Gamma’s Gamma GX conference, held on Thursday, 14 May 2026, once again delivered.
As usual, the venue in the QEII Centre in Westminster was packed, but always comfortable. If you missed it, and you wish you had been there, then personally I would suggest you reach out to your relevant Gamma contact, who will take you through the key touchpoints, and cover all the bases relevant to your account.
The Gamma leadership team also, as usual, delivered.
David (Dave) Macfarlane, Managing Director – Direct at Gamma (pictured) gave much food for thought, and probably stirred a few members of the audience to reflect on their own strategies and action plans in their respective organisations too, when he shared an update on Gamma’s performance and the strategic priorities shaping the next phase of growth.
The Boardroom CIO
As David pointed out, Gamma was talking about the role of the CIO (Chief Information Officer) in the boardroom in 2018. The CIO’s role, or for that matter any variation of that title in the boardroom such as CISO, CTO, CDO, CAIO, has evolved from managing IT infrastructure to shaping overall business strategy and digital transformation. CIOs in boardrooms today are expected to advise on, or take ownership of, areas such as AI, cybersecurity, data governance, operational efficiency and innovation, helping organisations stay competitive and resilient. Increasingly, the CIO acts as a bridge between technology and commercial leadership, ensuring technology investments support business goals.
And as David emphasized, “not a lot has changed”, CIOs are key figures in the boardroom today.
PSTN Switch Over
The number of PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) conversions are progressing, however, in the Gamma estate there is still work to be done, with 84,000 lines still to be tackled. The benefits to organisations in having an edge on customer experience (CX) cannot be understated.
In the words of David, “Talk to us”, as Gamma have many solutions that organisations are concerned about, such as keeping the “old” phone numbers and storing them in the cloud.
Hot Topic: The Sovereignty “Squeeze”
As David observed, a year ago, for many CIOs, this was not a top consideration.
The NIS2 Directive expands the original NIS rules by applying stricter security, incident reporting and risk management requirements to a much wider range of organisations, including sectors such as energy, healthcare, transport, finance, cloud services and digital infrastructure. NIS2 also introduces tougher enforcement powers and potential fines, while placing greater accountability on senior management for cybersecurity governance and compliance. Gamma can help audit any partner organisation if so desired.
Equally, with its acquisitions, Gamma’s UK and European access is far reaching for multi-territory customers.
Adding the AI challenge on top of Data Sovereignty Considerations
Macfarlane took a pragmatic approach to the AI subject, barely touching on the current lead times we all face for “hardware with silicon”, and the root cause of it. However, he acknowledged that perhaps 2027 will find organisations facing a “cliff-edge” where some will have to acknowledge and own up to the legacy stack and technical debt being carried.
There is growing industry discussion around “AI vendor lock-in”, with Gartner having predicted that 40% of enterprise apps would feature AI agents by the end of 2026, and Gartner is further predicting the same 40% of organisations deploying AI will use AI Observability to monitor their model performance by 2028.
From a Gamma perspective, it was acknowledged that each organisation will pick a model that works best for them – multi-cloud, multi-platform, some form of a hybrid or on prem solution, some level of security in-house or outsourced, but the main thrust for any CIO is to consider, and keep continually assessing, the enterprise’s financial and governance considerations. With the Gamma team having a broad experience with much that has gone before, the audience was encouraged to continue to use the help, support, and insight, that Gamma has.
From AI Pilot to AI Profitability
This was put simply: Gamma have the tools that can turn pilots into profits with real-world positive outcomes. Additionally, Gamma has the tools for recovery too.
Gamma have been involved in organisations delivering AI success through reinvigorating end-to-end workflows and can bring insights to the table, if involved in any project.
Secure Networking
An area that Gamma excels in is secure networking. Gamma’s reach and expansion was highlighted, and thus Gamma, with approved and secure altnets, has a multi-continent reach, working closely with Sky, Colt, allpoints fibre, vorboss, Openreach, Virgin O2, and major European providers such as Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom and the list went on.
The expansion is considerably reassuring, as David pointed out, “in networking you just cannot lose a packet of voice.” All lines can now be moved onto a fibre fixed line, and European countries such as Germany, and more, are included.
Gamma works across a breadth of 400+ retail partners, many with widely distributed estates, and thus, with Gamma’s partners, customers have access to Gamma’s “community of common interest.”
In addition, David did touch on Gamma cybersecurity, Gamma CX, Gamma Cloud Calling and Collaboration, and with platforms such as Microsoft Teams, Webex CC, Amazon Connect and more, also has a solution that is right for each and every enterprise. And for those putting AI in the network, Gamma can help support putting Agentic AI in the cloud too.
Have a Plan
David gave sage advice to the audience, “For Cyber, Identity and Data Sovereignty, have a plan.” He encouraged those attending to continue the conversation, and “Be your company’s AI hero.”
David Macfarlane was just one section of Gamma GX. The agenda was packed with insights and information, for 2026 and beyond, which is what one would expect from a future-looking service provider such as Gamma who has their finger on the pulse.
So, to end with an insight from Dave, “The CIO has a new mandate. They have, in essence, become the boardroom translator.”
Get in touch
David Macfarlane spoke for the first session of Gamma’s GX Summit. The agenda was packed with a plethora of speakers, and additional sessions were provided with the “Silent Stage” and during break sessions. If you suffer from FOMO, I would suggest you reach out to your relevant Gamma contact, who will take you through the key touchpoints, and cover all the bases relevant to your account.
