Keynote Speakers

Date	Start	End	Session Type	Speaker
Day 2	9:20	10:05	Keynote 1	Satoshi Takahashi
Day 2	10:10	10:55	Keynote 2	Haris Syarwani Razali
Day 2	11:15	13:15	Workshop 2	BRIAN CRACKNELL
Day 2	14:15	16:10	Keynote 3 + Workshop 3	Ken Kawashima
Day 3	9:15	10:00	Keynote 4	Silvia Drahošová
Day 3	10:30	12:00	Keynote 5 + Workshop 5	Ryoji Fukaya

Day2 Thursday, September 17, 2026

Biography:

Satoshi Takahashi is the Solutions & Delivery Leader of IBM Japan, overseeing service delivery activities including consulting, system development and application maintenance.

With around 30 years of experience, he has led sales and delivery initiatives related to business operations, business transformation, organizational transformation and IT transformation, primarily for clients in the banking and financial markets industry.

In 2024, Satoshi was certified as a Managing Delivery Partner, becoming the sixth person globally at IBM and the first at IBM Japan to receive this recognition. He has also led multiple large-scale transformation programs, including core banking system integration, IT workforce transformation and joint venture initiatives with major financial institutions.

Drawing on his extensive experience in leading complex strategic projects, Satoshi brings practical insights into large-scale delivery, organizational change and digital transformation.

Biography:

Haris Syarwani Razali is a Senior Principal Assistant Director at the Institute of Diplomacy and Foreign Relations (IDFR), Ministry of Foreign Affairs Malaysia, specialising in diplomatic training, cultural diplomacy and international engagement.

Through the Malaysian Technical Cooperation Programme (MTCP), he has worked with more than 700 participants from over 140 countries across ASEAN, Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. He has also contributed to major regional engagements, including ASEAN-related summits and high-level international meetings.

Haris regularly delivers training and lectures on intercultural communication, diplomacy and stakeholder engagement, with a particular interest in how communication, culture and leadership shape international collaboration.

Biography:

Brian is the Founder and Director of Language Works, a consultancy specialising in communication skills, project management, trainer development and organisational learning. He has enjoyed a long-standing partnership with IDFR, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Malaysia, spanning more than three decades. As a trainer and consultant, he has played a significant role in developing the communication, training and professional capabilities of Malaysian diplomats and IDFR officers.

His contributions to IDFR include serving as lead trainer for the Diploma in Diplomacy (DiD), the Institute’s flagship programme, where he delivers highly practical modules in public speaking, strategic communication, media engagement and the Defending National Interest module. Since 2015, he has also been lead trainer for IDFR's Advanced Diploma in Teaching, Training and Assessing Learning (TeTrA), helping to develop the Institute's pool of professional trainers. In addition, he has conducted Training Needs Analyses for the Centre for Languages and Cultural Diplomacy, supporting continuous development of language and intercultural communication programmes.

For IPMA, Brian has been a Team Lead Assessor, Judge and Assessor Trainer for the Global Project Excellence (GPE) Award and is a Project Excellence Baseline ( PEB) Professional. Between 2023 and 2025, he delivered a keynote, two papers and a Special Lecture at SPM Japan ProMAC. He has also presented at IPMA GECCO and at World Congresses in Turkey, Mexico and Russia. He is a recipient of IPMA’s Excellent Project Management Performance award.

Biography:

Ken Kawashima is a Project Manager and Kyndryl PM Community Leader at Kyndryl Japan.

Ken Kawashima joined IBM Japan in 2000 and transferred to Kyndryl Japan in 2021 following the company separation. Through a long career in enterprise IT services, Ken Kawashima has developed practical experience in project management and delivery, while also contributing to professional community activities for project managers within Kyndryl.

As a PM Community Leader, Ken Kawashima supports knowledge sharing and collaboration among project management professionals. Drawing on experience in both project delivery and community leadership, Ken Kawashima brings practical perspectives on project management, communication and professional development.

Day3 Friday, September 18, 2026

Biography:

In her profession, she addresses ideas on changes when it is not effective or it is not possible to manage them via line management, where there is space and the need to achieve a common goal by deploying project management.
She has been actively involved in project management for years (out of it 19 years in Telco). She founded and led a team of seventeen professional project managers.
She has established the company Project Frequency to provide consultancy, mentoring and coaching services in the field of project management.
She supports companies in the implementation of project management, in the project culture co-creation (people/ methodologies/processes/ tools for project management).
In addition, she focuses on the development of project management on an international scale. She has long-term experience as an assessor of IPMA certification in Slovakia, as a validator of the IPMA certification system in the international environment. She is in the role of the President of IPMA Slovakia and as of January 2024 she acts as the Vice-President for Professional Development in the IPMA Executive Board.

Biography:

He joined Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Public Corporation, now NTT, in 1984. After studying at Stanford University as a graduate student, he developed extensive domestic and international experience in the planning, development and project management of IT applications and services for both the public and private sectors.
His work focuses on the social implementation of digital technologies, particularly in data analytics and data management, as well as the development of inclusive ecosystems that engage diverse stakeholders. He has pursued both research and practical applications in these areas.
Since April 2022, he has served as Professor at the Data Science and AI Innovation Research Promotion Center, Shiga University, where he has been engaged in fostering globally competitive talent with expertise in both digital technologies and global perspectives. He has held his current position since April 2026.

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