Screen Shot 2015-03-05 at 2.04.38 PM

Why The Best Technologists Will Be Attending POSSCON 2015

In the 7 years we’ve been hosting POSSCON, we’ve noticed something – that the most professional and serious technologists, and those aspiring to be, generally attend the event. While it might seem counterintuitive on the surface – why would someone already considered a “professional” and good at what they do take the time to attend a conference? – it makes sense if you think about it.

PROFESSIONAL TECHNOLOGISTS UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF EDUCATION.

Nearly every single “professional” technologist, as well as every top technology student we know, understands that continued education is key to remaining really good at what they do. While access to quality education can be a challenge, those aspiring to stay good, or become good, find a way to get it. POSSCON is a world-class event, and most importantly, a quality educational opportunity. The professionals, and those aspiring to be, will once again be there in great numbers.

TECHNOLOGY IQ IS A REAL THING.

Believe it or not, technology IQ is a real thing – and it makes you more valuable as an individual or as a company as it increases. What is it? It can be defined as understanding the intangibles, the same as it can be in football or any endeavor that is considered an occupation. In technology, it can mean the way people communicate with one another in a specific sector, like DevOps, the acronyms they use, the way people dress, the technologies they use, and even understanding pertinent issues and what’s really ‘important’. By understanding these things, your personal and organizational credibility increases, and there is no better place to gain this understanding than at a world-class conference.

FACE-TO-FACE IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER BEFORE.

While technology has made remote communication easier than ever before, we strongly believe it has also made face-to-face interaction and engagement more important than ever before. No matter how many times you work with a teammate via IM, chat, or some other communication tool it cannot replace time spent with another human being. Whether you’re trying to meet a new partner/someone to work with, or possibly a new service provider/consultant, nothing provides critical information and establishes trust and confidence like looking someone in the eye, reading body language, or having a casual conversation.

OPEN TECHNOLOGY IS HERE TO STAY, AND WILL ONLY GROW IN IMPORTANCE MOVING FORWARD.

As our friend Jeffrey Hammond at Forrester Research clearly states, if you, as a technologist or IT decision maker, don’t recognize the impact open technology is having on your organization you’re at risk of being “consumed”. The fact is that only 1 in 5 developers HAVE NOT used open source in some way in the past 12 months and nearly 90% of all organization use open technology and open source, whether the boss realizes it or not. In addition, most of the innovation taking place in technology is being driven by the ‘open’ approach because the best technologists are drawn to it. You can see it in today’s universities in top students, and it’s not going to change anytime soon.

NETWORKING IS CRITICAL.

At the risk of stating the obvious, networking has never been more important in the technology field. Crucial relationships, ones that often lead to better solutions and innovative breakthroughs, are forged at events where thought leaders, and those aspiring to be, are in confined spaces for extended periods of time. With the world becoming smaller by the day, those relationships will only help as you move forward and attempt to grow and develop value.

If you’re available April 14 & 15, we encourage you to join us in Columbia for POSSCON 2015. Come see for yourself why there is no substitute for attending a world-class conference with true thought leaders attending and participating. Once you do, we feel strongly you’ll not only be back, but you’ll seek out other opportunities to attend.

Leave a Reply