts with intention,
• Navigate human complexity with empathy,
• Center real human needs when it comes to planned and unanticipated changes and disruptions in our work environments.
• We will reflect on the real-life messiness of change and how to work through it with focus, intention, customization and consistency.

Alberta Health Services has saved over 250 years of manual work through intelligent automation—this session unpacks how they did it. Learn the top 20 steps to build a program that’s strategic, sustainable, and scalable from day one.

This session will give you a clear roadmap to accelerate automation success in your organisation and apply new approaches on how you can drive measurable value, manage risk, and embed automation across teams.

• Set a clear vision and define measurable goals for automation success
• Establish a governance model that enables growth and oversight
• Select high-impact use cases that maximize ROI from the start
• Navigate risk, ethics, and privacy committees with confidence
• Embed change management and scalability into every phase of your program

Manitoba’s journey to modernize its finance systems offers a rare behind-the-scenes look at the strategy, investment, and impact of shifting a provincial level financial system. From capital decisions to long-term resourcing, this transition reveals the real costs—and gains—of taking control of your financial tech stack.

This session will unpack the considerations and trade-offs involved in software licensing, capital investment, and internal team structures, so you can apply new approaches on how you manage, scale, and fund future transformation.

• Evaluate the financial and strategic trade-offs in moving to a provincial system that attempts to address a wide variety of user needs
• Understand the full lifecycle costs of system modernization, including hidden operational impacts
• Explore how licensing and ownership affect long-term budget planning
• Assess the impact of finance system changes on internal team structures and resourcing
• Learn how to align finance modernization with broader modernization strategies

Transform data into AI-driven insights with strategic data product management. This keynote explores navigating robust data management, contextual enrichment, and generative AI to deliver on-demand insights, enabled by invisible governance for scalable, enterprise-wide impact.

This session will help you consider new approaches on how you can move from raw data to powerful AI outcomes:

• Transform siloed government data into AI-ready products through strategic management and governance frameworks that enable intelligent public services.
• Build semantic data architectures that understand relationships and  context, creating foundations for effective government AI applications.
• Enhance productivity through reusable data assets
• Optimize domain-led ownership to reduce bottlenecks
• Balance the tension between control (shift left) and experimentation (shift right)

This presentation examines the key principles of Responsible, Relevant, and Robust AI within data governance. It highlights how ethical practices, alignment with organizational goals, and resilient AI system design work together to ensure AI is fair, transparent, compliant, and reliable. Attendees will learn practical strategies to implement governance frameworks that promote accountability, trust, and sustainable AI deployment across their organizations.

Canada’s growing dependence on foreign technologies—particularly from the U.S.—raises pressing questions about long-term digital resilience, economic autonomy, and national security. In this moment of global instability, there is a critical opportunity to take a strategic pause and rethink how we approach procurement, infrastructure, and innovation to better serve Canadian interests. From data center ownership to AI adoption, the time is now to develop a collective, forward-thinking strategy that empowers local technology ecosystems.

This session will help you apply new approaches on how you can champion Canadian-built solutions, strengthen long-term digital sovereignty, and lead behavioral change across government and industry.

• Rethink procurement frameworks to favour Canadian-made technologies and innovation
• Explore how sovereign data centres can increase trust, control, and national alignment
• Investigate the structural reasons for Canada’s limited tech ecosystem and how to fix them
• Examine how global supply chain shifts and tariffs can unlock opportunities for local innovation
• Promote a shared responsibility across sectors to adopt a “buy local” mindset and drive systemic change

David Almond

Associate Vice President Information Systems and Chief Information Officer, MacEwan University

Barb Carra

President and CEO, Cybera

Shankar Sethuraman Facilitator

Principal Architect, AOT Technologies

Alberta’s Ministry of Technology and Innovation is setting the pace with its new AI Maximalists (AIM) pilot—a bold initiative designed to cultivate internal AI champions and push the boundaries of innovation in the public sector. As governments everywhere wrestle with responsible AI adoption, Alberta is investing in expertise, leadership, and collaboration to lead with confidence.

This session will explore the AIM program’s early vision, goals, and how it’s shaping a forward-looking AI strategy—featuring voices from the program’s first sprints sharing practical lessons and early outcomes.

• Understand the strategic drivers behind Alberta’s AI Maximalists pilot
• Explore how AIM is identifying and empowering internal AI leaders
• Examine how public trust and ethical guardrails are embedded from day one
• Learn how Alberta is positioning itself as a national AI thought leader

Julie Lovell

Team Mentor - AI Maximalist Operations, Ministry of Technology and Innovation, Government of Alberta

Zoran Mijajlovic

Senior Manager Platform Enablement, Ministry of Technology and Innovation, Government of Alberta

Kayla Baretta

Director, Product & Delivery and AIM Team Lead, Ministry of Technology and Innovation, Government of Alberta

Mykola Holovetskyi

AI Architect, Ministry of Technology and Innovation, Government of Alberta

Curtis Nybo Moderator

Director, Consulting Expert - Artificial Intelligence and Quantum Computing, CGI