Unleash Modernization

Stephan brings over 30 years of experience in software development, IT operations, and service management. He has held various leadership roles, including COO Insights & Data at Capgemini Germany and Senior Vice President of Global Quality Processes at T-Systems International. With expertise in offshore and nearshore operations, crisis and turnaround management, and de-escalation in large-scale service engagements, Stephan is a seasoned professional in managing global IT operations and transformation projects. He is also the author of "Zero Outage", a key publication in IT service reliability and the founder of the Zero Outage Industry Standard Association.

Iosif Itkin is a co-founder & co-CEO of Exactpro, an independent provider of software testing services for financial sector organisations. Founded in 2009, Exactpro employs over 450 specialists. Among other things Iosif is responsible for the AI Testing strategy and trading systems reliability research. He holds a MSc degree in Theoretical Physics.
In his professional career, Iosif has held many technology roles: software developer, performance testing department lead, technology architect, VP of technology – on a number of global financial industry initiatives. Iosif’s expertise at the intersection of high-availability systems and capital markets has enabled him to successfully facilitate technology transformations within exchanges, investment banks and clearing and settlement organisations in London, New York, Milan, Singapore, Sydney and other major financial centres.

Thomas Hecht has more than 10 years of professional experience and 3 degrees from universities of applied sciences in the fields of corporate security and risk management, as well as information security and IT security. Through research activities and professional activities in an energy company, Thomas was also able to gain experience in the field of OT security. He has worked for various companies in the field of information security management that have either purchased ICT services or provide such services. For more than 4 years now he has been working for Deutsche Telekom, managing the Enterprise Security Architecture for Reliable ICT Service (ESARIS) for the global Enterprise IT service provider T-Systems. For over 1 year he has been leading the international team responsible for this. ESARIS was made mandatory in T-System a few years ago and has become an industry standard as part of the Zero Outage Industry Standard (ZOIS).

Bala Rajaraman is currently an IBM Fellow and VP in IBM’s Infrastructure Division focusing on Technology Lifecycle Services. His current responsibilities include strategy and development of AI-based solutions for large scale support and services offerings and delivery processes. He is also a contributor to the strategy and architectural directions in the evolution of IBM’s hybrid cloud platforms and solutions. In the past he has been involved in various aspects of public and private cloud computing, Kubernetes container platforms, systems management, DevOps, IBM z, and enterprise middleware. His areas of professional interest include cloud computing, automation, networking, systems performance, and availability/resiliency of large systems. He holds over 25 patents in these areas. He received a Ph.D. in Computer Engineering from Clemson University, South Carolina, and a Master’s degree in computer engineering from Drexel University, Philadelphia.