Networking is an important ingredient in a CIO's stew of knowledge. The MIT Sloan CIO Symposium looks like a good place to indulge.Most CIOs have their networking opportunities of choice: local SIM (Society for Information Management) chapter meetings, for instance, or other grassroots-type CIO or technology-based organizations. I know of several, and they all provide a dynamic environment for the vital exchange of ideas between CIOs and among them and their peers in business and the technology industry.

There also are national CIO conferences and symposiums at which to network. They usually require a bit more commitment in terms of time and resources. I'm hoping InformationWeek's annual conference is at the top of that list (this year: Sept. 14-16, St. Regis Resort, Monarch Beach, Calif.).

This year I've also been involved with a CIO symposium being put on by MIT's Sloan School of Management. The MIT Sloan CIO Symposium is actually in its fifth year, and it's got an impressive lineup of speakers and topics, according a release from the organization:

The 5th Annual MIT Sloan Symposium will feature a morning CEO Keynote presentation by Ronald A. Williams, Chief Executive Officer of Aetna. Other speakers will include nearly 50 senior executives and professors with such organizations as Rolls Royce, Alcatel-Lucent, Marriott International, Massachusetts General Hospital, Bank of America, Forbes.com, IDC, Adobe, Special Olympics International, MIT, and Harvard Business School. The program will also feature CIO and Academic Keynote Panels. In addition, there will be a luncheon to honor winners of the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium 2008 Award for IT Innovation.

InformationWeek is the media sponsor of the MIT CIO Innovation Award, the first year the organization is putting on such a presentation. You can enter the awards contest here. I'll be emceeing the awards presentation, and I'm sure you won't want to miss that. I'm also a judge, so treat me nice.

Even if you don't care to enter the awards competition, there are plenty of information-exchange opportunities to warrant a trip to Massachusetts.

Sessions will help participants achieve success by leveraging innovative technologies while maintaining cost efficiency. Themes include the greening of the data center, virtualization of the IT infrastructure, the "analytics-driven" enterprise, and enterprise 2.0 technology enablers. Discussions will also focus on key vertical industries, including financial services, telecommunications/utilities, health care and life sciences, and the public sector.

The MIT Sloan CIO Symposium is taking place on May 21 in Cambridge, Mass. Make a note of it. I hope to see you there.