ADM On the Spot: January 2026
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New technology
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On the spot
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Young professionals
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Middle management & professionals
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C-level / CEO
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In-person
Business leaders and thought leaders will take the spotlight for a short, powerful presentation. Get ready for valuable new insights, innovative research, and inspiring ideas, presented in an accessible and engaging way. The goal is not only to inform, but also to inspire, stimulate, provoke, and perhaps even encourage people to do things differently.
Bonus: Go home with a copy of one of the business books "AI Will Replace You" or "AI, de herontdekking van de mens"!
Program
Leadership in the age of AI: Redefining leadership for tomorrow
Evelien Vanhooren | delaware
With the rise of AI, we must also reassess our role as leaders. Evelien Vanhooren, Leading IT Lady of the Year 2025, shares her vision for leadership in the AI era. A partner at delaware with over 20 years of experience in IT projects, she will discuss the future of leadership and the changing role of the future leader.
AI will replace you
Maarten Verschuere | Author
In this session, Maarten Verschuere will take you through the story of his book "AI Will Replace You." Not a doomsday scenario, but a sharp look at what AI can truly mean for organizations today.
Using international examples and Flemish cases, Maarten demonstrates:
- which AI trends are currently determining business and work,
- how organizations use AI to create value at scale
- and how the AI Navigator Framework helps move from experiments to supported, sustainable implementations.
An energetic and accessible keynote for leaders and professionals who not only want to understand AI, but also want to use it wisely.
Schrödinger's code: How AI agents are changing software delivery
Valerie Taerwe | AE
AI agents are beginning to analyze, write, and test code throughout the entire software development life cycle. This creates enormous opportunities, but also a new kind of uncertainty: the output might appear correct, yet still harbor risks, inconsistencies, or technical debt. In this talk, we'll translate the theory into practice, explaining what this means for the CIO: how AI is changing team behavior, why team variation is increasing, and the governance, architecture, and skills needed to ensure AI actually enhances delivery rather than undermines it.
AI, the rediscovery of humanity
Jackie Janssen | Author
Can AI make us more creative, empathetic, and wiser? AI often evokes fear: disappearing jobs, loss of control, a dehumanized future. But what if artificial intelligence could actually enhance our humanity? "AI: Rediscovering Humanity" shows how technology can spark creativity, deepen empathy, and help us make wiser choices.
Speakers
Evelien Vanhooren
Partner at delaware
Evelien is Leading IT Lady of the Year 2025 and a partner at delaware with over twenty years of industry experience. She has proven herself as a driven leader in digital transformation and innovative technologies. She combines strategic insights with a people-focused approach, making her a valued and approachable leader.
Maarten Verschuere
Author, keynote speaker and advisor
Maarten Verschuere is a keynote speaker on AI, author of "AI Will Replace You," and advisor for organizations looking to leverage AI beyond the hype. He focuses on one central question: how can you create scalable value within your organization with AI?
Maarten delivers AI keynotes, training, and workshops for executives and professionals, and also leads accessible AI literacy sessions for a broad range of employees. He is known as a dynamic speaker who translates complex topics like generative AI and agentic AI into clear frameworks, practical examples, and concrete next steps.
He combines cases from Flanders with examples from around the world to show what already works today and how organizations can translate these insights to their own context, without losing sight of the daily reality on the work floor.
Valerie Taerwe
Director of Software Architecture & Engineering at AE
Valerie Taerwe is Director of Software Architecture & Engineering at AE, where she leads large engineering teams and helps organizations modernize their software delivery with AI and application modernization. Named IT Person of the Year 2025 and Engineer of the Year 2025, she is known for her clear and pragmatic vision on how AI is reshaping the software development life cycle. In addition to her work at AE, Valerie is involved in initiatives that promote diversity in technology and make STEM education more accessible to young people.
Jackie Janssen
Chief Data Officer and author
Jackie Janssen is a Chief Data Officer with expertise in leadership development, AI-driven innovation, and coaching. Jackie is an author, gives keynotes and workshops, and runs the popular blog Happy 2 Change, a source of new insights on AI and technology.
