Any way you look at it, these are interesting times. Economic uncertainty meets disruption and innovation.

There are many ways to respond. You can focus on cost containment; invest now to take advantage; get your operations and governance in order; or press ahead into new markets and new opportunities.

Only two things are certain: standing still is not one of your options. And IT will play a critical role in whichever road you take. That’s where this year’s Gartner Symposium/ITxpo comes in. It’s a fresh new program with all the breadth and depth of insight to help you drive your strategy and sharpen your tactics including sessions focused on the ways IT can contribute to business outcomes. Plus a new focus on benchmarking and case studies as tools for improvement.

On the innovation front, you'll dive into the brave new worlds of cloud computing, enterprise social software, green information technology and the latest on SOA.

On the management side, you’ll learn about new cost control levers, the latest security strategies, airtight governance and intelligent consolidation.

Your budgets may or may not be tightening but there’s one event all year that you don't want to miss.