Europe’s data infrastructure has become a board-level priority

As regulatory pressure intensifies and concerns over digital sovereignty grow, European organisations are reassessing the foundations of their data infrastructure. Joost Rommelaere (Senior Digital and Cybersecurity Expert) and Baudouin Corlùy (Chief Market Development Officer at LCL Data Centers) join the conversation to explain the strategic importance of data centers and their role in digital transformation.

Rommelaere notes that data centers are essential, yet ideally invisible. “It’s important and not important at the same time. They just have to be there: reliable, available, and well-connected,” he says. A CIO should not have to think about them at all. That expectation, he argues, is precisely why the choice of cloud and data center strategy has evolved into a board-level concern.

Corlùy notes that sustainability, sovereignty, and compliance now dominate executive conversations as well. Regulations such as NIS2 and DORA highlight how infrastructure decisions are increasingly intersected with political, societal, and geopolitical considerations. “The data center decision isn’t just a digital transformation choice. It’s a political one,” he says.

Their message for CIOs and executives is clear: infrastructure choices shape competitiveness, digital resilience, and strategic autonomy.

Listen to the full dialogue now.