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Speakers and Panels

State of the Market:

How Much More Growth is Arizona Poised to See?

Mitchell Fonseca

Mitchell Fonseca

COO

Edged

Michael Ortiz

Michael Ortiz

CEO

Layer 9 Datacenters

Arman Khalili

Arman Khalili

Partner

Blackstart Infrastructure Partners

George Slessman

George Slessman

Co-Founder & CEO

DCX Data Centers

Aaron Wangenheim

Aaron Wangenheim

CEO

Base Partners

Anthony Wanger

Anthony Wanger

Founder & CEO

Regnaw Capital

Kirk Busch
Moderator

Kirk Busch

CEO

BigData Southwest

Mitchell Fonseca

COO

Edged

Mitch Fonseca leads the global datacenter product management and commercial services teams for Cyxtera, responsible for product pricing and positioning. With over 11 years in IT infrastructure, Fonseca has experience in product management, operations, sales, finance and business development.

Mitch Fonseca leads the global datacenter product management and commercial services teams for Cyxtera, responsible for product pricing and positioning. With over 11 years in IT infrastructure, Fonseca has experience in product management, operations, sales, finance and business development.

Most recently, Fonseca served as Sr Director of Strategy and Operations at General Electric, where he helped develop GE’s long-term datacenter and cloud strategy and headed GE’s datacenter operation teams.

Prior to GE, he joined Digital Realty, through their acquisition of Telx. At Digital Realty, Fonseca served as Director of Global Product Management for Colocation and Services. There he managed Digital Realty’s retail colocation product within North American, Europe and Asia; driving increased profitability to a wholesale datacenter footprint.

Michael Ortiz

CEO

Layer 9 Datacenters

Michael bring 23 years of investment banking, commercial real estate, and digital infrastructure experience, and with it he brings a deep understanding how mission critical infrastructure is the bind which holds today’s digital economy together. Serving as Chief Executive Officer for Layer 9 Data Centers, Michael leads the organization’s growth initiatives into Latin America where Layer 9 will begin delivering in 2023 hyperscale data center solutions to cloud service providers and enterprise 1000 clients.

Michael has maintained leadership roles with hyperscale data center operators, Digital Realty and DuPont Fabros Technology and previously served in Portfolio Management at Equity Office Properties through the sale of the company to Blackstone in 2007. Michael’s investment banking experience at JP Morgan and Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group focused on capital debt placements and distressed credit workouts. Michael recently earned his Executive Education Certifications in Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence from the University Of Oxford.

Arman Khalili

Partner

Blackstart Infrastructure Partners

Arman Khalili is the Founder and CEO of Foundation Data Center and is a Board Member of Evocative and brings with him over 25 years of experience in Internet Infrastructure industry.

Prior to joining the company, Arman served as a Principal at Industry Capital a real assets based private equity firm in San Francisco. He was the founder and CEO of CentralColo also known as Element Critical. Prior to that, he was the CEO of Black Lotus, a leader in DDoS mitigation company, which was acquired by Level 3, and was the Founder/CEO of UnitedLayer, the largest privately held colocation provider in San Francisco. He was the founder of Sirius – one of the first ISPs in Silicon Valley, as well as the Co-founder and CTO of MusicBank, the first music subscription company. He has held numerous senior consulting positions at Level3, AT&T and Apple Computers.

George Slessman

Co-Founder & CEO

DCX Data Centers

George Slessman is a technology entrepreneur and visionary with over 25 years of experience in transforming software and digital infrastructure to meet the demands of the future. As the CEO and co-founder of DCX, Slessman, alongside his brother Bill Slessman, has been instrumental in pioneering advancements within the high-performance computing (HPC), cloud, and data center sectors. Their leadership at DCX aims to provide digital infrastructure solutions tailored for businesses requiring support for HPC, artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML), and other mission-critical applications.

Aaron Wangenheim

CEO

Base Partners

As the Chief Executive Officer, Aaron provides leadership, strategy, and management for

Base Partners with a focus on data center development and operations, as well as emerging

power and electricity technologies. Base Partners, Inc. is an advisory and development

company focused on next-generation mission-critical facilities and services.

Aaron has held numerous leadership positions throughout his career covering every facet of the data

center industry, including site selection and acquisition, sales, marketing, operations, finance and

more. Aaron started in the industry in the 1990s as a consultant, acquiring data center sites for

the first generation of mission critical facilities, before transitioning into the role of developer,

owner and operator of modern, efficient and sustainable data centers.

Prior to Base Partners, Aaron Was the Chief Operating Officer of T5 Data Centers. Aaron holds

a B.A. in Economics from the University of California Los Angeles.

Kirk Busch

Moderator

BigData Southwest

Mr. Busch is the CEO of BigData Southwest & Chairman of Az4Solar.Org. Mr. Busch has over 25 years experience in the Global Semiconductor Industry. For the last decade, Mr. Busch has focused on Economic Development in the Energy and Data Center Industries. Mr. Busch currently serves on the Board of AzSTEM & Arizona Energy Consortium.

More Compute With Greater Efficiency:

How to Optimize Your IT Infrastructure Amidst Limited Resources

Ryan Gruver

Ryan Gruver

Independent Data Center Leader

Brent Mitchell

Brent Mitchell

Senior Manager, Data Center Services

PayPal

Harrison Stoll

Harrison Stoll

VP, Operations

EdgeCore Digital Infrastructure

Nabeel Mahmood
Moderator

Nabeel Mahmood

Co-Founder

Nomad Futurist Foundation

Ryan Gruver

Independent Data Center Leader

Ryan Gruver is a native Phoenician, with over 16 years of experience in the IT field, 14 years of that being in the data center. He holds a Master’s of Science in Information Management from Arizona State University, and a Bachelor’s of Science in Software Engineering from the University of Advancing Technology.

Ryan has served in a variety of roles in IT from a Data Center Operator, System Admin / Engineer, and now as an IT Director. He has a passion for continuous improvement of services he manages, enabling employees to do their best, and ensuring customers get an excellent experience.

Harrison Stoll

VP, Operations

EdgeCore Digital Infrastructure

As EdgeCore’s Vice President of Operations, Harrison is responsible for all facilities, security and customer experience personnel and ensuring these teams adhere to EdgeCore’s commitment to client obsession and operational excellence.

Harrison brings over ten years of experience managing and maintaining mission-critical facilities to the EdgeCore team. Prior to joining EdgeCore, Harrison held roles in both the client services and facilities groups at CoreSite Realty Corporation and served six years in the U.S. Navy as a Nuclear Machnist’s Mate.

Harrison graduated cum laude from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University with a B.S. in Technical Management.

Nabeel Mahmood

Moderator

Nomad Futurist Foundation

Nabeel Mahmood is a Technologist, Futurist and a Keynote Speaker. His career is driven by one question – what’s next? He is passionate about the power of technology to deliver competitive and transformational change and the need to develop digital leadership that will create the enterprise of the future. He believes strongly in simplification, with a purpose. Nabeel brings 18 plus years of experience leading large-scale global technology organizations through seasons of explosive growth via M&A, global expansion, implementing new business models and technology innovation. His expertise includes leading organizations through transformation changes, connecting IT to the needs of the business, technology innovation, Big Data, Cloud, ERP, IoT, Mobility and Data Centers. He brings a unique blend of experiences spanning the entire breadth of technology from Grid to Chip. At, heart he’s a true technologist and futurist, he is a proven strategist, winsome communicator and leader with extraordinary vision and operational expertise within very large, complex organizations. Nabeel is a strategic CIO identifying opportunities that are being underpinned by emerging technologies. He serves on multiple boards and is an advisor to CIOs and CEO across a number of industries.

How To Avoid A (Multi-) Million-Dollar Mistake:

Identifying Vulnerabilities That Are Often Overlooked

Andrew Burwell

Andrew Burwell

Security Manager

EdgeCore Digital Infrastructure

Valerie Gramiak

Valerie Gramiak

Sales Engineer

Edged Energy

Carlos Francisco

Carlos Francisco

Regional Security Leader

Meta

Christopher Babb
Moderator

Christopher Babb

Director

Ameristar Perimeter Security USA Inc.

Amy Dunton
Moderator

Amy Dunton

Business Development for Tier II, III and Edge

Ameristar Perimeter Security USA

Carlos Francisco

Regional Security Leader

Meta

Carlos is an accomplished security customer-centric executive. He is an expert in building world-class customer-centric security experiences by providing the strategic direction necessary to create memorable outcomes. Carlos has a record of leadership success as a Disney World leadership team member and a Tech Global Security Leader. Under his leadership, security teams surprised and delighted millions of guests and employees worldwide.

In the last 25 years, Carlos Francisco, CPP, has led the security teams of some of the largest corporations in the world. This includes Walt Disney World, Amazon, and Meta (Facebook). He also has had the tremendous responsibility of leading security teams during major international events such as Super Bowl 50, Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, World-Class Marathons, and many more. Carlos was a prior Deputy Sheriff and holds a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice with a Security Leadership certificate from the University of Central Florida, and a Master's in Disaster & Emergency Management from American Military University.

Carlos is an accomplished security operations executive, a podcaster, and an Amazon #1 Release, "So, You Want to Get into Corporate Security?" with proven leadership in driving corporate security programs. Carlos created the moniker, "The Corporate Security Translator," which he uses to go out into the world and share his security knowledge.

Amy Dunton

Moderator

Ameristar Perimeter Security USA

Amy Dunton is a business development professional with a focus on developing business

relationships and strategies with her customers, partners and industry peers. Serving as

the foundation of her consultative wholistic approach, Amy’s over 25 years of experience

in physical and network security, structured cabling, power/cooling, connectivity,

network, storage, and compute brings a well-rounded and unique perspective to the

critical infrastructure industry.  Her roles have included working for distribution,

manufacturing, manufacturing representatives, and a leading Enterprise IT Solutions

provider.  Her expansive network and understanding of IT infrastructure, Facilities and

Data Centers has fuelled a passion for creating an environment with more collaboration

as IT Infrastructure and technology trends can greatly impact how we design, build and

secure our data centers and critical infrastructure.

Amy currently serves on the board of the AFCOM Greater MN Chapter and the 7x24

Exchange MN Chapter. She is serving as the Co-Chair for the SIA Perimeter Security

From Site Selection to Delivery:

How Providers Are Meeting Client Demand with Speed, Scale and Sustainability in Mind

Allan Gazza

Allan Gazza

Manager, IT Infrastructure - Data Center

State of Arizona (Arizona Strategic Enterprise Technology)

Renae Sams

Renae Sams

Senior Program Manager, Data Center Delivery

Microsoft

Chad Labucki

Chad Labucki

VP, Mission Critical

Clayco

Tony Qorri

Tony Qorri

VP, Construction

DataBank

Jonathan Mesik

Jonathan Mesik

Principal, Mission Critical - National

DLR Group

Terry Rennaker

Terry Rennaker

Partner

Eagle Rock Partners

Christy Swearingen

Christy Swearingen

Consultant

Ex-Microsoft & Ex-Oracle

Blaine Warden
Moderator

Blaine Warden

VP & MSCR Practice Lead

Telios Corporation

Kurt Lindorfer
Moderator

Kurt Lindorfer

Founding Principal

PARADIGM Structural Engineers

Chad Labucki

VP, Mission Critical

Clayco

Chad provides executive oversight in client development, design, construction, and commissioning for Clayco’s Mission Critical projects. As an expert in integrated delivery, Chad and his team work alongside mission critical owners, design teams, and engineers to utilize lean construction techniques and creative solutions to deliver high-performing facilities. Through these initiatives, Chad’s knowledge and relationships within the hyperscale data center market have allowed him to bring Clayco to the forefront of the mission critical market segment.

Blaine Warden

Moderator

Telios Corporation

12 years of multi-discipline electrical and mechanical engineering experience in the data center industry

Kurt Lindorfer

Moderator

PARADIGM Structural Engineers

Kurt’s professional engineering career spans over 40 years. His expertise includes structural engineering design for Mission Critical Facilities such as Data Centers, Health Care Facilities such as Hospitals and Clinics and Life Sciences Facilities such as Biopharmaceutical Pilot Plants and Production Facilities around the United States and the World. His area of expertise is in designing buildings to be occupable after natural disasters including Tornados, Hurricanes and Earthquakes. He has been the structural engineer of record for conventional “fixed Base Buildings” ranging from 1-23 stories, “Base Isolated Buildings” ranging from 1-5 stories, and the retrofit and new construction of buildings incorporating Fluid Viscous Dampers ranging from 1-22 stories. He has published numerous papers on passive energy dissipation and presented the findings at various conventions in Boston, San Francisco and Milan.

For over 23 years as the Founding Principal at PARADIGM Structural Engineers, Kurt spends most of his time developing new leaders at PARADIGM and mentoring staff in Chicago and San Francisco.

Understanding How To Successfully Optimize Energy Usage & Sustainability Practices - What Is It Going to Take?

Sustainability Practices That Work and Don't

Lindsey Bruner

Lindsey Bruner

COO

CleanArc Data Centers

Brian Jabeck

Brian Jabeck

VP, Data Center Sector

Enchanted Rock

Phill Lawson-Shanks

Phill Lawson-Shanks

Chief Innovation Officer

Aligned Data Centers

Jim McDonald

Jim McDonald

Founder & Director, ENP Consultants, A Miratech Group

MIRATECH Corporation

Travis Wright

Travis Wright

VP, Energy & Sustainability

QTS

Samir Shah
Moderator

Samir Shah

Managing Partner & Co-Founder

TBL Mission Critical

Lindsey Bruner

COO

CleanArc Data Centers

An accomplished executive, Lindsey brings together expertise in project development for both data centers and renewable energy. Lindsey led the advancement of several hundred megawatts of data center pipelines across the US and Europe, and her renewable energy development experience extends to the US, Canada and parts of South America.

Prior to joining CleanArc, Lindsey served as Vice President of Project Development at CyrusOne, a leading global data center developer and operator specializing in delivering state-of-the-art digital infrastructure solutions across the globe. At CyrusOne, she led the global Project Development team and was responsible for the strategy, execution, and delivery of the company’s organic data center development projects. Prior to this role, Lindsey served as CyrusOne’s Senior Corporate Counsel of Real Estate & Construction, working alongside the company’s U.S. and global site selection and construction teams in all aspects of site selection and development. Previously, Lindsey served as Senior Attorney for the Americas division of RES Group, the world’s largest independent renewable energy company, where she represented the organization in various matters related to the development and construction of utility scale renewable energy projects. Lindsey began her career as an attorney in private practice focused on commercial and industrial real estate.

Lindsey holds an AB in English from Duke University, a JD from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, and an Executive MBA from Quantic School of Business and Technology.

Brian Jabeck

VP, Data Center Sector

Enchanted Rock

Brian Jabeck joined the Enchanted Rock team in 2021 and is responsible for global sales and customer support to the data center industry. Brian brings over 15 years of sales and business development expertise in the energy and power generation markets. He has supported global data center customers on 3 continents to provide customer focused solutions to their on-site power generation challenges. Through this experience Brian worked extensively with data center design and operations teams as well as their contractor, design, and

Phill Lawson-Shanks

Chief Innovation Officer

Aligned Data Centers

With over 30 years of industry experience, Phill has played a pivotal role in shaping the future of data center infrastructure, network architecture, and cloud solutions worldwide.

As Chief Innovation Officer at Aligned Data Centers, Phill spearheads the identification of emerging trends and technologies, strategically leveraging them to shape Aligned's innovation roadmap. He's instrumental in cultivating a culture of creativity, driving the development of new products and partnerships that ensure the company remains both competitive and highly adaptable in today's rapidly evolving market.

Before joining Aligned, Phill served as Chief Innovation Officer at EdgeConneX, where he was instrumental in developing edge-based network data centers that underpin today’s digital content ecosystem. His career spans senior executive roles at Virtacore, Alcatel-Lucent, SAVVIS (now CenturyLink Technology Solutions), and MCI (now Verizon Digital Media Services), as well as Compaq/HPE.

Phill holds eight active technology patents and serves as a board member for organizations such as Netrality Data Centers, the Clean Energy Buyers Association (CEBA), and the Nomad Futurist Foundation. Known for his ability to distill complex technical concepts into actionable strategies, Phill is a sought-after speaker and advisor, recognized for his innovation and commitment to advancing sustainability in the digital infrastructure sector.

Phill’s unique journey—from his early roles in enterprise systems development and digital infrastructure to his leadership in global technology firms—reflects his passion for challenging the status quo and empowering the next generation of technology leaders.

Jim McDonald

Founder & Director, ENP Consultants, A Miratech Group

MIRATECH Corporation

As a Co-founder in 1992, and currently the Director of Environmental Impact at MIRATECH Corporation, Jim provides leadership, strategy and product design expertise for their Power Generation division. Jim rejoined Miratech Corporation in 2019 heading up the ENP Concepts consulting arm after management positions at Rypos Corporation and leading the environmental department at PowerSecure’s microgrid group. In charge of tracking all Federal, State and Local emissions regulations as they pertain to backup generators located at Datacenters in North America and Europe, he ensures MIRATECH’s products and services offer ongoing compliance. Mr. McDonald has testified before the Federal EPA numerous times and is considered a valuable stakeholder on several rulemaking teams at the State Level. For 15 years he has been an instructor for the Advanced School of the Electrical Generating Systems Association on the subject of Emissions from Diesel engines and has authored the textbook chapter on the same. He has a Patent Pending on the use of wire mesh DPF substrates in the pre-heating of SCR catalyst blocks. As the originator of the ‘GVU’ measurement parameter, Jim performs analyses to show the relative comparison on Ultraclean diesel generators versus grid supplied power. As such he advocates for the environmentally justifiable use of stationary generators until emerging renewable technologies are proven and cost effective. Jim holds a B.S in mechanical Engineering from the University of Delaware.

Samir Shah

Moderator

TBL Mission Critical

Samir Shah is the Managing Partner and Co-Founder of TBL Mission Critical. TBL is a leading provider of Field Service, General & Electrical Construction, and Strategic MDC Sourcing for the data center industry. Prior to this role, Samir acted in a variety of C-level roles for private equity funded growth stage companies including Trax Technology, Techstars, BASELAYER, and IO Data Centers. Originally from Chicago, Samir has a BS and MS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois, and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Why You Can't Miss This Data Center

What You'll Learn From Data Center Owners, Operators, or Developers:

  • Phoenix was one of the most active hyperscale markets in 2021 and 2022, with a record absorption year last year. Will the trend continue in 2023?

  • What are the main drivers of growth for Phoenix and the Southwest? What ecosystem developments are taking place and where is the opportunity?

  • How will the development of semiconductor facilities impact the industry's future development plans and timelines?

  • What are innovations and best practices in data center management to facilitate maximum efficiency? How are operators using less water and energy to power more compute?

  • How can operators eliminate the risk of data center security breaches, both physical and cyber? Which areas are the most vulnerable?

  • Which regions across the Southwest are driving the most development? Mesa, Goodyear now have several data center campuses - which areas are next?

  • How are enterprises in the region thinking about their IT strategy?

How You'll Do More Business From Attending: Get up to speed on one of the fastest growing tier II data center markets, learn what customers are looking for and make better business decisions based on the right insights.

Who You'll Meet During Networking: Investors, vice president of design and construction, owners, head of acquisitions, providers, contractors, engineers, brokers, developers

Are you an end user*?

Click here to be considered for a complimentary pass. *Hyperscaler, colocation provider (non-sales), investor, private equity, or enterprise tenant.

For questions, group ticket rates or interest in becoming a speaker or sponsor, please email our DICE Global Director, Adam Knobloch, adam.knobloch@bisnow.com

Venue

The Camby Hotel
2401 E. Camelback Road
Phoenix, AZ 85016

Ballroom: Camby Ballroom 1 & 2


Onsite Parking: $8 per day

Get Directions

Agenda

Time Activity
3:00 PM
3:25 PM
Registration, Breakfast and Networking
3:25 PM
3:30 PM
Opening Remarks: Welcome to DICE Southwest
3:30 PM
4:10 PM
State of the Market: How Much More Growth is Arizona Poised to See?

Favorable tax advantages, reliable power grid, renewable energy sources. There are many reasons why Arizona and Phoenix, in particular, had a record absorption year in 2022. What is the projected growth for 2023? How will the development of semiconductor facilities impact the industry’s development and future in the region? What can we expect to see in the next 3-5 years?

4:10 PM
4:50 PM
More Compute With Greater Efficiency: How to Optimize Your IT Infrastructure Amidst Limited Resources

Given today’s increasing demand in digital infrastructure coupled with power limitations and supply chain disruptions, how are operators optimizing their current infrastructure and designs to further enhance cooling, energy usage and power densities? What is working and what is not?

4:50 PM
5:15 PM
Networking Break
5:15 PM
5:35 PM
Fireside Chat: How To Avoid A (Multi-) Million-Dollar Mistake: Identifying Vulnerabilities That Are Often Overlooked

There is an increasing amount of security breaches, both physical and cyber, happening in and around our data centers and that impacts the company’s bottom line; affecting all stakeholders. This session will explore the vulnerabilities that are overlooked, how to solve them, and ensure your systems keep running.

5:35 PM
6:15 PM
Understanding How To Successfully Optimize Energy Usage & Sustainability Practices - What Is It Going to Take?

Year after year, sustainability continues to be top priority for all data center stakeholders, from builders to end users. Despite the progress made, significant inefficiencies remain along with room for much improvement and advancement. With that, what are the advances that have been made? What types of material changes are taking place within the data center today to reduce emissions? What are feasible solutions that can be implemented and metrics that can be used?

6:15 PM
7:00 PM
Site Selection to Delivery: How Providers Are Meeting Client Demand with Speed, Scale and Sustainability in Mind

With the Nevada and Phoenix data center markets proving to be feasible alternatives to the pricey Northern California market, the development pipeline continues to grow with an increasing number of players entering the market. How are developers thinking about site selection, design and construction in these markets? What are important considerations that need to be made?

7:00 PM
7:30 PM
Post-Event Networking

Are you an end user*?

Click here to be considered for a complimentary pass.

*Hyperscaler, colocation provider (non-sales), investor, private equity, or enterprise tenant.