GDS International

World business leaders have confirmed they are to meet in Atlanta to decide the future of social media marketing. Representatives at the iStrategy Conference at the Americasmart Convention Centre on 13-14 September will include top executives from Facebook, Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), AOL (NYSE:AOL), Bloomberg, Sprint and Interbrand.

CIO Summit Russia & CIS 2011 is an exclusive C-level event reserved for 100 participants that includes expert workshops, facilitated roundtables, peer-to-peer networks and co-ordinated meetings.

Australians have not yet made the shift to conducting investment transactions over their mobile. It's obviously a topic that will be top of mind for the industry's leading figures who will converge on the Gold Coast for the FST ANZ Summit 2011. Hosted by GDS International, the closed-door event takes place at the Palazzo Versace, Gold Coast, Australia from 27-29 July 2011.

Next Generation Telecoms Summit APAC 2011, hosted by GDS International in concert with analyst partners Ovum and the International Telecommunication Union, will feature some of the leading voices in the technology management sector, including Michael Lawrey, Executive Director of Technology and Networks at Telstra (ASX:TLS) (PINK:TLSYY); Priyanka Undugodage, VP Technology at Dialog Telecom; and Akbar Boghani, GM for IT Strategy at Vodafone Essar.

The mining industry has accelerated its investment in IT as it looks to address cost-reduction and productivity issues. Getting the most out of your IT investment is sure to be a key discussion topic for attendees of the Next Generation Mining Summit CIS 2011, which will be taking place from 18-20 October 2011 in Moscow, Russia. This closed-door summit, hosted by GDS International, is set to feature some of the leading voices in the regional mining sector, including Nikolai Vlasov, Chief Geologist at Petropavlovsk (LON:POG); Roman Panov, Head of International Assets & Operations at Norilsk Nickel (LON:MNOD); and Evgeny Charkin, CIO at Severstal (MCX:CHMF) (LON:SVST).

Providing a seamless, integrated system of care across a range of healthcare settings, accountable care organizations are increasingly being touted as the cure for a failing health system. But challenges remain.

Ensuring security in a cloud-based environment will no doubt be top of the list of issues delegates will be discussing at the Financial Services Technology Summit Europe Summit 2011, which takes place from 4-6 October at The Oitavos, Cascais in Portugal. This closed-door summit, hosted by GDS International, attracts some of the leading voices in the European financial services technology sector.

Compliance, governance and the impact of regulatory change are just some of the issues that will no doubt be on the agenda at the CFO Summit Europe 2011, which takes place from 13-15 September at The Oitavos, Cascais in Portugal. This closed-door summit, hosted by GDS International, features some of the leading voices in the European CFO sector, including Ramon Zapata, Head of Finance Operations at Novartis (NYSE:NVS); Olivier Klaric, VP Treasury at Sanofi Aventis Group (NYSE:SNY); Erik Ter Horst, CFO EMEA and VP of Finance for BT (NYSE:BT); and Clive Parrit, Vice President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants.

So-called augmented reality technology is the latest feature to hit smartphones across the world. Augmented reality has huge potential in the retail space, blurring as it does the line between online and offline shopping. As such, AR is sure to be a key topic of conversation at the upcoming Next Generation Retail Summit APAC 2011, which takes place from 18-20 October at The Amara Sanctuary Resort Sentosa, Singapore.

The Microsoft Worldwide Utility Industry Survey 2011 polled more than 210 professionals within electric, gas and related companies around the world and found that 39 percent of utilities were adopting smart grid technologies. Smart grids are likely to be top of the agenda at the Next Generation Utilities Summit Europe 2011, which takes place from 15-17 November in Malaga, Spain. This closed-door summit, hosted by GDS International, features some of the leading voices in the European utilities sector.