The Commission on Higher Education in cooperation with Asia Pacific College proudly presents 'CHEDx 2023 | Experience, Exchange, Explore'. This IT summit was on November 23-24, 2023 at SM Megatrade Halls 2 & 3, SM Megamall B, Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila.

The workplace, as we know it, is undergoing a profound evolution, spurred on by the rapid integration of applications of analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), automation, cybersecurity, IoT. These advancements have disrupted traditional models of work – from efficiency to productivity, to connectivity, and now to an environment that knows you and adapts to your needs through digital transformation, challenging us to reevaluate education, workforce readiness, and societal progress.

CHEDx 2023 was envisioned to bring the IT and IT-BPM sector together with the academe, to strengthen the collaborative efforts towards work readiness and skill-backed employability. The summit aims to enhance the spirit of collaboration, open dialogue and forward thinking to equip delegates and industry with the knowledge, tools, and network to navigate this new workplace with confidence and purpose. The invitation was extended to Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) across the country, with the hopes that they would send graduating IT students, faculty, and administrators to attend the event.

HEIs have the responsibility to develop innovations, nurture innovators, and those who will enable living in a connected world with technology used for good. The academe needs to develop a deeper commitment to the call of industry and generate graduates who are attuned to technology, with innovation as a skill, who use the value of technology for good.

CHEDx 2023 featured a distinguished lineup of experts and thought leaders shared their insights and experiences, guiding us through the intricacies of this technological revolution. The summit opened with Opening Remarks from Atty. Cinderella Filipina Jaro, and the Keynote Speech was delivered by CHED Chairman J. Prospero De Vera.

On Day 1, the summit featured talks on IT Skills Development, IT Certification Roadmap, Cybersecurity, Education and Innovation, Technology Trends in Audit and Finance, Cloud Technology, and AI. On Day 2, the summit featured talks on The Role of Higher Education in Fostering Trustworthy AI, Cloud: The Great Enabler, Analytics and Sustainability, Young Leaders in IT, Climate Watch and Sustainability, as well as presentations from the Contact Center Association of the Philippines, Game Developers Association of the Philippines, Philippine Software Industry Association, Healthcare Information Management Association of the Philippines, Animation Council of the Philippines, and Global In-House Center Council of the Philippines.

These talks were delivered by IT leaders, such as Ms. Aileen Judan-Jiao, President and Country General Manager of IBM Philippines, Mr. Monchito Ibrahim, Dr. John Paul Vergara, Dr. Bartolome Tanguilig, and Mr. Jaime Caro from the CHED Technical Panel on IT Education, Mr. Jason Park from TOPCIT, Professor Jangsub Shim from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Mr. Carlos Ely Tingson, SVP for Cyber Risk & Cyber Threat Intelligence from Kroll, Ms. Yean Feng Yue, Corporate Social Responsibility APAC Leader from IBM, Mr. Dennis Layug from East West Educational Specialists Co., Mr. Jonathan Ramos, Country Head from AMDOCS, Mr. Chris Peralta, CEO/President from Silicon Valley HQ, Mr. Dennis Sobrepeña, AVP from GCash/Mynt-Globe Fintech Innovations, Mr. RJ Mendiola AVP for Cloud Service Operations from the Information Services Group, Globe, Ms. Melanie Santiago-De Vera CHRO ST Telemedia Global Data Centres Philippines, and Ms. Christine Kempeneers from Aboitiz Group, Dr. Benito Teehankee Ethics Committee Member from the Analytics Association of the Philippines, Atty. Princess Ascalon, Government and Regulatory Affairs Executive from IBM Philippines, Ms. Jo Anne dela Cuesta from Executive Director for Academic Services from Asia Pacific College, Ms. Rhia Trogo-Pantola, Associate Partner for Sustainability, Weather and Climate Center of Competency Solution Delivery, IBM Philippines, Mr. Grant Gong from Alibaba Cloud, Dr. Gregg Gabison from Ray Business Technologies, Mr. Bernard Garcia, CEO of LiteDev, Ms. Rosario Cajucom Bradbury, Managing Director of CCAP, Ms. Eleanor Lansang of the SM Foundation, and many more. These are just a few of the IT field experts who came together to support the summit.

Aside from the talks, CHEDx 2023 also had an exciting exhibit area, featuring companies such as Globe Telecom, IBM, East West Education Specialists, Accenture, Alibaba, Kroll, Techfactors, TTEC, Lumify, Pineda Cybersecurity Systems, Probe, Concentrix, Inspiro, IGT Solutions, Acquire MicroSourcing, Tech Mahindra, as well as institutions that are Centers of Excellence in IT such as Asia Pacific College, National University, Technological Institute of the Philippines-Quezon City, and UP Los Baños. Participants made their way through exhibits that featured technological innovations, robotics, and the like. Speed mentoring sessions were also conducted by the Contact Center Association of the Philippines, in order to help the student participants to receive one-on-one guidance from mentors in the IT industry.

The overarching goals of the summit were to encourage curriculum alignment to the new workplace, to have the academe nurture industry-ready graduate for the ever-evolving digital landscape, and forge partnerships between industy and HEIs to help decrease the skills gap. With the support of CHED, the summit also aimed to forward recommendations for possible policy direction, and was captured by the "Way Forward" closing address from Dr. Cherrie Melanie Ancheta-Diego CESO III, Office of Programs and Standards Development.

CHEDx 2023 was the first step towards bringing together the academe, industry, and government for more responsive curricula, better development of graduates, and collaborative efforts to generate a vibrant and skilled workforce. Hopefully, this will just be the first of many summits in the years to come, as our country and the world at large continues to evolve with technology.