The 13th annual MIT Sloan CIO Symposium, a world class one-day conference, will be held on May 18, 2016 at the MIT Kresge Auditorium in Cambridge, MA.

The symposium will focus on the theme, "Thriving in the Digital Economy", and will gather over 700 CIOs and senior business executives to discuss, network and explore critical business issues, technologies and leading-edge research. It aims to provide attendees with actionable insight to prepare their organization for digital success.

"According to MIT Sloan research (Leading Digital) companies that thrive in the digital economy are 26% more profitable than their industry peers," said Lindsey Anderson, Chair of the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium.  "The 2016 Symposium will provide insights into ways CIOs can help their organizations thrive in the digital economy by excelling in the strategic use of data, leading digital innovation, creating new business opportunities through platform strategies, and adapting to the changing nature of work and the workplace."

The symposium will feature more than a dozen interactive panel discussions with top leaders in their fields of expertise. Panel discussions will be spearheaded by CIOs and MIT Thought leaders including Erik Brynjolfsson, Andrew McAfee, George Westerman, Barbara Haley Wixom, Leslie Owens, Peter Weill, Sandy Pentland, Marshall Van Alstyne, Stuart Madnick, and others.

The morning keynote panel, "Thriving Through Digital Ecosystems", will discuss MIT research that found that companies with 50% or more of their revenues from digital ecosystems had higher revenues and higher profit margins than their industry's average. In addition, MIT case studies and survey results will be shared and conversation with digital leaders will be facilitated on how they are each brokering connections with their firms, customers and partners.

A panel session on "How Blockchain Will Transform the Digital Economy” will discuss how blockchain technology may upend the current business model and revolutionize the way of doing business. It will be moderated by Prof. Christian Catalini, MIT Sloan and speakers include Julio Faura, Head of R&D, Innovation Division at Santander.

Other panel sessions driven by key IT leaders, practitioners, and MIT researchers include discussions on topics such as impact digital has on the nature of work, the workplace, and innovation; Big Data 2.0 and Data’s Strategic Role; Platform Strategies, IoT, Cybersecurity, and more.

The symposium will also feature this year's finalists for the prestigious MIT Sloan CIO Leadership Award on several panels and conclude with The Innovation Showcase, which connects CIOs and senior business leaders with 10 carefully selected early-stage technology companies which have the potential to impact CIOs' top and bottom lines through innovation value.