The AI Series

Closing the Tech ROI Gap: Turning AI and Automation into Measurable Business Results

AI has moved from the technology roadmap to the CEO agenda.

Most organisations are already using it somewhere. Some have bought licences. Some have teams experimenting. Some have automation projects underway. But many leaders are still asking the same commercial question: where is the measurable return?

Join The CEO Institute, in partnership with First Focus, for a practical national breakfast series for CEOs, business owners and senior leaders. Led by Ross Sardi, CEO of First Focus, the session will focus on how leaders can move beyond AI experimentation and connect technology decisions to productivity, margin, risk, governance and business performance.

The question is no longer whether AI has potential. It is whether your organisation has the operating model to turn that potential into results.

Ross will share a practical CEO-level view of where AI and automation create value, why many initiatives fail to move beyond experimentation, and how leaders can define ROI before they invest more time, budget or organisational energy.

This is not a technical session. It is a business conversation about where work can change, where risk needs to be controlled, and how to make AI adoption measurable.

What you'll walk away with

This series is designed to help CEOs assess AI and automation through a commercial lens.

You will leave with:

A practical way to define ROI before committing more budget to AI or automation
A clearer view of where AI can improve productivity, reduce manual work, improve quality, support revenue growth or reduce risk
Questions to take back to your leadership team, including: what are we automating next, what data needs to be governed, and where are we still relying on manual work?
A better understanding of why AI adoption requires more than licences, tools or isolated use cases
Insight into how leaders can avoid wasted spend and turn AI activity into measurable business outcomes

Who should attend?

This series is best suited to:

CEOs, Managing Directors, and business owners who want a clearer commercial view of AI and automation.
Senior leaders responsible for strategy, transformation, finance, risk, operations, or technology.
Leaders who are already investing in AI, or know they need to, but want a more disciplined way to connect that investment to measurable business value.

About Ross Sardi, CEO First Focus

Ross Sardi leads First Focus, one of Australia’s largest privately owned managed service providers. His perspective is shaped by the work First Focus is doing with businesses that are moving from traditional IT support to a more modern technology model built around AI adoption, automation, cyber security, and data governance.

Ross’s view is simple: AI return does not come from buying another tool. It comes from changing how work gets done, measuring the impact, and giving people the right support to use it safely and effectively.

Supported by First Focus

The AI Series is delivered with the support of First Focus, bringing practical experience across managed technology, cloud, cyber security, data governance, AI adoption and automation.

First Focus works with Australian businesses to make technology decisions clearer, safer and more commercially useful — helping leaders move from experimentation to adoption, and from adoption to measurable return.

Event Details

Queensland: Thursday 3rd September 2026. The Brisbane Club, Edinburgh Room. 7,00am - 9.00am
New South Wales: Friday 4th September 2026. The Langham Sydney. 8.00am - 10.00am
Victoria: Friday 11th September 2026. Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club. 8.00am - 10.00am.
South Australia: Thursday 17th September 2026. Gilbert Suite, Adelaide Convention Centre. 7.30am - 10.00am

Members: If you’re a CEO Institute member, your invitation is included with your membership and free of charge. You do not need to complete the registration form below. Your Member Experience team will confirm your seat directly.

Non-Members: Guests are welcome and free of charge, subject to availability. If you’d like to attend as a guest, please complete the registration form below and our team will confirm your place.

Note: Seats are limited in each city to protect the quality of the room. We recommend registering early.