Designed for agency technology leaders to talk through strategic and operational aspects of agency operations from a technology perspective. The Council’s Chief Information Officer Working Group brings together heads of technology, operations and finance to identify trends and share automation strategies across our member firms. Topics include a wide variety of issues including data analytics, business process efficiency, cloud strategies and client experience. The CIO Working Group consists of more than 100 individual members representing 90+ member firms.
The Spring Working Group programs are complimentary, customized exclusively for The Council members and offer peer-to-peer networking opportunities.
Explore a sample from the most recent CIO Working Group agenda to understand the format, key topics, and overall experience you can expect.
8:30AM-9:30AM | Check-in & Optional Breakfast
9:00AM-9:30AM | Welcome & Introductions
Welcome, agenda run-through, icebreaker and introductions.
9:30AM-10:30AM | Open Discussion: Building a Risk Tolerance Framework
Security investment decisions are easier when there's shared understanding of what level of risk the organization is willing to accept. Without that foundation, every security decision requires individual
justification and approval. Many organizations find these conversations challenging – legal and leadership may be hesitant to formally acknowledge any acceptable risk level. Yet having even a basic framework helps prioritize investments and align technology and business perspectives. This session explores how peers are approaching risk tolerance conversations, what frameworks or tools are helping, and how to
build productive dialogue with leadership about security priorities.
Discussion points:
10:30AM-10:45AM | Break
10:45AM-12:00PM | Open Discussion: Data Retention Paradox
Building retention schedules that align with new state mandates, such as those in California, proves challenging when balancing insurance-specific retention requirements. Are you using automated data
discovery or anonymization to stay compliant in 2026?
Discussion points:
12:00PM-1:00PM | Lunch
1:00PM-1:45PM | Open Discussion: Carrier Data Integration Strategies
The lack of standardization in carrier data formats and APIs is a universal pain point that came up repeatedly in previous sessions. Everyone's building custom integrations, dealing with inconsistent data
structures, and spending resources on problems that could be solved with better industry coordination. Some organizations have found middleware tools that help, others have built creative workarounds.
There's also the question of how to prepare for upcoming platform changes from major AMS vendors. This is a chance to compare notes on what's actually working and commiserate about what isn't.
Discussion points:
9:00AM-9:30AM | Welcome & Introductions
Welcome, agenda run-through, icebreaker and introductions.
9:30AM-10:30AM | Open Discussion: Building a Risk Tolerance Framework
Security investment decisions are easier when there's shared understanding of what level of risk the organization is willing to accept. Without that foundation, every security decision requires individual justification and approval. Many organizations find these conversations challenging – legal and leadership may be hesitant to formally acknowledge any acceptable risk level. Yet having even a basic framework helps prioritize investments and align technology and business perspectives. This session explores how peers are approaching risk tolerance conversations, what frameworks or tools are helping, and how to build productive dialogue with leadership about security priorities.
Discussion points:
10:30AM-10:45AM | Break
10:45AM-12:00PM | Open Discussion: Data Retention Paradox
Building retention schedules that align with new state mandates, such as those in California, proves challenging when balancing insurance-specific retention requirements. Are you using automated data discovery or anonymization to stay compliant in 2026?
Discussion points:
12:00PM-1:00PM | Lunch
1:00PM-1:45PM | Open Discussion: Carrier Data Integration Strategies
The lack of standardization in carrier data formats and APIs is a universal pain point that came up repeatedly in previous sessions. Everyone's building custom integrations, dealing with inconsistent data structures, and spending resources on problems that could be solved with better industry coordination. Some organizations have found middleware tools that help, others
have built creative workarounds. There's also the question of how to prepare for upcoming platform changes from major AMS vendors. This is a chance to compare notes on what's actually working and commiserate about what isn't.
Discussion points:
1:45PM-2:00PM | Break
2:00PM-3:00PM | Open Discussion: Building a Modern Data Foundation
Your data architecture determines what's possible – whether that's real-time reporting, advanced analytics, or simply getting a single view of the customer. Yet many organizations are still dealing with data fragmented across systems, stuck in 30-minute sync cycles, and poorly organized for anything beyond basic queries. The decisions you make about data platforms today will determine your capabilities for years to come. This session focuses on the foundational questions: what does your data architecture need to look like to support modern analytics and automation? How are organizations structuring their data lakes and warehouses? What data quality issues are blocking your initiatives, and how are you addressing them?
Discussion points:
3:00PM-4:00PM | Foundation Before Fireworks: A Practical AI-Readiness Playbook for Brokerages
Everyone is being asked to "do AI" but the playbook for getting there isn't one-size-fits-all. A firm scaling through 30 acquisitions a year needs a fundamentally different data and technology foundation than an independent building for the next generation. And both look different from a firm's positioning for its next transaction.
Drawing from the wins and scars of building a unified platform across multiple acquisitions and powering growth to a $2B firm, this session offers a practical framework for getting AI-ready by getting the foundation right first.
We'll walk through the three layers that determine whether AI investments pay off or fall flat: strategy, data foundation, and workflow automation. Then we'll pressure-test how the priorities shift depending on your firm's business strategy.
The goal: Walk out with some practical steps you can use next week calibrated to where your firm is headed.
Discussion Points
This session is designed to build on the earlier discussions on carrier data standardization and modern data foundations — offering a framework the group can take home and apply based on their own firm's direction.
6:00PM-8:00PM | Group Dinner at The Smith
The Smith, Washington, D.C.
8:30AM-9:00AM | Check-in & Optional Breakfast
9:00AM-10:00AM | Open Discussion: Managing AI "Tech Debt"
How do you manage fragmented “copilot” solutions across the Enterprise while giving users the freedom to innovate? What strategies are you using to consolidate into unified platforms and integrations to reduce complexity?
Discussion points:
10:00AM-10:15AM | Break
10:15AM-11:30AM | Open Peer Share
Roundtable format where anyone can bring questions, share recent wins, or ask for help with challenges they’re facing. Some of the best insights from our previous meetings came from spontaneous conversations where someone shared what worked for them. This is also a chance to follow up on yesterday’s discussions, go deeper on topics that resonated, or surface new issues that didn’t make the agenda. Come prepared with something you’re proud of, something you’re struggling with, or a question you’ve been wanting to ask this group.
Discussion points:
11:30AM-12:00PM | Closing Remarks & Next Steps

Next Meeting: November 4-6, 2026 | San Diego, CA
At 2026 Operations Leadership Forum*
*Formerly the Operations & Working Groups Forum