According to recent IDC studies, line-of-business executives are increasingly aware of the importance of innovation and the key role of IT as its main enabler.
"Innovation is a very fuzzy word," said Frank Gens, senior vice president, Research, IDC, and one of the keynote speakers at the forum. "It can mean many things to many people. In a connected and ever-shrinking world, characterized by increased globalization, the forum aims to analyze the reasons why innovation is becoming the most essential ingredient for future growth and to identify the factors that allow an effective innovative business process."
Other keynote speakers include Chris Anderson, author of "The Long Tail"; Alex Kazim, senior vice president, products, Skype; Jeff Sampler, professor of strategy and technology, Oxford University; Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia; John Gantz, chief research officer, IDC; and the top management of the following sponsor companies: AMD, HP, Intel Corporation, Siemens Communications, and Xerox Global Services.
Members of the expert committee formed by senior executives from IDC and its parent company IDG will present the IDC EMEA 2006 Award for ICT Innovation and Business Transformation at the forum. The award recognizes European organizations that have proved excellence in using information and communication technology as a tool for innovation and/or business transformation. The committee will nominate projects carried out or implemented in an organization outside the ICT industry, operating in the EMEA market, that has substantially improved its competitiveness and business results by applying ICT to product and/or process innovation, with the ability to prove measurable and sustainable results in terms of added value, efficiency, or cost savings.
For more information about IDC's 16th annual European IT Forum, please visit http://www.idc.com/....