Tech Sourcing Agenda -26

2026 AGENDA

pre-event Pins & Pints

Monday, November 9

Bowl, Bites & Bevs – join us for a relaxed pre-event get-together with bowling, food, drinks and good company at: Lucky Strike

It’s your first chance to connect, unwind, and set the tone for an epic conference ahead.

TECH SOURCING DAY 1

Tuesday, November 10

Day 1 Agenda

Day 2 Agenda

Day 1

Registration, Breakfast & Networking

Day 1 – Main Stage

Welcome to Technology Sourcing Summit 2026

Jon Winsett, CEO, NPI

Day 1 – Main Stage

What’s Driving IT Strategy in 2026/7

A rapid-fire look at what’s shaping today’s enterprise tech landscape—vendor tactics, supplier consolidation, software renewals, and the AI-outsourcing storm ahead. Backed by new benchmark data, we’ll uncover surprising truths and give you the intel to stay one step ahead

Jon Winsett, CEO, NPI

Day 1 – Main Stage

Digital Transformation Blueprint: Infrastructure, Intelligence and Influence Or Is Your Architecture Ready for AI?

This session will examine the sequence required to build a modern direct procurement function: data quality, supplier and material visibility, system integration, process discipline, analytics, AI-enabled decision support, and stronger influence across supply chain, finance, operations, product and commercial planning

Shashi Mandapaty, Former CPO, J&J

Day 1 – Main Stage

Interviews: What Good Looks Like: The AI Performance Advantage in Procurement

• Practitioner case studies showing where technology is improving sourcing, supplier performance, risk visibility, supplier collaboration and everyday productivity

• What we automated first: practical use cases procurement can steal

• What does it truly mean to build, host, and operate an AI solution, and what technical, security, and governance considerations should procurement understand?

• How can organizations assess AI vendors and startups, including their security certifications, data practices, compliance controls, and long-term viability?

• What governance frameworks are needed to manage privacy, auditability, GDPR, SOC 2, ISO compliance, and responsible AI use across both purchased and internally developed tools?

• How should procurement approach AI commercial models, including usage-based pricing, API consumption, subscriptions, and enterprise licensing agreements?

• How can procurement collaborate more effectively with engineering, security, IT, and data teams to develop the knowledge required to evaluate, negotiate, and govern AI solutions with confidence?

Krishna Kaza, VP / Director – IT Sourcing, Vendor & Asset Management Office, Conduent

Day 1 – Lakeview Terrace

Coffee Break & Expo

+Sponsor Demos on Expo Floor

Get up close with the latest innovations from our event sponsors! On the Expo Floor you can join live, hands-on demos, and have peer group conversations with the teams behind the tools shaping the future of procurement. Whether you’re scouting new solutions or just curious, it’s your chance to explore, ask questions, and see cutting-edge tech in action.

Day 1 – Lakeview Terrace

Roundtable Sessions

1. Tips And Tricks on How to Avoid, Negotiate and Push Back on YOY Standard Tech Increases

Mike Rossi, Director of Procurement, Hub International

2. How to Negotiate Out of Shelfware or Underutilized Licenses

3. Understanding AI Token Pricing, Forecasting Demand, and Avoiding Costly Mistakes

4. The Impact of AI on Strategic Outsourcing & Staff Augmentation

5. Negotiating Terms – Best Practices and Specific Clauses for Contracting with Emerging AI Providers

Nathan Quinn, Director of Sourcing, Robinhood

6. Saas Spend Changes: How AI Adoption Is Forcing Renegotiations or Changes in Standard Saas Consumption Models

Freya Hurwitz, Director of Procurement, Tripadvisor

7. Skills Required by Procurement Professionals in the New World Of AI

Sanyam Khurana, Director, Indirect Procurement, Cineplex

8. The Future of Leadership: Leading Across Generations in the Age of AI

Dr Charlotte de Brabandt, Chair, ISM Thought Leadership Council

9. Evaluating Software – How Are People Doing This?

Charles Krukiel, Director of Strategic Sourcing I Engineering & Technology, Allspring Global Investments

10. How To Negotiate an Agreement with an AI Provider Given the Difficulty in Measuring Usage and Rapidly Changing Pricing, Structures and Players

Aashish Patel, Director, Procurement – Risk Management, Operations and Projects, Grant Thornton

11. Modern Contract Management Strategies for Technology Procurement

Pratik Patel, Director – Category Management – Labor/North America Technology Spend, Mastercard

12. RFPs Reimagined: Designing Faster, Smarter, and More Effective Sourcing Processes

13. Supplier Intake Programs

Dave Quillin, Head of Procurement, Alliant Credit Union

14. Managing Complex Workflows

15. Data at Your Fingertips: Creating a Future-Ready Procurement Function

Syed Naqvi, Senior Manager Procurement Data and Technology, Hershey’s

Day 1 – Main Stage

Keynote: Using AI to Reduce Friction and Rebuild Internal Harmony

In this 30-minute keynote, Mark Raffan explores a growing organizational tension: as teams over rely on AI for communication, decision-making, and productivity, they can unintentionally create more internal conflict, misalignment, and interpersonal friction. The session will examine why AI, when used carelessly, can amplify misunderstandings, erode trust, and make collaboration feel colder or more transactional. From there, Mark will shift to a practical framework for using AI the right way: not as a replacement for human judgment and healthy dialog, but as a tool to support clarity, empathy, and smoother collaboration across teams. Attendees will hear actionable ways to use AI to reduce internal friction, improve communication, surface issues earlier, and create more harmony inside the organization without losing the human relationships that make great teams work.

Mark Raffan, Founder, Negotiations Ninja

Day 1 – Lakeview Terrace

Lunch

Day 1 – Lakeview Terrace

Delegates Break into Peer Working Groups

PEER GROUP A: Workshop: Reinventing the Playbook Around AI Licensing and Total Cost of Ownership

PEER GROUP B: Workshop: AI on Paper: Negotiation Leverage in the AI Contract Landscape

PEER GROUP C: Workshop: How will Procurement Leadership Evolve in an AI-Enabled Organization?

PEER GROUP D: Confessions of a Software Auditor Tres Larsen, Vice President of Advisory Services, NPI (p)

Day 1 – Lakeview Terrace

Delegates Break into Peer Working Groups

PEER GROUP E: Panel Discussion: Turning Procurement from a Cost Centre to a Profit Centre

PEER GROUP F: Workshop: Best Practices for Navigating Global Compliance and Data Privacy in Sourcing

PEER GROUP G - Panel Discussion: Negotiating Consumption-Based and Hybrid Contracts

PEER GROUP H: Managing Your AI Solutions in a Private Workspace

Day 1 – Lakeview Terrace

Coffee Break & Expo

+Sponsor Demos on Expo Floor

Day 1 – Main Stage

AI as an Amplifier: Why Procurement Needs Better Processes Before Better Tools

This conversation would explore why AI cannot compensate for poor process design. Scott’s central point is that AI will accelerate and amplify existing workflows, which means organizations must address bottlenecks, governance and human decision-making before expecting meaningful ROI. For procurement leaders, this creates a timely discussion around operating models, sourcing workflows and decision rights.

Key points to draw out:

AI does not automatically fix dysfunction.
Automating a poor process can make the problem worse.
AI shifts bottlenecks rather than removing them.
The human judgment point often becomes the new constraint.
Procurement teams need to redesign workflows around trust, control and decision-making.

Scott Weiner, AI Lead, Fractional CTO, Fractional Chief AI Officer, Business Agility Strategist, NeuEon

Day 1 – Main Stage

Panel Discussion: How Technology Sourcing Becomes a Strategic Function Rather Than a Purchasing Function

How sourcing teams can influence tech roadmaps, supplier ecosystems, commercial models, risk, value creation, innovation, and business outcomes — not just negotiate SaaS renewals or run RFPs.

Aligning sourcing decisions with business strategy, IT architecture, security, data, and transformation priorities
Deciding when to consolidate, replace, renew, co-source, or build technology
Moving from “lowest cost” to total value: adoption, scalability, resilience, supplier innovation, risk, and commercial flexibility
Managing SaaS sprawl, AI/vendor hype, licensing complexity, and supplier lock-in
Building stronger partnerships with CIOs, CISOs, finance, legal, and business owners
Using market intelligence and category strategy to shape demand before a buying decision is already made
Talking Tech Sourcing

Bob Mango, Enterprise Account Executive, IDC

Dr Charlotte de Brabandt, Chair, ISM Thought Leadership Council

Day 1 – Main Stage

Panel Discussion: Change Management in the Age of AI: Leading Transformation Across Generations

In any transformation—especially AI—change management isn’t just important; it’s the #1 determinant of success. You can have the right tools and strategy, but without adoption, you don’t make progress. We’re at a unique moment where workforce demographics are shifting rapidly. You have digitally native and increasingly AI-native talent entering the workforce, while more traditional generations are beginning to phase out. That creates both opportunity and tension in how change is received and adopted. It’s not one-size-fits-all; it’s segmented, intentional, and empathy-driven. The goal is to create confidence and momentum across the entire organization—not just early adopters. The organizations that win won’t just have the best technology—they’ll have the most effective, inclusive, and adaptive change strategies.

What does effective change management look like in an AI-driven transformation?
How do you drive adoption across generational divides?
What lessons can we learn from organizations at different stages of digital maturity?
Change management strategies and how to secure buy-in across a company and its stakeholders, specifically with the added factor of AI integration
How do we retain the human touch?

Moderator: Omer Abdullah, Founder, Proquria

DJ Beckett, Digital Procurement Associate Director, Invesco

Amanda Prochaska, Founder & Chief Wonder Officer, Wonder Services

Sandeep Dhar, Senior Director- Center Global Category Management Leader (Supply Chain Procurement), Johnson & Johnson

Day 1 – Main Stage

WRAP UP OF DAY 1

Jon Winsett, CEO, NPI

Day 1 – Lakeview Terrace

Join your peers for end of day drinks on the Lakeview Terrace

TECH SOURCING DAY 2

Wednesday November 11

Day 1 Agenda

Day 2 Agenda

Day 2 – Lakeview Terrace

Coffee & Breakfast

Day 2

BREAKFAST MASTERCLASSES

Lakeview Terrace

ProcureTech Stack Rationalization: Doing More with Less

Organizations are reassessing every tool in their stack and questioning whether point solutions still justify their cost. This session explores how procurement teams can rationalize their ecosystems, leverage AI to automate previously manual activities, and prioritize platforms that integrate seamlessly with enterprise systems to deliver greater efficiency and value.
Identify opportunities to simplify and rationalize your procuretech stack by assessing which tools can be consolidated, automated, or replaced by AI.
Understand how AI agents and prompts can reduce manual, repetitive activities and free up budget for higher-value investments.
Learn how to prioritize integration and interoperability, ensuring procurement platforms connect seamlessly with ERP systems and minimize administrative burden.

Are You Agent-Ready? A Practical Readiness Test for Autonomous Procurement

AI agents are increasingly being positioned as a solution for managing renewals, low-value transactions, and routine procurement activities. However, before organizations hand decision-making authority to an agent, they must assess whether their underlying data, processes, governance, and stakeholder information are reliable enough to support automation. This session explores the practical realities of deploying procurement agents, providing a readiness framework to help organizations evaluate whether they are prepared to trust AI with commercial decisions and ongoing supplier management.
Assess organizational readiness by evaluating data quality, contract integrity, stakeholder ownership, supplier information accuracy, and process maturity before deploying an AI agent.
Understand the risks and limitations of procurement agents, including handling changing supplier contacts, contract exceptions, seat adjustments, renewals, and evolving business requirements.
Define the governance model for agent management, including monitoring, accountability, escalation paths, and the respective roles of Procurement, IT, Legal, and business stakeholders.
Explore the emerging landscape of procurement agents, including how leading organizations are designing, integrating, and governing agents that execute complex workflows such as invoice coding, PO closeout management, invoice discrepancy resolution, change order processing, and supplier interactions across multiple systems.

Who Owns AI Spend? Governance, Budget Control and Negotiation Leverage in the AI Era

AI adoption is accelerating faster than most organizations can govern it. New tools are being purchased across business units, AI premiums are appearing in software renewals, and ownership of budgets is often fragmented across Procurement, Finance, IT, and business stakeholders. This session explores how leading organizations are establishing governance frameworks for AI investments, evaluating whether AI-related costs deliver genuine value, and creating commercial leverage in negotiations with vendors. Through real-world examples and market insights, attendees will learn how to move beyond traditional procurement models and take a more strategic approach to managing AI spend.
Establish effective governance models for AI investments by defining ownership, decision rights, approval processes, and collaboration between Procurement, Finance, IT, Legal, and business stakeholders.
Develop frameworks for evaluating AI premiums, consumption-based pricing, and vendor claims to determine whether additional AI costs are justified by measurable business outcomes.
Learn practical negotiation tactics and leverage-building strategies from both market experts and practitioners to improve commercial outcomes in AI sourcing and renewal discussions.

Day 2 – Main Stage

9:00 AM

Welcome to Day Two

Recap of key learnings from day one and what’s coming up on day two
Summit Chair: Jon Winsett, CEO, NPI

Day 2 – Main Stage

9:10 AM

The Procurement Perception Gap: What It Is and How to Close It

Most procurement leaders can tell you their savings number. Fewer can tell you, at least accurately, how their stakeholders would rate the service provided. There is often a gap, between how procurement sees itself and how the business experiences it. This session breaks down the real signals of a high-performing procurement function, and how access to the right intelligence can help your team level up.
Moving past savings as the only scorecard: data and insights form the foundation for solving business problems.
How Procurement can develop/strengthen a rapport with new/existing business stakeholders (internal side & supplier side).
Defining the future-ready tech procurement professional and the skills they need.
Enabling teams to move from reactive execution to proactive decision-making.
Michael Shields, Vice President of Procurement, Tropic

Day 2 – Main Stage

9:40 AM

Fireside Chat: How Key Stakeholders Are Working on the AI Agenda Together

Day 2 – Main Stage

10:10 AM

The Role of CPO In Driving AI Transformation

Natasha Gurevich, Founder & CEO, Candor Procurement; Former Global CPO, Nike

Day 1 – Main Stage

10:35 AM

Debate: “Build and Buy”

The term “build” is not well defined and the debate is stuck. When people hear “build,” they picture custom code, hired developers, owned infrastructure. That’s not what’s happening anymore. Modern building is configuring the Jira or ServiceNow you already pay for, wiring workflows through an orchestrator, pulling an AI model via API. Do procurement professionals use the various AI tools to build their own agents, etc., or do they buy from a provider who offers various solutions that can be deployed? There’s obviously a financial consideration with build vs buy, but there are also resource constraints, IT and privacy considerations, as well as speed to solution.
Moderator: Nikhil Gaur, Director of Strategic Projects & Research Analyst, Spend Matters
Sheri Spinks, Head of Procurement, Geotab

Day 2

11:45 AM

Coffee Break

Lakeview Terrace

Day 2 – Main Stage

12:15 PM

LIVE DEMOS

Day 2

12:30 PM

Roundtable Discussion Groups

How AI/ML Is Reshaping Talent Acquisition Strategies
Geoff Saccoccia, Director, Healthcare Operations, Enterprise Procurement, Centene Corp
Driving Cost Control and Value Realization in Technology Spend
Carla Wosoba, IT Category Manager | Indirect Procurement, Jack in the Box
AI Licensing Direct Versus Multi-Model Platforms- Know the Limitations
Dominic Battiston, Senior Director, Procurement, InfuSystem
Value Added Reseller Change Management – How to Transition Ordering Smoothly and Work Through Incumbent Pricing
How Is Agentic AI Going to Challenge the Status Quo of Procurement and Procurement Technologies?
Challenges With Hiring Talent for IT Procurement
Susan Patrick Harris, Vice President Procurement, R1 RCM
Reshoring Work
Building a Business Case for AI When Budgets Are Tight
From Pilot to Scale: Building and Deploying Agentic AI Across the Enterprise
Brian Weinblatt, VP, Business Technology and Transformation, Movable Ink
Reinventing Category Strategy: Staying Ahead in a Faster, More Complex Technology Market
AI Readiness – Checklist in Place Before Deploying Agents in the Business
How and When to Engage Your Legal Team to Optimize Your Procurement Process
Sarah Alexander, Vice President, Board Secretariat, Office of the President, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan
Saas Contracts – Negotiation Tips and Tales from the Trenches
Benny Perez, Manager, Strategic Sourcing – IT, Travel + Leisure Co
Procurement Orchestration 2.0: Rethinking Stakeholder Engagement Through AI

Day 2

1:00 PM

Lunch

Lakeview Terrace

Day 2 –

1:45 PM

Delegates Break out into Peer Working Groups

Lakeview Terrace

PEER GROUP A: Workshop: Mastering Technology Contracts: Negotiating DPAs, MSAs, SLAs and BAAs in the AI Era

As technology ecosystems become increasingly complex, procurement and sourcing professionals must navigate a growing range of contractual agreements beyond the traditional MSA. This session explores the key provisions within Data Processing Agreements (DPAs), Master Service Agreements (MSAs), Service Level Agreements (SLAs), and Business Associate Agreements (BAAs), helping practitioners understand where commercial, legal, and operational risks often reside. The discussion will also examine how AI-powered tools can support contract analysis, identify risk exposures, and strengthen negotiation strategies.
Identify the most critical clauses across DPAs, MSAs, SLAs, and BAAs, including liability, indemnification, security obligations, data privacy, and breach management.
Develop practical negotiation strategies to reduce contractual risk while protecting business, compliance, and operational objectives.
Understand how AI can accelerate contract reviews, surface hidden risks, benchmark clauses, and provide data-driven insights during negotiations.
David W. Tollen, Trainer & Founder, Tech Contracts Academy

PEER GROUP B: Panel Discussion: Vendor Management - Building Strategic Partnerships and Driving Value

As supplier ecosystems become more complex and business expectations continue to rise, vendor management is evolving into a strategic capability that goes far beyond contract administration and performance tracking. Procurement leaders must build stronger partnerships, improve governance, and ensure suppliers deliver measurable business value. This session will explore practical approaches to strengthening supplier relationships, enhancing accountability, and positioning vendor management as a driver of business performance and innovation.
How to build stronger, more collaborative relationships with suppliers to drive long-term value and innovation.
Best practices for managing vendor performance, governance, and accountability across the supplier lifecycle.
How to shift vendor management from a transactional activity to a strategic function that supports business objectives and stakeholder success.
Nick Henrichs, Procurement Manager, Hub International
Michael Martin, Senior IT Procurement Analyst, HUB International
Dominic Battiston, Senior Director, Procurement, InfuSystem
Ankur Taneja, Director - Strategic Sourcing & Procurement, Cognizant

PEER GROUP C: Workshop: Building an Agentic Force: How Dell Is Reimagining Work from the Inside Out

Dell Technologies is all in on agentic AI. Not just as the infrastructure powering it, but as the operating model it runs on. In this session, Amer Chowdhry explores how Dell is reimagining business processes across professional services, partner management, and finance, moving from manual, human-driven workflows to agentic execution at scale. A candid look at what it actually means to transform from one of the world's largest technology companies.
Amer Chowdhry, Senior Director, Digital Transformation & Technology, Dell Technologies

Day 2 –

2:30 PM

Delegates Break out into Peer Working Groups

Lakeview Terrace

PEER GROUP D: Panel Discussion: AI Point Solutions vs Copilot, ChatGPT and Claude: Is the Premium Worth It?

As organizations increasingly adopt general-purpose AI tools such as Copilot, ChatGPT, and Claude, procurement leaders are questioning whether the growing number of AI-native sourcing and procurement solutions deliver enough incremental value to justify their additional cost. This session moves beyond vendor marketing claims to examine real-world experiences from practitioners who have evaluated, implemented, and measured both approaches. Attendees will gain practical insights into where general AI tools are sufficient, where specialized solutions create meaningful differentiation, and how to make smarter investment decisions in a crowded AI marketplace.
Evaluate when general-purpose AI tools can effectively support sourcing and procurement activities, and where specialized point solutions provide additional value.
Understand the use cases, capabilities, and limitations of both approaches across the Source-to-Contract lifecycle, including research, negotiations, contract review, and supplier management.
Learn how organizations have assessed ROI, built business cases, and validated whether AI point solutions delivered benefits that could not be achieved with general AI tools alone.
Develop a framework for selecting, testing, and governing AI investments to balance innovation, cost, productivity gains, and long-term value.
Moderator: Kartik Pattisam, Procurement Strategy, Stripe
Andy Mayer, Director, IT Sourcing and Vendor Management, Post Holdings
Chris Sawchuck, Principal and Global Procurement Advisory Practice Leader, The Hackett Group

PEER GROUP E: Panel Discussion: Navigating the Future of SaaS: Consumption-Based Licensing and AI Contract Negotiation

As AI reshapes the software landscape, SaaS providers are rapidly shifting from traditional seat-based licensing to consumption-based pricing models driven by tokens, usage, and outcomes. At the same time, organizations must reconsider long-term software investments as AI-powered tools and internally developed solutions increasingly challenge conventional SaaS platforms. This session explores how procurement and technology leaders can adapt their negotiation strategies, manage cost predictability, and make smarter renewal decisions in an evolving AI-driven market.
How can organizations effectively negotiate consumption-based and token-driven pricing models while maintaining cost control and predictability?
What contractual protections and commercial terms should be prioritized in AI and usage-based software agreements?
How should procurement teams evaluate SaaS renewals when AI-native solutions or internally built tools may become viable alternatives?
What strategies can organizations use to balance innovation, flexibility, and long-term value as the software market continues to evolve?
The underlying cost of SaaS and how to negotiate around it.
Oscar Fernández, Founder, Procrewment
Joanna Marks, IT Category Manager, The Co-operators
Rebekah Brouwer, Strategic Sourcing Manager, Coinbase

PEER GROUP F: Career Management Workshop – What Companies Look for in C-Level Executives

In this workshop, attendees will learn what companies truly look for in senior and C-level leaders, from the must-have mix of expertise, experience, and career progression to the leadership traits that signal long-term executive potential. The session also covers how to strengthen executive presence, shape a compelling personal brand, and build the candidate materials that matter most, including bios, LinkedIn profiles, and resumes. Participants will leave with practical insight into how to position themselves more strategically, get noticed by recruiters and headhunters, and navigate offer conversations with greater confidence.
Carlos Garcia, Executive Coach & Partner, ECB STAR Group

Day 2 – Main Stage

3:30 PM

Close of Technology Sourcing 2025

Summit Chair: Jon Winsett, CEO, NPI

REGISTER NOW

Testimonials

WHAT DO PAST ATTENDEES THINK OF THE EVENT?

"It was an awesome gathering. Never been around so many IT Procurement Professionals from the buy side that shared best practices."

"What a great opportunity to meet, engage, and learn both from and with Procurement colleagues from a wide range of backgrounds!"

"An exceptionally valuable event; speakers and breakout sessions were exceptional and the hallway conversations alone were worth multiples of the cost."

"It was an amazing conference and I’ve already been able to successfully put some of the negotiation tips and tricks into use. Thank you!"

"The concentration of specialized expertise and experience was overwhelming, so much to learn from those in the room. I can’t wait to dive in again next year!"

Speaking Inquiries
claire.barnes@konnecthouse.com

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sophie.lumley@konnecthouse.com

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