How to survive and thrive in today's economic downturn will be the focus for the upcoming Smarter IT Decisions Conference held by Bermuda Computer Services (BCS), IBM's Bermuda Agency.

This half-day event, which will be held at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute on Tuesday April 14, between 8.30 a.m. and 12.30 p.m., will give the Island's business leaders, IT leaders and professionals fresh insights into how they can make smarter IT decisions leading to new cost savings and efficiency opportunities.

Terry Lister, Minister of Energy, Telecommunications and E-Commerce, will be the keynote speaker at the event.

IBM chairman, president and CEO, Sam Palmisano said: "The world is not just becoming smaller and 'flatter', it's also becoming smarter.

"Through pervasive instrumentation and interconnection, almost anything - any person, any object, any process or any service, for any organisation, large or small - can become digitally aware, networked and intelligent.

"And these new capabilities could not be more timely. Even in today's difficult environment, businesses are willing to invest in IT solutions - if they cut costs, drive efficiency and productivity, preserve capital and create competitive advantage. And that's exactly what 'smarter' solutions do." The upcoming Bermuda conference is a local version of the Smarter IT Decisions Conference roadshow currently being hosted across Canada. The Conference will feature a presentation from David Fraser, general manager of IBM's Caribbean North District, on IBM's Smarter Planet initiative. This will be followed by two one-hour breakout sessions that specifically address how companies can apply the concepts being presented into their business and IT strategies.

The session topics include:

• Unlocking the business value of information for competitive advantage.

• Consolidate, virtualise and save.

• How storage can help you save.

• CEO study update: Gain new insights to align your strategy, technology and operations, and take costs out of your business

For more information, contact Celina Florendo at 298-1298 or e-mail celina@bm.ibm.com.