Dr. Anand S. Rao is the Global Artificial Intelligence Leader for PwC. He is also the leader of PwC’s AI and Emerging Technology practice.  With over 35 years of industry and consulting experience, Anand leads a team of practitioners who advise C-level executives and implement advanced analytics and AI-based solutions on a variety of strategic, operational, and ethical use cases. With his PhD and research career in Artificial Intelligence and his subsequent experience in management consulting he brings business domain knowledge, software engineer expertise, and statistical expertise to generate unique insights into the practice of ‘data science’.  

Prior to joining management consulting, Anand was the Chief Research Scientist at the Australian Artificial Intelligence Institute. He received his PhD from University of Sydney (with a University Postgraduate Research Award-UPRA) in 1988 and an MBA (with Award of Distinction) from Melbourne Business School in 1997. Anand has also co-edited four books on Intelligent Agents and has published over fifty papers in Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence in major journals, conferences, and workshops.  

He has received widespread recognition for his extraordinary contributions in the field of consulting and Artificial Intelligence Research.  He has received the Most Influential Paper Award for the Decade in 2007 from the Autonomous Agents & Multi-Agent Systems organization for his contribution on the Belief-Desire-Intention Architecture; MBA Award of Distinction from Melbourne Business School, 1997 and University Postgraduate Research Award (UPRA) from University of Sydney, 1985; Distinguished Alumnus Award from Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, India; He was recognized as one of Top 50 Data & Analytics professionals in USA and Canada by Corinium; one of Top 50 professionals in InsureTech; and has won a number of awards for his academic and business papers.

Anand is an Adjunct Professor in BITS Pilani’s APPCAIR AI Center. He also serves on the Advisory Board of Oxford University’s Institute for Ethics in AI, World Economic Forum’s Global AI Council, OECD’s Newtork of Experts on AI (ONE), OECD’s AI Compute initiative, Advisory Board of Northwestern’s MBAi program. Responsible AI Institute, Nordic AI Institute, and International Congress for the Governance of AI.

Andreas Solomou is actively involved in the field of project management and education for more than 18 years. He has successfully managed a large number of product development projects as well as educational programs and currently works with private and government organisations as an external project manager and consultant. He is a holder of a Master’s degree in business management (MBA) and he is a Certified Project Manager (PMP)®, Certified Business Analyst (PMI-PBA)®, Certified Agile Practitioner (PMI-ACP)® and he holds an MCTS (Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist) certification for project management using information systems. He is one of the founding members of PMI Cyprus Chapter and has served the Chapter for five consecutive years as the Vice President for Professional Development, Education and Events. Andreas specialises in Project Management Standards and he is the National Delegate representing the Cyprus Organisation for Standardisation in the International Standardisation Organisation’s Technical Committee 258 that develops Portfolio, Programme and Project Standards.

He is a visiting lecturer at private and public academic institutes and an authorised trainer and consultant of the Cyprus Human Resource Development Authority. He is the author of two books related to project management, one of which is an approved official course material for ECDL’s “Project Planning” Module examination program. He enjoys developing Standard Operational Procedures related to project management for organisations looking to establish project management, business analysis or project risk management methodologies or for those looking to improve their existing frameworks.

Daniela is a Certified Practicing Project Director (CPPD), and an experienced project, program and PMO professional. Since starting her own business in 2017, Daniela now services clients in the delivery of projects and programs, as well as establishing PMO capability within their organisations. 

Daniela led several high-value projects and programs at Telstra before joining Kinetic IT and re-energising the PMO at Victoria Police.  Daniela played pivotal stakeholder engagement roles, working with senior business leaders, to assess project delivery capability with a view to creating PMO’s that deliver the right projects and deliver them well, to achieve business benefits and strategic goals. 

Daniela is also an experienced producer of professional services tenders and has had great success with two tenders in 2020/21, winning long-term contracts with NBN, Department of Defence and CSIRO in collaboration with her clients. 

Daniela is an active member of the Australian Institute of Project Management.  She is an AIPM Councillor for the Victorian Chapter, leader of the AIPM National PMO Community of Practice, and a member of the AIPM Professional Advancement Committee. Daniela is an active host and presenter for the Australian project management community, delivering professional development content to PMO Leaders and project people within Australia and internationally.  Daniela also presented on PMO Resilience at IPMA’s Best Practice Week in April 2021. 

Daniela lives in Melbourne Australia with her husband and two young children.

Gaurav is a seasoned project/program management professional with a passion for Agility and implementing Digital business strategies. He is also passionate about Digital & Agile Transformation and building strong self-motivated teams for organizational success. Gaurav holds the volunteer role of President of PMO Global Alliance India Hub and Senior Official of the International Association of Project Managers. Presently, he is working with Genpact as Assistant Vice President - Software Development. Gaurav is also an active member and volunteer at PMI. He loves to share his thoughts by writing blogs and articles on Project Management, RPA, AI, ML, and Cloud Transformation.

Dr. George is an established academic, working as an Assistant Professor at Higher Colleges of Technology, Women's College, Abu Dhabi. On the past he was an associate professor at King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, teaching various courses such as project management (MSc level), enterprise architecture (MSc level), Computer graphics (MSc level), software design patterns (BSc level), advance software engineering (BSc level), Computer Games Development (BSc level), Introduction to robotics (BSc level).

George has publications in journals and conferences and supervised 3 PhD students, 3 MSc students, 40+ BSc students (final year project). George is also the main developer of the computer games seeds of the arcane tactics and seed of the arcane. George is skilled with project management, business process modelling, software engineering and programming.

His research interests include robotics and virtual reality from programming point of view. Prior of joining King Abdulaziz University, George worked for top tier financial institutions such Bank of Ireland, Barclays Plc and London Stock Exchange via accenture. His soft skills include team player, working well under pressure, cooperating successfully in short notice and usual plan changes environments.

Harris is a visionary strategy executive, author and speaker with 20 years of diverse industry exposure, highly skilled and experienced in international and multicultural business environments. Led and directed a plethora of large scale, complex project portfolios and programs (20 countries, up to $1.65 billion value and benefits of $178 million) in the field of Business & Digital transformations, PMOs and sustainable strategy implementation.

Due to his extensive expertise, Harris is a BoD Member and Chief Transformation Officer (CTO) of the PMO Global Alliance (PMOGA), BoD Member of the AIIA (Artificial Intelligence In Action) a Silicon Valley NPO, and an exclusive member of the PMI’s Thought Leadership Inner Circle.

Harris’s work often involves the integration of multiple strategy processes & tools taking into consideration diverse corporate environment factors, blended with change and risk management frameworks as well as, with global project management best practices (agile / lean). Harris has rich international experience which spans in various sectors: Government, Airlines/Aviation, Defence, Renewable Energy, IT/Telecoms, Smart Cities, Banking and Education.

As a multi-awarded leader in his field, Harris has delivered more than 35 keynote presentations at international conferences and has authored more than 15 academic papers and articles on subjects such as: Business & Digital Transformation, Strategy & PMO, Artificial Intelligence, Organisational Change & Risk Management.

In 2019 his teams won the 1st & 2nd place on the most valuable solutions: Change Management for COVID-19 Crisis & A Framework for Remote Working during Crisis respectively (PMOGA Hackathon).

He has also taken active part and been awarded for his outstanding performance in the world’s largest government transformation program (2018), the Saudi Vision 2030. In 2017 his major PhD work, was awarded as the Highly Commended paper by Emerald Literati Network Awards for Excellence.

Moreover, he has reviewed and contributed to the latest editions of PMI’s standards for Project (PMBOK® 6th ed. and 7th ed.) the Program Management (4th ed.) as well as, to the latest standard for Risk Management in Portfolios, Programs and Projects. In 2021 he published his first ebook: Digital Transformation, Performing while Transforming in the Digital Era (FLEKS ebooks series).

Former Fighter Pilot of the Brazilian Air Force, DSc in Computer Science and Systems Engineering. Professor, Consultant, Writer and Speaker. 25+ years experience in Project and Portfolio Management. Developer of widely used models such as the FLEKS Hybrid Model to manage projects and operations, and the Risk Mandala focused on Enterprise Risk Management. He has experience in consultancy in fields like Oil&Gas, Energy, Information Technology, and Engineering. As an MBA professor has already trained more than 15,000 professionals in the field of Project Management in many different Business Schools. Works as a reviewer of the Project Management Body of Knowledge and the Standard for Project, Program and Portfolio Risk Management, both from PMI. 

Dr. Ioannis Karamitsos (B.Sc., M.Sc., Ph.D.) has vast industry and research exposure over 30 years under a unique mix of academic research, industrial, and DOE lab R&D experience. Ioannis has worked both in the private and public sectors with European, Middle East, and Chinese companies.

From 2020 to the present, Ioannis has been appointed as a full-time Assistant Professor in Data Analytics at RIT University. From 2016 to 2020, Ioannis joined the Department of Electrical Engineering as an Adjunct Professor at Rochester Institute of Technology Dubai. Ioannis is also a member of the DSOA-Dubai Innovation Advisory Board and DTEC accelerator as a mentor.

His current research concerns telecommunication security systems and networks, post-quantum computing, cryptography, blockchain, AI, machine learning, next-generation cloud networks, Big Data and Analytics, Internet of Things (IoT), Software-defined networks (SDN), network modeling and performance analysis, Smart building services, and Smart Cities under the ICT and non-ICT convergence.

From 2010 to 2020, Ioannis was a Regional Digital Transformation Technologist- Blockchain Practice Lead at Orange Business Services in Dubai. As a blockchain practice lead, he collaborated with UAE public entities to conceptualize and implement blockchain and AI solutions, as well as define a complete end-to-end digital enablement roadmap.

He has conducted multiple digital innovation workshops, blockchain-smart contracts, and POCs to identify digital disruption and associated business and technology transformation approaches. He was appointed as a strategic advisor for developing the two smart cities in KSA, the Information Technology Complex (ITCC) and King Abdulaziz Financial Center (KAFD), and supported the strategy for developing a suite of smart city services.

As an avid learner, he also possesses executive certificates from Oxford Said Business School (Blockchain Strategy), MIT (Tackling the challenge of Big Data), and from Columbia Business School (Driving Strategic Impact Program).

Moreover, he is the author of a plethora of journal papers and book chapters; a member of IEEE since 1997, and he is serving as a reviewer in several engineering journals, and conferences.

Ioannis has several certifications such as CBH, CISCO/CCNA Data Center, CEH v.9, ISO27002, PRINCE2, COBIT 5.0, IBM Certified Infrastructure Cloud Solution, and IBM Cloud Computing Architecture, ITIL, TOGAF 9, and Scrum Master.

Last but not least, Ioannis holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Sunderland, UK, a Master’s degree in Telematics Management from the University of Danube Krems, Austria, and a Bachelor’s degree (Laurea) in Electronic Engineering from the University of Rome "La Sapienza", Italy.

Dr. Jassim Haji has management and executive experience in Aviation, Hospitality, Technology, and Telecommunications for over 30 years. He is an international expert, strategist, and researcher in Artificial Intelligence and Digital Transformation, plus President of Artificial Intelligence Group. He participated as a key speaker and chairman in over 200 technology conferences in the Middle East and Europe to cover the latest technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Computing, Big Data, Cyber Security, and Digital Transformation. He also published articles in relation to the above topics. Dr. Haji managed to achieve forty-three top Middle-Eastern technology awards, including 12 CIO distinguished awards. Furthermore, he has featured on 19 international technology and aviation magazines cover pages with over 80 interviews. Moreover, published four books in English and Arabic on Artificial Intelligence, Digital Transformation post-COVID-19, Technology Management, and Organization Culture and over 500 articles on technologies with international press and media in both English and Arabic languages. Dr. Haji received his Doctorate in Business Administration (Ph.D.) from the University of Northumbria at Newcastle, the UK in 2010. He has completed his Master's degree in Management of Information Technology from the University of Sunderland, UK, and graduated in telecommunications from the famed Cable and Wireless College, Cornwall, UK.

Mr. Joop Schefferlie, IPMA President / Director of IPMA Certification, the certification body of IPMA Netherlands / over 20 years of experience in building and changing complex organizations up to over 800 employees based on a clear vision and objectives.

Kartikeyan Ramamurthy has more than 20+ years of experience in Project, Program, Portfolio Management, and PMOs.

He is currently working in the role of Director-Strategy & Coordination at Amadeus Labs. He is a certified PMP, PfMP, PMO-CP, SAFe Agilist 5, DevOps Leader.

He is currently the India ambassador for PMO Global Alliance and also a member of the Board of Directors at PMI Bengaluru Chapter.

He is also an international correspondent for pmworldjournal.com (https://pmworldlibrary.net/kartikeyan-ramamurthy/) He is also interested and passionate about innovation and agility and has been involved in mentoring startups and corporate innovation programs.

Krikor Maroukian has been leading the service management consultancy for Microsoft Greece since 2015. Krikor is author of books by Axelos, ITIL®4 Managing Professional High-Velocity IT and Managing Cloud Services. He is also the International Representative of BoD IT Service Management Forum (itSMF) Greece, member of BoD British Computer Society (BCS) The Chartered Institute for IT - Hellenic Section and official judge of PMO Global Awards 2021. 

In the past, he has held project management and information security management positions. He helps organizations across industries, design and adopt cross-cultural and cross-functional, agile and lean service management approaches in EMEA region.

Krikor has delivered more than 30 keynote presentations in conferences globally and has been a member of organizing committees for more than 15 European conferences.

Krikor is also a researcher at Henley Business School, UK, holds a UK design patent and has authored academic papers on the topics of leadership, DevOps, project management and model-driven business process engineering. Krikor was awarded the Highly Commended paper in the 2017 Emerald Literati Network Awards for Excellence.

Maria Mac Andrew is a writer, social impact entrepreneur, and an artificial intelligence (AI) ethics, diversity, and inclusion advocate.

She believes in equal opportunity for all in AI, even those traditionally not included in STEM fields. Maria works hard as a champion for developing communities to ensure they are not shut out from participating in meaningful conversations about the future of AI, and they use technology to solve their unique challenges.

Maria has 16 years of experience in business development and social impact initiatives.

She is the founder of The Power Within World, teaching young people in developing communities to take responsibility and creatively find solutions for advancing themselves and their communities from within.

Currently, she serves on the AI Ethics Board as Head of Diversity and Communities and is the newly appointed COO at Adashe.

As part of the AI Ethics World team, Maria has worked hard to drive a culture of diversity, inclusion, and ethical considerations in AI leadership, ensuring beneficial partnerships between humans and machines.

She believes that if we hope to succeed with AI, we must consider AI's ethical implications and consequences on humans, societies, and cultures.

She also argues that the benefits of AI need to outweigh any potential adverse effects.

Dr. Corona is an experienced IT and ITSM professional, globally considered as one of the Top 25 Thought Leaders in Technology and Service Management, one of the IT Service Management Top 100 Influencers by international media and one of the biggest references in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics in Latin America.

He is an international senior consultant and speaker, he has delivered keynotes conferences in more than 20 countries around the world and helped dozens of organizations across the globe to enable their business models by using advanced technology.

In 2011, he founded BPGurus to provide cutting-edge and highly specialized digital transformation consulting and training services in Service Management, AI, Big Data, RPA, Bots, Machine Learning, Robotics, Cybersecurity and more.

He was appointed by Axelos® to be on the expert team to work on the latest ITIL update as an ITIL®4 Lead Architect co-authoring 3 international service management books.

In 2018, he was appointed by The Service Desk Institute®, with headquarters in London, UK, as a member of its board and as the global Chief of Transformation Officer. He is also a member of the ACIS IT board of directors, based in Dubai, UAE.

Experienced Board Chair and University Professor with a demonstrated history of working in both the for-profit and the non-for-profit organizations in the project management industry. Skilled in Project Management, Construction Management, Building Information Modeling and IT systems in Construction Industry. Strong researcher and professional with a PhD focused in Project Management from University of Zagreb. 

Othniel is the CEO of Adashe.io and champions research in other fields of science and technology, he also holds multiple patents in different fields of Engineering.

Tahirou Assane has over 20 years of experience in leadership roles, civil engineering, strategy, transformation, and project management. As Director of the Brightline Initiative, Tahirou oversees the activities under the three benefit pillars of thought and practice leadership, networking, and capability building. 

From 2013 to 2017, Tahirou worked as the deputy director of infrastructure and project management group in the United Nations Office for Project Services supporting the successful implementation of peace building, humanitarian, and development projects around the world.

Prior to the United Nations, Tahirou was a senior project manager with the Ministry of Transportation in Ontario where he provided technical capabilities and expertise to ensure excellence in the delivery of complex highway projects with multi-disciplinary teams

Through Brightline, Tahirou is a co-author of a report entitled, Blockchain-Driven Transformation (2021), and several articles in the Brightline/Thinkers50 books series The Transformation Playbook (2019), Transforming Beyond the Crisis (2020), and Perpetual Transformation (2022).

Tony Appleby is the managing director of the Project Strategy Consulting Group, specializing in organizational maturity and the delivery of strategic transformation. He has led engagements on six continents, partnering with executive and country leadership teams to achieve business objectives through improved operational capabilities and strategic performance management. He is also focused on expanding organizational project management process excellence to government agencies and nongovernmental organizations in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.

He is a member of numerous professional organizations and holds a variety of specialized credentials across multiple disciplines, including governance, audit controls and organizational development. He served ten years on the board of directors for a manufacturing concern and is an active member of the U.S.-based National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) and a Chartered Director and Fellow of the U.K.-based Institute of Directors (IoD). He is an experienced public speaker and has delivered presentations around the world on organizational project management and strategy execution best practices.

Prior to consulting, he spent over 20 years advancing his practical knowledge of project and change management across a variety of industries and disciplines. He has directly managed complex, global high-value projects in the healthcare, engineering, technology and research sectors.

Mr Appleby is also a long-time PMI volunteer, having served on the board and as president of the PMI San Francisco Bay Area Chapter. He has supported several global PMI committees and task forces over the past decade, including serving as a member of the PMI Ethics Member Advisory Group and four years as the PMI Region Mentor for Southwest North America.

Mr Appleby is a former military officer and holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in international business. He is passionate about volunteerism and has been helping nonprofit and professional communities since his youth.

Dr. Vahe Vardanyan is the Scientific Director of the research and development center for numerical intelligence and also an active member of the Artificial Intelligence team, leading various projects related to computer vision, computer graphics and social impacting ones.

He has about 10 years of experience in the industry, working in different game companies in Montreal in the past, creating interactive VR applications, games and museum expositions. In 2019-2020 as a post-doctoral researcher, he participated in a climate change awareness project (https://thisclimatedoesnotexist.com/) in the research group supervised by Prof. Yoshua Bengio, creating an AI-driven experience based on empathy, allowing users to imagine the environmental impacts of the current climate crisis, generating images of different climate catastrophes using Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs).

Now his main focus is AI research helping small companies and academic researchers, by bridging those two worlds together and bringing academic research to production.