A Night of Insight, Leadership, and AI-Ready Vision
The SPARK Year-End C-Level Community Networking Cocktail brought together senior technology, digital, and business leaders for an evening of insight, reflection, and forward-looking conversations. Held in an intimate setting, the event marked a meaningful close to 2025, a year defined by rapid shifts in AI, cloud economics, and enterprise transformation.
A Practitioner Panel Grounded in Real-World Leadership
Our practitioner panel Bernard Chew (Group CIO, NETS Group), Dr. Deny Rahardjo (Group Chief Information & Digital Officer, Sime Darby Berhad), Matt Pinter (Field CTO, Apptio, an IBM Company), and Zahid Arain (General Manager, Asia-Pacific, TBM Council) delivered a candid and insightful discussion on how organisations can unlock IT value, strengthen cost discipline, and prepare for AI-ready transformation.
Moderated by David Chin, CEO of SPARK, the panel highlighted several critical imperatives for leaders in 2026:
- Strengthening FinOps maturity to enable smarter resource allocation
- Rethinking technology investment strategies amid new AI-driven demands
- Designing operating models capable of supporting agentic workloads
- Implementing governance frameworks that transform cost optimisation into long-term enterprise value
These perspectives provided clarity on what it truly means for enterprises to evolve in an era where AI is no longer a capability but an operating reality.
Tech Partner Insights: Apptio & Cloudec
SPARK extends its appreciation to our technology partners Apptio and Cloudec, whose contributions grounded the evening in practical, actionable guidance.
- Apptio brought forward key insights on financial transparency, IT value realisation, and the leadership mindset needed for technology investment stewardship.
- Cloudec delivered high-impact perspectives on FinOps maturity, cloud optimisation, tagging governance, and proactive cost management across complex multi-cloud environments.
Together, these sessions offered a clear view of how organisations can build disciplined, data-driven foundations for AI-scale architectures.
Looking Ahead: SPARK’s 2026 Focus
As we enter 2026, SPARK will continue shaping the conversations and community learning around some of the most critical areas for modern enterprises:
- AI for Future Cities & Human Vitality
- Modernising Core IT for the AI Enterprise
- Intelligent & Immersive Digital Interfaces
- Board Readiness for the Big AI Shift
- Transformation 2.0 in Public Digital Services
Our journey next year will also take SPARK deeper into global innovation ecosystems beginning with the upcoming SPARK Study Trip to London. This programme will explore the UK’s Golden Triangle of deeptech research, industrial transformation, and national-scale AI strategy, offering leaders a firsthand view of the future of intelligence-driven economies.
A Final Note of Appreciation
Thank you to our speakers, partners, and the SPARK community for your trust, collaboration, and leadership throughout 2025.
We look forward to a bold, intelligent, and transformative year ahead.
Here’s to 2026.
