Montreal’s data and technology community had plenty to talk about when CDO Magazine hosted its inaugural Executive Boardroom Dinner on October 27 at Monarque.

Executives representing banking, aviation, telecommunications, retail, manufacturing, and other industries exchanged experiences with AI adoption, data management, and the challenges of putting emerging technologies to work.

The dinner marked the launch of CDO Magazine’s local executive community in Montreal.

When AI Starts Making Decisions

As organizations explore ⁠agentic AI, the questions extend beyond what these systems can answer to what actions they can take.

The Montreal executives considered how organizations determine whether their data is ready to support increasingly autonomous AI, including what measures give them confidence in the information those systems rely on.

The questions also touched on ⁠AI governance and the risks organizations must consider as AI systems become more capable of acting independently.

Eduart Haruni, Air Canada Senior Manager, Data and AI, emphasized the importance of preparing people and business processes for this shift:

“It was a great venue and selected people. Great experiences and great view points . Few things discussed: Trust in the era of AI, Education in teh era of AI, automating with Agentic AI will shift teh workforce for good if we redesign the business processes for which we build Agentic automation, investing on people that would use AI for going distances: they will prevail”

Rahul Ranjan, Morgan Stanley Vice President Lead, Cybersecurity Engineering, reflected on the breadth of the exchange:

“It was such a fantastic event. Meeting all the industry leaders, learning about their experiences, and discussing current issues in tech made for a really great evening. We had very interesting conversations covering data, AI, security, and tech processes. The organization, venue, and smooth flow of conversations were all top-notch. I highly recommend these events for building and engaging the Montreal CDO community!”

Perspectives That Cross Industry Boundaries

Beyond the technology questions, participants valued the opportunity to hear how peers in other industries are approaching similar challenges.

Jean-Marc Zucco, Yoplait Liberté CIO, described the experience:

“Had a great evening connecting with peers, exchanging perspectives, and gaining insights from across industries. It’s always valuable to step outside your own environment, challenge your thinking through great conversation and bring new ideas back to your own context.”

For Beverly Wilks, Bell Senior Product Marketing Manager, hearing different approaches to AI was a particular highlight:

“It was refreshing to hear different perspectives, share ideas, and learn how other executives are approaching AI across a variety of industries. Thank you for bringing everyone together for such an engaging evening and a wonderful dinner!”

Cristian Ruiz, Agropur Senior Enterprise & Solution Architect, Enterprise Integration, also appreciated the range of perspectives represented around the table:

“A shared curiosity about AI, data and what lies ahead set the stage for a wonderful evening of conversation.

Around the table, perspectives from food and dairy, aviation, technology, financial services, fashion retail and telecommunications brought richness to the discussion. People shared their experiences, their know-how and the questions they were still working through. There was room for curiosity, different viewpoints and the pleasure of getting to know the people behind the roles.”

Building Montreal’s Executive Community

For CDO Magazine, the dinner was an opportunity to establish relationships among leaders who may work in different industries but face many of the same questions about data, AI, and technology.

Tauseef Khan, Air Canada Manager, Data & AI, welcomed the opportunity to build those connections:

“Thank you, Gerri! It was a wonderful evening and a great way to bring Montréal’s data and technology leaders together. I really enjoyed the engaging conversations, diverse perspectives, and the opportunity to connect with such a great group of people. Looking forward to seeing this community grow!”

Gerri Caveness, CDO Magazine Global Community Director, reflected on what made the inaugural gathering memorable:

“I’ve always believed that the magic of a great executive community isn’t measured by how many people are in the room. It’s about WHO is in the room, what they bring to the table, and what happens when the conversation takes on a life of its own. I came to Montreal hoping to start something special. I left knowing we DID.”

Data, AI and Technology Leaders Who Joined the Montreal Conversation:

• Francis Beaulieu, National Bank of Canada Chief Advisor, IT – Financial Crime Surveillance
• Nicko Bernier, Rogers Communications Director, Data Strategy & Analytics
• Valentin de Dianous, Groupe Dynamite Senior Technology Director, Digital
• Eduart Haruni, Air Canada Senior Manager, Data and AI
• Omar Kettab, Pelican International Vice President, IT and Business Transformation
• Tauseef Khan, Air Canada Manager, Data & AI
• Kelsey Pericak, Groupe Dynamite Senior Director, Data, Analytics & AI
• Rahul Ranjan, Morgan Stanley Vice President, Cybersecurity Engineering
• Cristian Ruiz, Agropur Senior Enterprise & Solution Architect, Enterprise Integration
• Beverly Wilks, Bell Senior Product Marketing Manager
• Jean-Marc Zucco, Yoplait Liberté CIO
• Pascal Binette, Salesforce Lead Client Solutions Engineer
• Anton Deinekin, Salesforce Director, Solution Engineering
• Nazem Meleka, Salesforce Regional Vice President, Sales
• Gerri Caveness, CDO Magazine Global Community Director
• Anthony Losanno, CDO Magazine Managing Director

CDO Magazine thanks Informatica and MuleSoft from Salesforce for supporting the inaugural Montreal Executive Boardroom Dinner and helping bring the executive community together.