2019 IT Symposium
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

About Chris Dancy
The Most Connected Man on Earth
Chris Dancy: Life After Privacy
Wednesday, December 11, 9:30 – 10:30 am
Discover Chris Dancy’s breakout session, Memory as a Service, on Thursday, December 12,
Kristy Dalton: Change Your Social Media Mindset
Thursday, December 12, 8:30 – 9:30 a.m.
Government IT professionals typically have a love/hate relationship with social media. If you’re like most agencies across the country, leadership desires to embrace the positive benefits of social media in areas such as recruitment, building trust

About Kristy Dalton
Government Social Media
FEATURED SPEAKER

About Tarek Tomes
Minnesota’s State Commissioner and Chief Information Officer
State of Government IT
Wednesday, December 11, 3:50 – 4:15 pm
What is the current state of government IT and how can government IT leaders, staff and their partners work together to ensure our systems and services are responsive, innovative and secure?
Don’t miss this opportunity to hear firsthand from Minnesota’s State Commissioner and Chief Information Officer, Tarek Tomes, as he addresses the current and future state of government IT.
FEATURED LUNCH PRESENTATION
Hayley Cohen: Mind of a Hacker
Thursday, December 12, 11:30 – 12:30 pm
We read about hacks and breaches on a daily basis – attacks conducted by threat actors that result in millions of compromised credentials, loss of millions of dollars or denial of service attacks that can almost bring the internet to a halt. But how do these attacks happen and why do they happen?
In this special lunch presentation by Hayley Cohen, IBM Security, you’ll get the chance to get inside the mind of a hacker, as we demonstrate what types of tools hackers are using today, examine the scope of these attacks, and discuss best practices on how to protect ourselves and our businesses.
Dive into the mind of a hacker, as we demonstrate what types of tools hackers are using today, examine the scope of these attacks, and discuss best practices on how to protect ourselves and our businesses.

About Hayley Cohen
Security X-Force Command Gamification Engineer and Executive Security Adviser,
IBM Security
3 Day (Pre-Conference, Wednesday & Thursday)
Early Bird (through November 2): $530
Regular (November 3 – December 2): $580
Late (December 3 and later): $680
2 Day (Wednesday & Thursday)
Early Bird (through November 2): $420
Regular (November 3 – December 2): $470
Late (December 3 and later): $520
1 Day (Wednesday or Thursday)
Early Bird (through November 2): $350.00
Regular (November 3 – December 2): $350.00
Late (December 3 and later): $375.00
Pre-Conference Only
Early Bird (through November 2): $200
Regular (November 3 – December 2): $225
Late (December 3 and later): $255
2019 AGENDA
Sessions will continue to be added and/or changed, so please check back regularly for updates. Registered attendees can also get session updates on the Symposium mobile app. To download the app, search “GTS Educational Events” in the App Store or Google Play Store. Once in the app, click on the 2019 Transforming Learning Summit event, then click “Join” to claim your profile and create a password.
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2019
Pre-Conference Sessions
Time | Event |
7:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. | Registration Open |
8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. | Full Day Sessions |
8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. | Morning 1/2 Day Conference Sessions |
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. | Lunch |
1:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. | Afternoon 1/2 Day Conference Sessions |
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2019
Time | Event |
7:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. | Registration Open |
8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. | Breakfast Sessions* |
9:00 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. | Engage & Recharge |
9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. | Welcome & Keynote Chris Dancy |
10:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. | Engage & Recharge |
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 a.m. | Concurrent Sessions |
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. | Lunch |
1:00 p.m. – 1:15 p.m. | Break |
1:15 p.m. – 2:15 p.m. | Concurrent Sessions |
2:15 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. | Engage & Recharge |
2:45 p.m. – 3:45 p.m. | Concurrent Sessions |
3:50 p.m. – 4:15 p.m. | Commissioner Tomes |
4:15 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. | Golden GOVIT Awards & Reception |
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2019
Time | Event |
7:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. | Registration Open |
8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. | Opening Remarks & Keynote Kristy Dalton |
9:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. | Engage & Recharge |
10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. | Concurrent Sessions |
11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. | General Sessions & Lunch |
12:30 p.m. – 12:45 p.m. | Break |
12:45 p.m. – 1:45 p.m. | Concurrent Sessions |
1:45 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. | Engage & Recharge |
2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. | Concurrent Sessions |
3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. | Symposium SLAM & Closing |
Diamond Sponsor

Platinum Sponsors




Gold Sponsors







Silver Sponsors




BE A SPONSOR
Check out the variety of different sponsorships available.
Sponsorships and exhibit space available on a first-come, first-served based. Limited
Contact Christopher Kohn at ckohn@fusionlp.org today.
Gain multi-layered access to the Midwest’s largest audience of government IT professionals as a 2019 Conference Sponsor!
Why Sponsor/Exhibit:
Attendees Need Your Products and Services
Public and civic sectors invest billions of dollars every year on information and communication technologies and are relying more and more on private sector partners to provide these technologies.
Attendees are Decision Makers
More than 60 percent of attendees are in leadership, management or professional positions and are looking for new solutions to meet their needs.
Attendees Visit Booths
Almost 90 percent of 2015 attendees visited the exhibit area and 70 percent said that they found the exhibits engaging.
Your Competitors Will Be There
Last year, there were 90 exhibitors – up 14 percent from the year before. This year we expect to top 100!
Show your Support
Be identified among a core group of companies and organizations that are recognized as partners in the effort to help improve critical services for our communities.
“Cisco has been a sponsor of the MN Government IT Symposium for over 10 years. We have found this is to be the most effective event in Minnesota for reaching our public sector customers.”
“The conference is a great opportunity to get the private and public sector to work together.”
“We can create a place where vendors and the government entities that use their products can meet together and talk about them outside the procurement process and hopefully bring new solutions to bare for problems that we face.”
About GTS Educational Events
If you are a nonprofit or public sector group looking to create a conference, workshop or educational event with impact, look to GTS. We believe educational events are successful when participants learn and grow and then return to their organizations and communities to make them stronger. We look forward to continuing our work with the broad spectrum of organizations striving to make a difference for the people and communities they serve.
Steering Committee
Alex Hepp, City of Hopkins
Bill Bleckwehl, Cisco
Dave Andrews, DEED
Jay Wyant, Minnesota IT Services
Jim Hall, Ramsey County
Matt Bailey, IBM
Melissa Reeder, League of Minnesota Cities
Nathan Beran, City of New Ulm
Sue Wallace, IT Futures Foundation
Lisa Meredith, Minnesota Counties Computer Cooperative
Justin Kaufman, Minnesota IT Services
Renee Heinbuch, Washington County/MNCITLA
Jerine Rosato, Ramsey County
David Berthiaume, Minnesota IT Services
Cory Tramm, Sourcewell Tech
Content Committee
Tomas Alvarez, Federal Reserve
Tom Ammons, MN.IT – Central
Dave Andrews, MN State Services for the Blind
Susan Bousquet, MN.IT – DOT
Robert Granvin, Metro State
Alex Hepp, City of Hopkins
Shawntan Howell, Ramsey County
Jenny Johnson, Metropolitan Council
Millicent Kasal, MN.IT – Central
Ping Li, MN.IT – MMB
Chibuzor Nnaji, MN.IT – DHS
Mehrdad Shabestari, MN.IT – Central