The CIOB AI Journey
Four live experiences. One real blueprint AI transformation.
For the very first time in the membership sector, you are not just hearing about AI change – you are going to watch it happen in real time.
The programme runs for nine months, from September 2026 to May 2027, and you will follow CIOB’s AI implementation at every stage: the progress, the setbacks, and the lessons learned. From strategic readiness and governance, through technology selection and change management, to live deployment and everything still being figured out along the way. This is not a passive experience. Every session is hands-on. Come ready to think, contribute, and leave with something you can act on immediately. By session four, you will not just have watched an AI transformation happen but you will have built your very own alongside it.
What happens during the live events
At each live show, you will follow the CIOB’s AI implementation at every stage, including the progress, the setbacks, and the lessons learned. From strategic readiness and governance, through technology selection and change management, to live deployment and everything still being figured out along the way, you join from the outset and return for each session, building your own knowledge, confidence, and roadmap as the journey progresses.
By session four, you will not just have watched an AI transformation happen, you will have built your very own alongside it.
What you take away from every session
Who is this for?
The series is grounded in the membership sector. However, the frameworks you build are designed to travel. Whatever sector your organisation sits in, you will always leave with tools you can use in any industry.
Ideal attendees are likely to be:
- A CEO, COO, or Director responsible for digital transformation or organisational strategy
- A Head of Technology, IT Director, or Digital Lead overseeing AI or automation programmes
- A membership director or operations lead whose teams will be directly affected by AI implementation
- An HR or workforce planning lead grappling with what AI means for their people and structure
- A governance or compliance lead who needs to understand the strategic and risk implications of AI adoption
Each session runs as a full day in London, with a mix of expert-led content, hands-on practical work, and time to connect with peers.
Join The Series
Join the complete journey with all four sessions for just £195 +VAT. Each session runs from 09:30 to 14:15 and includes refreshments and lunch.
Sessions can also be booked individually.
Session Content
Breaking Ground: From curiosity to strategy: building your AI foundation
Date: 29 September 2026 – 9am to 2pm
Speakers: Jen Watkins (IC9), David Hancox (CIOB), Bill Wilson (IC9 technical lead)
Before CIOB had a policy or a plan, they already had over 7,000 AI interactions happening across their organisation. Sound familiar? This is where most organisations are. AI is already in your building, whether you have a strategy for it or not. This immersive session starts with that reality, and by the end of it, you will have done something about it.
What you’ll do in this session
Working with expert facilitators, in this session you will run your own rapid AI audit and maturity self-assessment, map what is already happening across your organisation, and draft the outline of an Acceptable Use Policy built around your own context.
Key takeaways
In session one, you will leave with an AI governance document tailored to your organisation, a prioritised list of your own use cases, and – perhaps most importantly – a clear sense of where you stand and what needs to happen next.
Drawing Up the Plans: “Selecting use cases and choosing partners”
Date: 3 December 2026 – 9am to 2pm
Speakers: Kris Watkins (IC9), Bill Wilson (IC9), David Hancox (CIOB), Bluelight representative
CIOB had 25 AI use cases and had to choose six. Getting that decision wrong would have cost them everything that followed. This session gives you the framework to make the same call in your own organisation and how to get it right.
What you’ll do in this session
CIOB’s decision to work with Bluelight’s agentic platform did not happen by accident.
During this session, you will apply Intercloud9’s use case scoring framework to your own shortlisted opportunities, work through a structured partner evaluation exercise, and get honest about what good data readiness looks like before any AI goes near it. The most overlooked risk in any AI implementation is the data it runs on. This session also introduces the 365 Data Optimiser and shows you what data readiness actually means – because if your D365 data is bloated, ungoverned, and costly to maintain, your AI strategy is built on the wrong foundation.
Key takeaways
In session two, you see first-hand how they got there, and what questions you need to be asking before your business commits to any implementation partner. You leave with a scored use case shortlist and a partner evaluation framework that you can actively use.
Going Live: How CIOB built, tested and deployed their AI
Date: 11 February 2027 – 9am to 2pm
Speakers: Jen Watkins (IC9), Bluelight technical team, CIOB operational lead (TBC)
Every AI project should have a concrete plan. This session is about what happens when you launch it. CIOB will share exactly how they built, tested and deployed their AI, including what went as expected, what did not, and what they would do differently. There’s zero polished retrospective, but an honest account from the people who were there, in the room with you.
What you’ll do in this session
This is the most hands-on session in the series. You will work with prompt design and agent configuration, explore testing principles, and dig into one of the hardest parts of any AI implementation – why some teams embrace it and others resist it, and what you can do about it in your own organisation. Getting the technology right is only half the job. Getting your people there is the other half.
Key takeaways
In session three, you will build your own testing and governance checklist and a change readiness assessment built around your own organisation.
Handover: Embedding and scaling: making AI stick across the enterprise
Date: 20 May 2027 – 9am to 2pm
Speakers: Jen Watkins (IC9), Bill Wilson (IC9), David Hancox (CIOB), Leadership Blueprint cohort voice (TBC – one participant willing to share their own leadership and change journey), Bluelight representative
Getting AI live is one challenge. Making it stick is another. This is the final session of the CIOB AI Journey and the most complete picture you will get. Twelve months in, CIOB share everything their real deployment has taught them: the AI Ambassador programme, the culture change, the moments that nearly derailed it, and what they would do differently if they were starting again. The hardest part of any AI implementation is not the build – it is what happens six months later, when the initial energy fades and the technology has to survive on its own.
What you’ll do in this session
This session closes the loop. You will build a 90-day embedding plan for your own organisation, design an AI Ambassador structure that fits the way your teams actually work, and review your governance framework in light of everything you have learned across the series. Over the four sessions, you will have followed CIOB’s full AI journey from the very beginning – and built your own parallel roadmap alongside it. You leave not just having watched an AI transformation happen, but having done the work yourself at every stage.
Key takeaways
In session four, you will leave with a 90-day embedding plan, your own AI Ambassador structure, and a governance framework refined across the full series. And something bigger than any of those – a complete and ready-to-use actionable roadmap for your own AI transformation, built by you over the last 12-months.
FAQs
You can do either. The series is designed to be followed in full, and attending all four gives you the complete picture as well as the best value. But each session stands on its own, so if you are at a particular stage of your own AI journey, you are welcome to come to the one that fits where you are right now.
Session #1 – 29 September 2026
Session #2 – 3 December 2026
Session #3 – 11 February 2027
Session #4 – 20 May 2027
If you cannot attend a session, you are welcome to send a colleague in your place. Please send their name and email address to marketing@intercloud9.co.uk at least 48 hours before the session starts so we can update your details accordingly. It is a good way to make sure your organisation still gets the value from the session even if your own plans change.
Because these are live sessions with limited places, your seat is reserved for you whether you attend or not, so we are not able to offer a refund for a missed session.
All four sessions are held in central London. The venue is the CIOB London Office, 9 Kingsway, London, WC2B 6XF, chosen to provide room for proper hands-on work and conversation.
The level sits at strategy and application rather than deep technical detail, so you do not need to be technical to get value from it. It is built for senior people who are responsible for AI happening well in their organisation, whatever their function. That includes chief executives and directors leading strategy or digital transformation, technology and digital leads running AI programmes, operations and membership leads whose teams are affected, and governance or HR leads thinking through the people and risk implications.
A basic familiarity with AI will help you get the most from the day, the kind of general awareness most senior leaders already have from reading about it or seeing it used around them. Beyond that, no preparation is required. Each session gives you the context you need as you go, and the hands-on work is fully facilitated. Come with your own organisation in mind and you will have everything you need.
You will leave with real, finished outputs, built by you during the session and ready to use. Depending on the session, that means a working AI governance document and a prioritised list of use cases; a scored use case shortlist and a partner evaluation framework; a testing and governance checklist with a change readiness assessment; or a 90-day embedding plan and an AI Ambassador structure for your organisation. Not notes to write up later. Something you can act on the moment you are back at your desk.
The £60 covers your place at the session, the venue, and refreshments throughout the day, including lunch, snacks, and drinks. The fee keeps the event running and helps make sure everyone who books a place attends. It is not there to make a profit.
No, but you are welcome to bring one if you prefer to work on it rather than on paper. Everything you need for the hands-on work is provided, and you do not need any specific software. Just bring yourself and your own organisation in mind, and work whichever way suits you best on the day.
Have any further questions? Please get in touch at marketing@intercloud9.co.uk
Programme speakers
Jenny is a highly experienced business and digital transformation director with over 30 years of delivering change. Applying Lean methodologies and commercial expertise, she has led large technology and membership support teams, working with 50+ of the UK’s most prestigious membership organisations, representing 38+ million members. Jenny is an IAPP-certified AI Governance Professional (AIGP), one of only 4,000 professionals worldwide with this certification, reflecting her commitment to responsible AI leadership. Her background spans both client and vendor sides, covering member value proposition, commercial strategy, vendor selection, project rescue, business case development, change management, and D365 optimisation.
David Hancox joined CIOB as Chief Operating Officer in June 2025, where he focuses on turning strategic vision into effective delivery and oversees the organisation’s internal operations, including Finance, Digital, Data and IT, HR, and the Project Management Office. He is also responsible for CIOB Assist, which supports members and their families. David qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Deloitte and has held senior financial and commercial roles at British Airways, Aviva and several SMEs as CFO/COO. He was most recently COO at structural and civil engineering consultancy Structa LLP, and holds a degree in mechanical engineering.
Bill Wilson is an accomplished technology executive recognised for leading complex digital transformation and IT modernisation programmes that deliver measurable business value. With more than two decades of experience as the technology lead at the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), he has built and led high-performing technology teams, applying strategic insight and commercial discipline to drive efficiency, resilience, and innovation. He has successfully managed multi-million-pound budgets, complex supplier portfolios, and transformation programmes with budgets of over £20 million. His work has delivered enhanced member and employee experiences, improved operational performance, and strengthened cyber security.
Kris Watkins is Managing Director of Intercloud9 Ltd, an experienced software engineer and solutions architect with deep expertise in enterprise system design and delivery. Over a 20-year career, he has led development of secure, high-performance platforms for organisations including the College of Policing, ICAEW, and the Association for Project Management. Known for strong technical insight and the ability to connect technology with business goals, Kris now focuses on helping membership bodies and non-profits modernise their systems, guiding them through successful digital transformation aligned with long-term organisational goals.
Marios Chrysanthou is the co-founder and Managing Director of Bluelight, bringing over 20 years of experience in CRM for the not-for-profit sector. A Chartered Accountant who has worked inside membership organisations, he combines financial acumen with hands-on implementation expertise to lead digital transformations that are strategic, scalable, and built to last. Since co-founding Bluelight in 2015, he has grown it into a 50-strong team working exclusively with membership organisations, professional bodies, trade associations and charities. The business has been employee-owned since 2024, and its work is built on Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Umbraco.
Join the Series
You can join the complete journey with all four sessions for just £195 +VAT. Here you will follow CIOB’s implementation from the very beginning and build your own roadmap alongside it. Each session runs from 09:30 to 14:15 and includes refreshments and lunch.
If you’re only able to make a couple of the dates, sessions can also be purchased individually for just £60 +VAT if space permits. Each will provide a unique insight into another step of the CIOB AI journey.