Programme

Brandon Smeets joined Canon to replace their Software Asset Manager in 2017. After several years he decided to focus on magic entertainment. Brandon opens the conference with “The Connection Kickoff”. This interactive networking session will break the ice and is the starting point of meaningful connections.

Artificial Intelligence is rapidly entering the world of IT Asset Management (ITAM), promising automation, smarter insights, and greater efficiency. But is it truly a game-changer, or just another source of complexity? In this session, we explore real-world AI use cases in ITAM, such as automated asset discovery, normalization, and predictive insights. At the same time, we challenge the hype by highlighting what is often overlooked: AI is only as effective as the foundation it’s built on. Without reliable data, clear processes, and a defined strategy, AI risks becoming just another tool that adds noise instead of value. Join this keynote session by Wojciech Jackowski, Director ITAM at DSV to learn where AI delivers impact today, what pitfalls to avoid, and how to ensure it strengthens, rather than disrupts, your ITAM practice. AI in ITAM isn’t a silver bullet. Success depends on how well you prepare.

Managing SaaS effectively is no longer just about controlling licenses. It's about aligning people. IT, Procurement, Finance, Security and the business all have different priorities, making stakeholder management the key to successful SaaS governance. In this session, Joanna Foum, Global Software Asset Manager at AFRY, will share how a global organization builds stakeholder engagement, creates visibility into SaaS usage and drives cost optimization without slowing innovation. Through practical examples and real-world lessons, you will gain actionable insights to strengthen collaboration, improve governance and turn SaaS management into a strategic business capability.

SAM teams rarely struggle with insight. They struggle with getting leadership to see its value, because the language does not land outside the SAM bubble. While leadership thinks in risk, growth, capital allocation, and increasingly concepts like FinOps, SAM often speaks in entitlements, discovery, and compliance. That gap is why many SAM functions struggle to get attention, budget, or strategic alignment. This break-out session is designed for Software Asset Managers who want to change that dynamic. We will work through how to strip “SAM speak” out of everyday communication and translate operational work into value based narratives that resonate with CIOs, CFOs, and business leadership. Together, we will explore the shift from Gatekeeper to Value Architect, moving from compliance reporting at the end of the process to shaping investment decisions at the start. Through real examples, we will show how to translate common SAM terms into language that leadership understands and values, and help you reframe your own messaging. You will leave with practical ways to present SAM not as control, but as leverage, and a clearer language to earn your seat at the table.

AI spend is spiking. Most teams see it happen, few can say if it's a problem or the quarter's best news. The answer isn't in the bill. It depends on where spend landed, who generated it, and whether it's a growth area. Per Skanne, CPO at Surveil, shows how to manage AI as a growth area with a four step plan establish where you stand, add business context, free up room to invest, and roll out in stages with the business owning the outcome. Learn why ITAM, SAM and FinOps professionals are best placed to lead.

Microsoft 365 licensing is becoming increasingly complex, and the introduction of Copilot and AI agents brings new cost and compliance challenges. Many organizations lack visibility into license usage, entitlements, and consumption-based charges, leaving them exposed to unnecessary costs and audit risk. In this short session, we'll highlight: Common Microsoft 365 and Copilot licensing risks Hidden costs and consumption-based charging models How AI agents can generate unexpected credit consumption Typical audit findings and compliance pitfalls Key areas organizations should review today This session is designed to provide practical insights and raise awareness of the most important risks and opportunities surrounding Microsoft licensing.

How to uncover AI sprawl, control costs and fund what creates value. AI is spreading across standalone tools, SaaS applications and cloud platforms – often without clear visibility, ownership or cost control. In fact, Flexera's latest research shows that only 31% of organisations report accurate visibility into their AI software. Join Nexer and Flexera to discover how ITAM can reveal sanctioned and unsanctioned AI, identify waste and connect AI spending with risk and business value. Through a live, hands-on demonstration of Flexera’s new AI Cost Management capabilities, we will show how organisations can monitor and optimise AI costs across their entire technology estate – and decide what to stop, optimise, govern or scale.

As AI shifts from single prompts to autonomous, multi-step agents, a new cost problem is emerging that traditional FinOps wasn't built for. This session unpacks why agentic AI breaks conventional cost attribution and budgeting, introduces "cost per action" and "cost per outcome" as new unit economics, and shows how FinOps, engineering, and platform teams can build governance guardrails. In this session we will learn about a practical framework or extending FinOps to agentic workloads.

Every company wants value from its AI spend. But it's scattered across teams and tools — so leaders can't see where the money goes, or whether it's the right money. In this session you will learn how to support leaders with crucial data for strategic decision making in AI decisions, and why the decisions that create value — including innovation — have to be directed from the top. Give your leaders what they need to decide what to scale, what to fund, and what to stop for maximized value creation. We'll cover: Why and how to support your leaders on AI spend and strategy The Business Value Ecosystem The AI Observability initiative at H&M Group

The ambition of most companies is to have an effective SAM function operating on all levels: strategic, tactical and operational. The challenge is that the SAM function often tends to be stuck on an operational level. In this session Folksam will present how the SAM function has managed establish a clear governance, operational work process and interaction within the company. This gives the SAM Function both the acknowledgment and leverage to participate and contribute to decisions within the company. Join Folksam in this session to learn about the Folksam SAM Programme and SAM Framework: SAM Governance and processes Tools and Data SAM operational process People and dependencies

Mozart didn't play the score everyone else was playing. He stepped out of his comfort zone, wrote his own, and created something that still resonates today. Now the vendors write the score: new contracts, new models, new prices. Most companies simply play along. But what if you did what truly has impact, instead of what everyone expects? What if a renewal wasn't the end of your licenses, but the start of their second life, and brought serious cash into your budget? What if your unused assets helped other European companies save, and you became part of a more sustainable cycle? Broadcom is just the opening bar. Microsoft, Adobe, IBM, Autodesk, Citrix, SAP and more are waiting in the next movements. Software ReUse is your single point of contact: one partner, one-stop service, risk-free. Can you be like Mozart? Everyone can. You just have to want it.

AI is moving faster than most organisations can adapt. The challenge is no longer only choosing the right technology, tools or governance – it is getting the organisation to move with them. As AI spreads across the workplace, leaders face a difficult tension: people need freedom to explore, learn and integrate new technology, while organisations also need control over risk, data, cost and software use. At the same time, those expected to embrace AI may also be wondering what it means for their own role, or even their job. Drawing on her award-winning book Förändring som håller, Anna Ahrenfelt explores the invisible friction between technology, governance and people. Participants will learn what can slow AI adoption, why resistance is often a rational response to the system, and how leaders can create the direction, involvement and learning needed to turn rapid technological change into lasting organisational capability. If AI is moving faster than your organisation, this is a conversation you cannot afford to postpone.

Chair Brandon Smeets brings the conference to a close by reflecting on the key insights, discussions and takeaways of the day. What we have learned, which developments deserve our continued attention, and what you can take back to your own organisation.