Introducing EDGE 2023
- 28 March, 2023 09:00
ARN and Reseller News are proud to launch EDGE 2023, the leading technology outsourcing conference for business leaders in Australia and New Zealand, built on the foundations of collaboration, education and advancement.
Set for 29 July - 2 August 2023 at Novotel Sunshine Coast Resort, attendance at EDGE 2023 is by invitation only, limited to 380 decision-makers shaping the technology outsourcing landscape on both sides of the Tasman.
New Zealand-based delegates will arrive on Saturday 29 July, kicking off with an informal evening welcome followed by a dedicated Kiwi track featuring tailored research and interactive sessions on Sunday morning, before moving into the full conference agenda. All attendees will depart on Wednesday 2 August.
Such high calibre of attendance is the catalyst for a four-day destination event designed to provide business coaching at an executive-level, targeting seasoned leaders to aspiring entrepreneurs.
The market is saturated with conventional conferences following traditional rules of engagement – stock-standard content, heavy technology pitches and irrelevant delegate interactions – delivering predictable insights with no actionable takeaways or outcomes.
In an industry fixated on the why, EDGE 2023 will focus on the how, offering step-by-step guidance around the latest technology trends, solution monetisation, business growth and customer acquisition.
From an audience standpoint, EDGE 2023 is not a conference to meet end-user customers and by design, does not accept CIO, CTO, CISO or CDO attendance.
Why? Because EDGE 2023 is a commercial forum built for outsourcers, playing host to the most influential business leaders in technology, reflective of a diverse, innovative and expanding partner ecosystem.
Mirroring the market, this event will bring together emerging and established technology players, spanning large-scale business consultants, service providers and system integrators, to bleeding edge start-ups, cloud specialists and boutique agencies.
Such an approach creates a unique environment in which extreme partner types can come together for an industry sales kick-off shaped by objective analysis and lucrative outsourcing takeaways.
Plans are now underway shaping an editorial narrative built around the theme of Achieving Growth: Economic, Strategic and Resilience.
This will be underpinned by EDGE Research, housing in-depth end-user and partner analysis across Australia and New Zealand, uniquely delivered in partnership with Tech Research Asia.
Achieving Growth: Economic, Strategic and Resilience
As the market navigates a precarious business climate, including supply chain issues, evolving compliance regulations and economic turbulence, the channel looks set for a challenging year.
Preparing to protect your business against these market shocks, while capturing customer opportunities will be the key to mastering resilience.
Although the technology sector excelled during the pandemic years, the months ahead will test smart business decisions -- both economically and strategically -- as the industry seeks out opportunities and market growth.
With new technologies such as artificial intelligence, an evolving cyber threat landscape, compliance and regulation flooding the technology industry at pace, partners must prioritise solutions aligned to internal capacity and end-user demand, while also exploring viable strategies and practical methods to achieve scale.
EDGE 2023 will aim to nut out the challenges facing the technology ecosystem – converting questions into answers, ideas into game-plans and deals to be done. All while focusing on the technologies and business trends that are front of mind for customers looking into spending plans, pain points, and outcomes organisations are seeking.
Economic:
Thought leadership and insights that help navigate difficult economic headwinds while also prioritising smart areas to invest and drive profit. This will focus on the value of building out specialised practice areas while also maintaining cost strategies and the added pressure of competitive salaries. Attendees will be able to unpack where to invest; what are the right technologies that are matching with strategic customer demands while giving partners a competitive edge in the market.
- How the volatility of the market will shape areas of investment
- What are customers looking for in 2023 and how buyer engagement will continue to evolve and differ – particularly as cyber and ESG policies are placed on the table
- Navigating specialist skills to invest in that customers are willing to pay for or outsource
Strategic:
Linked to business transformation to achieve scale at a sustainable pace while balancing new compliance and regulation requirements. This will also navigate whether its the right environment for acquisition approaches and is now the right time to effectively build out a new business specialisation or skill.
- Focus on business transformation / internal structure
- How to evolve at a manageable pace / sustainable manner
- Scaling for success while balancing operational complexity
- Keeping pace with compliance and regulation
Resilience:
This is in relation to building long term, sustainable business growth, while also improving executive engagement with employees and customers aligned to corporate objectives. It will also dive into how to adapt quickly, maintain brand equity and make smart decisions now that will result into tangible outcomes across the business landscape.
- How to better show up with employees and customers
- Retaining superstar talent and company cultural alignment
- How to continue to stay ahead of the competition with brand equity intact
- Top skills and attributes of successful leaders in a new economic climate
EDGE Research
EDGE Research will examine customer investment and outsourcing priorities across Australia and New Zealand, benchmarking end-user plans against technology partner strategies.
This does not follow the predictable approach of analyst firms which offer high-level industry spend that lacks depth or outsourcing context.
Rather, this localised survey deep-dives into the specific details of customer requirements in the context of third-party technology providers, crucially counterbalanced with the priorities of the partner ecosystem to find out if the market aligned?
Delivered in partnership with Tech Research Asia, EDGE Research will focus on the short- to medium-term opportunities ahead for the outsourcing ecosystem, uncovering what makes end-users tick on both sides of the Tasman. This is alongside insights into the purchasing patterns of organisations, key solution focus areas and the balance of project work being delivered in-house compared to outsourced.
Findings will also outline what customers truly think of solution providers from a pros and cons perspective, offering critical advice from an engagement and selling standpoint.
On the flip side, immediate partner priorities will also be outlined from a business and technology standpoint, documenting commercial best practice, customer acquisition tactics and financial models of success.
Unique to the trans-Tasman outsourcing industry, EDGE Research is designed to offer the clearest indication as to whether the ecosystem is aligned with the end-user market. In addition, findings will be further segmented to provide a New Zealand-specific research breakout housing Kiwi data points and insights.
In addition to data-driven insights, EDGE 2023 will house independent and objective speakers to provide unvarnished insights into the mechanics of business and staying ahead of the curve in this precarious business climate.
To enquire about attending or sponsoring EDGE 2023, click here
