Interview with Syed Abdul Qadir, Executive Director — A. F. FERGUSON & CO. (PWC PAKISTAN): ‘Technology is no longer changing companies — it is deciding which economies compete’

Syed Abdul Qadir is Executive Director – IT & Cybersecurity Risk Assurance at A.F. Ferguson & Co. and Regional Vice President of the Global CISO Forum. With more than two decades of experience, he has worked across digital transformation, cybersecurity governance, technology risk, and business resilience.

He is also Global Advisor to the World CIO 200 Summit and has been closely involved with its Pakistan editions, which bring together business, technology, and cybersecurity leaders.

Qadir is the founder of TECH/SEC Leaders Forum Pakistan, a professional network of CIOs, CISOs and technology executives. He also serves on the Board of Advisors of the Global CISO Forum and is an Honorary Advisor to DEFCON Group Karachi.

An engineer with an MBA in Finance and Marketing, he holds professional credentials including CISA, PMP and ISO Lead Auditor certifications. He has represented Pakistan at international technology and cybersecurity forums including GITEX, GISEC, LEAP and Black Hat.

His work focuses on the growing role of cybersecurity, digital transformation, resilience, and technology governance in business competitiveness.

Following are the edited excerpts of a recent conversation BR Research had with him on the sidelines of the recently held World CIO Summit – Pakistan Edition in Karachi on September 12, 2026:

BR Research: The World CIO Summit has evolved into a global platform connecting technology leaders across markets. How did Pakistan become part of this global ecosystem, and how has the Pakistan edition evolved since its inception? What does Pakistan’s participation signal about the country’s position in the global technology leadership landscape?

Syed Abdul Qadir: Technology has no boundaries and neither should collaboration. Pakistan’s place in the global technology leadership conversation wasn’t handed to us. It was earned by proving that our CIOs, CISOs, and technology leaders belong on the same stage as their peers from 59 other countries.

That is the true power of the Global CIO Forum. Technology transcends borders, cultures, and geography. Cyber threats do not carry passports, innovation recognises no boundaries, and the challenges faced by a CIO in Karachi can be remarkably similar to those faced by leaders in London, Dubai, Baku, or Singapore.

The answer is not isolation, but collaboration. The Global CIO Forum brings leaders from across the world together to exchange knowledge, experiences, ideas, and solutions collectively strengthening the global technology ecosystem.

This year’s Pakistan Edition, powered by the Global CIO Forum and organised by ITCN Asia, brought together 1,000-plus CIOs, CISOs, CDOs, technology and business leaders, alongside 25 plus technology and cybersecurity companies as Key Partners, under one roof in Karachi.

That is no longer simply a local networking event. It is Pakistan’s node in a global community of 5,000 plus CIOs and technology leaders.

The message is simple and long overdue: Pakistan is no longer merely consuming global technology trends; our leaders are contributing to the conversations shaping them.

When a CISO from Karachi discusses sovereign infrastructure, AI governance, cybersecurity, and digital trust alongside leaders from around the world, Pakistan’s technology leadership is being recognised on merit not goodwill.

For me, this journey is about building bridges between Pakistan and the world and creating a platform where our technology community can be heard.

Technology has no nationality. Ideas have no borders. Innovation has no passport. And the future of the digital world will be built together.

I am deeply proud that Pakistan is now an active part of that global story.

BRR: You have increasingly emerged as a bridge between Pakistan’s technology leadership community and international platforms. What was the journey like from being a local technology professional to becoming a Country Advisor associated with a global CIO platform? What does it take to build and sustain credibility at an international level?

SAQ: It didn’t start on a global stage. It started quietly in risk assurance rooms, audit files, and cybersecurity governance engagements, doing the unseen work of understanding risk, technology, and resilience. Those years taught me that real credibility is built when nobody is watching. That foundation eventually gave me the substance to stand on platforms such as GITEX, GISEC, LEAP, Global CIO and Black Hat speaking from experience, not simply from a title.

I have always believed that international credibility is earned quietly, long before it is recognised publicly. It comes from consistently showing up, creating value, sharing genuine insights, keeping your word, and representing your country with honesty and integrity.

He most humbling moment came when Dr. Erdal Ozkaya, Tushar Sahoo, and the Global CIO Forum leadership trusted a local Pakistani technology professional to help build the Pakistan Edition from the ground up and deliver its first country keynote four years ago.

That trust meant more than a personal milestone. It was a vote of confidence in Pakistan. Since then, whenever I stand on an international stage, I try to carry with me our country’s talent, ambition, resilience, and the capabilities of its technology community.

For me, this journey is about building bridges, opening doors, and proving that Pakistan belongs at the global technology table.

BRR: There is often a perception that international leadership platforms are simply conferences or award programmes. Who is behind the World CIO 200 initiative globally, what is its broader vision, and what role do you personally play in connecting Pakistan with this global network?

SAQ:That is a misconception and is exactly what limits how seriously local stakeholders take these platforms, and it needs correcting. World CIO 200 is a global initiative run by the Global CIO Forum under the patronage of Tushar Sahoo, Founder of the Global CIO Forum, operating in 60 countries with a network exceeding ten thousand CIOs, CISOs and technology executives. Its vision is to build a standardised global benchmark for technology leadership, the same calibre of recognition and dialogue whether you are in UAE, Baku, London or Karachi.

My role as Country Ambassador is to make sure Pakistan’s presence in that network is substantive, not symbolic, shaping an agenda around what our TECH Leaders are actually wrestling with, from AI governance to sovereign infrastructure, and making sure Pakistan’s voice carries the same weight in that room as anyother member countries.

BRR: ITCN Asia has been one of Pakistan’s longest-running technology platforms and has traditionally brought together the country’s technology ecosystem. How does ITCN Asia’s role complement the World CIO Summit, and what does this partnership bring to Pakistan’s technology and business community that individual organisations may not be able to achieve on their own?

SAQ: ITCN Asia has played a pivotal role in helping translate the Global CIO Forum’s international vision into a successful Pakistan platform. Under the leadership of CEO Muhammad Umair Nizam, ITCN Asia brings decades of experience in delivering large scale IT exhibitions and conferences across Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad, along with deep local relationships and strong execution capabilities.

The Global CIO Forum brings the international brand, standards, vision, and global network, while ITCN Asia provides the local ecosystem, operational expertise, and relationships required to execute that vision at scale. The combination allows both platforms to focus on what they do best, while creating something significantly larger for Pakistan’s technology and business community.

The results speak for themselves. What began a few years ago as a World CIO session within ITCN Asia has evolved into a standalone flagship gathering of 1,000 plus technology and business leaders.

This growth could not have been achieved by either side alone. It is the result of global reach meeting local execution, with a shared commitment to connecting Pakistan’s technology leadership with the world.

BRR: Organising a major technology leadership platform involves governments, global organisations, corporate leaders, sponsors, partners, speakers and thousands of participants — each with different expectations. From your experience, what are the biggest challenges in aligning such diverse stakeholders, and how do you ensure that the initiative creates lasting value beyond the event itself?

SAQ: The hardest part is not curating content; it’s reconciling competing definitions of success. Global organisers want brand consistency, sponsors want measurable engagement with the right decision makers, government and regulatory stakeholders want alignment with national digital priorities, and delegates simply want their time to matter. Left unmanaged, those priorities pull an event in directions that dilute its actual value.

Our approach is to be transparent early about what the platform can and cannot deliver, and to keep returning to one filter: does this decision genuinely serve the delegate’s experience and Pakistan’s ecosystem, or does it just serve a sponsor line item?

Lasting value comes from the relationships and conversations that continue in boardrooms and WhatsApp groups long after the stage lights go off, that’s the real return on an event like this.

BRR: You founded the TECH/SEC Leaders Forum several years before the current wave of global CIO and technology leadership initiatives. What gap did you originally identify in Pakistan’s technology and cybersecurity ecosystem, and how do you measure the impact of a community like this beyond attendance numbers and events?

SAQ: Pakistan never lacked conferences and gatherings, it lacked a sustained, trust based fraternity where CIOs and CISOs could speak candidly between events, not just at them. TECH/SEC Leaders Forum was built to fill exactly that gap: a year-round community where senior technology executives can share real experiences, including failures and near misses, in a setting honest enough to actually be useful.

I don’t measure its impact by headcount at a launch event. I measure it by how many of those relationships turn into a CISO calling another CISO during an active incident, a CIO getting an honest reference before hiring or even his own job movement, or young professionals getting mentored into leadership roles because a senior member vouched for them. That is the metric that actually moves the ecosystem forward, and it’s invisible on any attendance sheet.

BRR: Your professional background spans technology leadership, cybersecurity, governance, audit, project management and international certifications, including ISACA, PMI and ISO frameworks. How has this governance-oriented perspective influenced the way you build communities, select leaders, curate platforms and establish credibility in an ecosystem where relationships and reputation matter enormously?

SAQ: My professional training has shaped how I build communities. I apply the same discipline I bring to risk assurance and cyber governance: define the objective, understand accountability, and measure real value not simply attendance or applause.

That governance mindset keeps a platform from becoming a popularity contest. I curate speakers and recognise leaders based on contribution, credibility, knowledge, and willingness to give back, rather than visibility or self-promotion.

In any ecosystem, reputation is currency. Protecting it means being deliberate about who gets a platform and why.

For me, leadership is not about filling a stage; it is about building a trusted ecosystem where the right people, ideas, and conversations create lasting value.

BRR: You are also closely engaged with mentoring young professionals and creating opportunities for emerging technology and cybersecurity talent. How do you assess Pakistan’s current talent pipeline, particularly in areas such as AI, cybersecurity, cloud and digital transformation? And looking ahead, what needs to change for Pakistani technology leaders and young professionals to move from participating in global platforms to shaping them?

SAQ: The raw talent is genuinely exceptional, I regularly meet 24-year-olds technically sharper than professionals were at 34 a generation ago, particularly in AI and cybersecurity. What’s missing isn’t ability, it’s exposure at the right time access to mentors who can translate technical skill into career direction, and access to rooms, like the CIO Summit or TECH/SEC Forum, where they can see what senior technology leadership actually looks like before they’re 40.

For Pakistan to move from participating in global platforms to shaping them, our leaders need to stop treating international stages as a destination and start treating them as a starting point, bringing back frameworks, co-authoring global standards, and pushing our best young talent onto those stages years earlier than we ourselves got there. That handover is the only way this momentum outlives any one individual.

BRR: Pakistan’s IT exports have grown strongly in recent years, but competition is intensifying as AI changes how technology services are delivered and priced. Where do you see Pakistan’s IT exports heading over the next five years, and what must the industry do to move beyond low-cost outsourcing towards higher-value services, products and AI-led solutions?

SAQ: If Pakistan is to transform its economy and strengthen its global standing, technology has to be one of the principal engines of that transformation. There is no shortage of talent or ambition, the real question is whether we can move from competing on cost to competing on capability.

The next five years will be decisive. AI is rapidly commoditising routine, labour intensive work, putting pressure on the low-cost outsourcing model Pakistan has historically relied upon. Our advantage can no longer be simply that we are affordable; it must be that we are exceptional.

The opportunity is to move decisively toward AI led solutions, cybersecurity and GRC services, product engineering, and other high-value technology offerings where Pakistan is chosen for expertise, innovation, and outcomes.

That requires enterprises to invest seriously in AI governance, digital resilience, and sovereign infrastructure, while our CIOs, CISOs, and technology leaders use every global platform, including this summit, to present Pakistan as a source of high-value, trusted technology talent.

We should not aspire to be the world’s cheapest technology workforce. We should aspire to be one of its most trusted and capable.

What we build over the next five years will shape not only Pakistan’s IT export story, but how the world sees Pakistan in the digital economy for the next twenty.