CIONET, a global professional org for senior IT pros, is expanding to the Philly region

A global professional development and networking organization for senior IT and digital executives is expanding to North America and setting up shop in three U.S. regions, including Philadelphia.

CIONET, which was founded in Belgium in 2005, aims to connect tech leaders from around the world for peer-to-peer connection, events and programing. Its current membership is around 9,000 technologists from across Europe, Latin America and Australia, and plans to expand in Canada, Philadelphia, Atlanta and South Florida.

The Philadelphia chapter of the organization, active as of Sept. 1, is run by Amy McIlvaine, a Bucks County native who said she plans to aggressively recruit executives in the area. Her role includes cultivating partnerships, leading the region’s community and business development and developing the TRIBES program.

“One of unique things was Philadelphia’s energy in terms of IT vision and its positioning,” McIlvaine said of the decision for the org to expand to the region. “It’s fresh and Philadelphia is hungry to expand on the vision they’ve laid out.”

She estimates that there’s about 5,000 senior IT executives or direct reports in the region. Membership to the organization is free, as is attending events and using the company’s app to stay connected to others. McIlvaine will also run the TRIBES program for the region, which brings together 10 noncompeting business leaders or IT execs for problem-solving purposes. The TRIBE program is a fee-based service, and McIlvaine expects to have the first cohort up and running by January 2021.

“In a perfect world, I’d love to see all 5,000 of Philadelphia’s IT executives join CIONET,” McIlvaine said.

Membership is decided by four main criteria: that the member be a CIO at an organization or within an IT department with a headcount of 20 or more technology professionals, or be a direct report to a CIO in an organization with an IT department with a headcount of 200 or more. Members may also be a college or university professor with research in information technology or computer science, or be a managing director of a business or technology partners of CIONET.

“With the current pandemic, there has never been a time when so many digital and IT leaders are tackling the same challenges at the same time,” Mark Zawacki, U.S. and Canada CEO of CIONET said in a statement. “The surge in activity within our community and on our platform illustrates the profound need to bring CIONET to the U.S. and Canada.”

US & CAN CIOs/digital leaders: we have some big news coming for you next week. Check out a preview:#CIO #DigitalLeadership #Transformation pic.twitter.com/jqVaj2XmZD

— CIONET (@CIONET) August 28, 2020