Annual Event - sessions details/program
As part of our Annual Event, this year’s edition — under the theme Connect & Grow — explores how software and IT services companies can build sustainable growth in a constantly evolving environment shaped by technological innovation, artificial intelligence, as well as broader economic and geopolitical challenges.
The evening will begin with a keynote speech by Charles Van den Bogaert, Country Manager at iBanFirst, who will briefly share insights into the company’s impressive growth journey.
This keynote will be followed by peer-to-peer discussions organized through thematic roundtables led by our members. Participants will have the opportunity to exchange practical experiences and strategic insights on key growth challenges faced by tech companies today, including AI-driven marketing, agentic AI, scaling strategies, KPI management, human resources and talent acquisition, as well as lead generation for large corporations.
Learn more about our keynote speaker
Who is Charles Van den Bogaert?
Charles Van den Bogaert is the recently appointed Country Manager of iBanFirst Belgium where he leads the company’s growth and commercial strategy, bringing a deep understanding of the Belgian business landscape to one of Europe’s most ambitious fintech scale-ups. Charles held multiple tech management roles across several industries, including launching Deliveroo in Belgium and The Hoxton in Brussels.
About iBanFirst
iBanFirst is a Belgian fintech platform (PSP) that gives SMEs direct access to currency markets and FX expertise to send, receive and hedge international payments, faster and more transparently than traditional banks.
A European Fintech Success Story
Born in Belgium in 2016, iBanFirst has grown into a major fintech player and one of Europe’s leading scale-ups: 10,000 B2B clients, 12 countries, 350 employees, and a decade of relentless execution to soon 100m€ revenue. One of the only 5 companies ever to appear in the Financial Times FT1000 ranking seven years in a row, iBanFirst has a story worth telling. And for HUB, you’ll hear firsthand how it was built!
Learn more about our speakers
Marketing leadership & AI: from strategic vision to team autonomy — Calixte des Lauriers (Yago)
Let’s reflect together on the evolving role of the marketing leader: sharing your vision, educating your teams, transforming processes, and boosting productivity by 40% while maintaining purpose in everyday work. Through a practical use case from Yago and the shared experiences of the participants, walk away with the keys to empower your teams to build, train, and challenge their own AI tools.
Speaker bio
As CMO at Yago with 7+ years in digital marketing (SEO, B2B/B2C Demand Gen), Calixte des Lauriers is deeply passionate about her team’s growth. One of her current challenges is empowering them to leverage over 30 custom AI agents, blending strategic vision and critical thinking to boost productivity while adding meaning to their daily work.
Anticipating the Agentic wave:
What SaaS vendors need to decide now — Caroline Vandenplas (Yuma)
In this interactive workshop, we’ll explore how Agentic AI systems—especially multi-agent setups—can help SaaS vendors unlock productivity gains and new growth levers. Through a round-table format , we’ll clarify what “agents” really are, review concrete SaaS use cases, and discuss how shifting user expectations and emerging regulation should shape your product and go-to-market roadmap.
Speaker bio
Caroline Vandenplas is a Partner at Yuma with deep expertise in AI strategy—helping organizations define where AI creates value, shape pragmatic roadmaps, and translate ambition into scalable initiatives. She combines strategic vision with hands-on experience across data and AI, guiding leadership teams on responsible adoption, operating models, and the capabilities needed to make AI stick.
Strategic KPI Management for scaling SaaS organizations — Xavier Lombard (Leexi)
How scaling SaaS companies can build a strategic KPI framework to guide growth and decision making by focusing on the metrics that matter and aligning KPIs with product and go-to-market priorities for more predictable scaling.
Speaker bio
Xavier Lombard, CEO and co-founder of Leexi — a Belgian AI note taker startup focused on intelligent call analysis — is a serial entrepreneur and former EDF research engineer who built successful ventures in renewable energy and insurtech before launching his third Belgian scale-up.
How Startups Attract and Retain Top Talent While Scaling — Amélie Alleman (Jobloom)
Scaling a company means building the right team at the right moment. This session explores how startups attract strong candidates, build a compelling employer brand, and create an environment where people grow and stay.
Speaker bio
Amélie Alleman is a recruitment entrepreneur with over 15 years of experience building innovative hiring solutions. She founded Akros Solutions, Betuned — a video recruitment platform — and Jobloom, a SaaS platform helping SMEs attract and hire better talent.
Winning Corporate Clients as a Small Innovation Services Company — Cédric de Bellefroid (Futurewave)
Landing large corporate clients can seem impossible for small tech/service companies.
In this session, we’ll share practical strategies to open doors, build trust, and turn early conversations into long-term partnerships.
Speaker bio
Cédric de Bellefroid is the co-founder of Futurewave, an award-winning product innovation studio working at the intersection of strategy, industrial design and engineering. Futurewave helps global international brands such as LVMH, Renault or Adidas turn emerging technologies into real products
From hustle to structure: growth as a system — Laurent Kinet & Olivier Beaujean (Novable)
If early growth rewards speed, scaling demands structure. In this interactive session, Novable’s founders share the operational, cultural and leadership shifts required to move from startup energy to sustainable scale.
Speaker bio
Laurent Kinet is co-founder and CEO of Novable, a startup intelligence platform working with leading worldwide innovation teams. Author and keynote speaker on corporate innovation and the impact of technology on society, he helps organisations move from ambition to structured execution.
Olivier Beaujean is co-founder and COO of Novable. He leads product and operations, translating growth ambition into scalable systems. With an engineering background, he focuses on building the processes and architecture that turn startup speed into sustainable scale.