Mar 2026 PDM – AI Governance in Critical Infrastructure: Telecom Industry Lessons for Managing Risk in the Age of Autonomous Networks
March 14 @ 5:00 pm IST - 7:00 pm IST
Free – ₹1000Program Details
Date: Saturday, March 14, 2026 Mode: Virtual (Note: We planned to do a physical PDM for March, however due to the current circumstances we are keeping the meeting virtual) CPE 2:00 Hours
Agenda
17:00 - 17:15: Virtual Networking 17:15 - 17:18: Welcome by ISACA Chennai Chapter Director Programs 17:18 – 17:30: Chapter Updates & Speaker Introduction 17:30 - 18:50: Session on AI Governance in Critical Infrastructure: Telecom Industry Lessons for Managing Risk in the Age of Autonomous Networks by Dr. Karthikeyan Soundararajan 18:50 - 19:00: Questions and Closure comments
Artificial Intelligence is rapidly transforming the way critical infrastructure systems operate. In the telecommunication industry, AI is increasingly embedded in network operations, enabling capabilities such as predictive maintenance, traffic optimization, automated fault detection, and cybersecurity
monitoring.
As telecom networks evolve toward autonomous, self-operating architectures, decision making is progressively shifting from human operators to machine-driven algorithms. While this transformation significantly improves efficiency, scalability, and service quality, it also introduces new governance, risk, and accountability challenges. Traditional IT governance and control frameworks were designed for deterministic systems, whereas AI-driven systems are probabilistic, continuously learning, and highly data dependent. This creates a significant AI governance gap that organizations must address to ensure reliability, transparency, and resilience in critical infrastructure.
This session explores the emerging role of AI governance in telecom infrastructure, highlighting the risks associated with autonomous networks and the importance of establishing robust oversight mechanisms. Through practical industry examples and risk scenarios, the presentation will examine how AI systems can influence network stability, security posture, and operational decision-making at scale. The session will introduce a structured AI Governance Architecture for Telecom, covering key dimensions such as policy oversight, AI lifecycle management, model transparency, risk monitoring, and human supervision. It will also discuss how governance professionals can leverage established frameworks such as COBIT, NIST AI Risk Management Framework, and ISO 42001 to implement effective AI assurance mechanisms.
Drawing from telecom industry practices, the session will present broader lessons applicable to other sectors that rely on digital infrastructure, including banking, energy, healthcare, and transportation.
By the end of the session, participants will gain insights into:
• The evolution of telecom networks toward autonomous AI-driven systems
• Key operational, security, and data risks introduced by AI in critical infrastructure
• Governance challenges created by algorithmic decision-making
• Practical approaches to implementing AI governance and assurance architectures
• The role of governance, risk, and audit professionals in ensuring trustworthy AI deployment
About the speaker:
Dr. Karthikeyan Soundararajan, M.B.A., Ph.D., is a seasoned telecom professional with over 19 years of industry experience and is currently serving as an Associate Director at a leading ITES organization in Chennai. He holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Madras and a Doctorate in Management from Bharathiar University. He is also an IIM Tiruchirappalli alumnus, having completed a certification in Business Analytics, and has pursued
a Post Graduate Program in Artificial Intelligence for Leaders from the University of Texas at Austin. In addition, he has completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Management from Mc STEM Eduversity, USA.
Dr. Karthikeyan holds multiple professional credentials including Six Sigma Black Belt, Design Thinking certification from the LUMA Institute, and Project Management Professionalcertification. He is currently pursuing the globally recognized CISA (Certified Information Systems Auditor) certification. Alongside his corporate career, he has contributed significantly to academia as an Adjunct Faculty member at ITM Business School, Chennai Campus; SRM Institute of Science and Technology (Online Education); and Learners University, Dubai. He also regularly delivers guest lectures at various leading B-schools, sharing his industry insights with management students. His academic contributions include 10 research publications in refereed national and international journals, including Scopus-indexed journals. He is the co-author of the book titled “Service Quality of Management Education Institution” and has served as co-editor for two academic publications released in 2022 and 2023.
Dr. Karthikeyan was the Keynote Speaker at the ESN ICMRI 2020 – World Book of Records Conference, organized by ESN Publications. He has also served as an Advisory Board Member and Secretary of the SpecialMinds International Conference from 2021 to 2024.His contributions to research, mentorship, and industry–academia collaboration have earned him several prestigious honors, most recently the “Mentorship Legacy Award 2025” from Mc STEM Eduversity, USA, and the “Best Researcher Award 2023” from the Indian Academic Researchers Association (IARA). His passion for mentoring and coaching has led him to serve as a key member of European Mentoring and Coaching Council.He is the Founder of AURA – Academy of Unity in Revive & Aspire, a pioneering community
initiative focused on people engagement, reskilling, continuous learning, and fostering industry-academia collaboration.
Dr. Karthikeyan currently holds several honorary international academic and research positions, including:
• Editorial Board Member, International Journal of Intellectual Advancements and Research in Engineering Computations (IJIAREC)
• Executive Advisor, International Association of Commerce and Management (IACM)
• Global Research Ambassador, Scinova International Frontier Research, U
