Tag Archives: PASS Summit

Pass Summit 2017

It’s about that time of year again when there is a buzz in Seattle in regards to PASS Summit. Many data professionals will be heading out to one of the biggest SQL related events of the year. There is excitement for many along with a sense of being overwhelmed for some. The minute you step off that plane, bus, car, etc. you are immediately geared up for the unknown. Guess what – enjoy the ride!

This year due to previous business engagements scheduled I will not be attending; however, I will be there at times virtually along with social media. I will miss seeing many of my friends from around the globe; however, this post isn’t about that. Why? Because I know I will see everyone again real soon somewhere down the line and even back at the event in 2018. Instead, here are some tidbits for you, dear reader, that may help you along your journey in the upcoming week.

Network

That’s right, you will find yourself among the best speakers in the world, thousands of your closest friends, and a plethora of vendors. I encourage you to step out of your comfort zone and mingle around; talk to someone you don’t know. Spend some time at the vendor booths learning about the various products that may help you in the future.

Sessions

In reviewing all the sessions, yes I still review them even if I am not there, there are so many good ones to choose from. You will hear many people say they can’t see all the ones they want to – that’s okay as well. Attend the ones that you feel will help you the most; you can always check into purchasing the recordings while you are there or even after the event. Just soak it all in, ask a question yet be respectful.

Speakers

You will find yourself immersed with speakers from all over the globe; some of the most talented individuals and data professionals we have in the community. Please provide feedback for the speakers for the sessions you are in. Believe it or not, it helps speakers hone their craft. How do I know, because I am one and it has helped me. Also, please be respectful of time.

After Events

There will be events after the sessions are done for the day. Enjoy yourself, but do remember it is okay to network with others at these things. One of the highlights I’ve read so far is the mentor program this year. Truly stoked to see that happening. I remember last year when I was able to help Steve Jones and Andy Warren pair up people for their event to help plug people in. Seeing the smiling faces and knowing that they were excited to meet others said a lot.

First Time Ribbons

If you see a first-time ribbon don’t just run by. In the past events, I’ve made a point to go up to people and introduce myself and ask how they are doing. If you remember your first time attending the PASS Summit then you can relate to how overwhelming it can be. I remember Andy Leonard and Mike Walsh invested time in me early on when I attended and it made a world of difference in my life. You be that impact player for someone else.

Volunteers

You may not notice the volunteers as you are rushing up the escalators at the convention center. Take a second and a breath and if you see one of the many volunteers working the event stop and say THANK YOU. You will be surprised at how others may be having a bad day and a simple thank you for what they are doing will change their outlook for the day. No seriously, try it.

Community Zone

As you go toward the food one (it’s what I call it; where you go eat at the convention center) you will come upon the community zone. It is there you will find all kinds of community members hanging out. Go up and get to know some of the members. You’ll find a wide range of people there from organizers, speakers, etc. Hang out a bit and get to know some of your fellow data professionals

Key Notes

There will be morning keynote sessions before the day gets started. I encourage you to attend these; there is a lot of valuable information that comes out of these. Yes, I know there will be some late nights, but I do encourage you to do your best to get to these. Fantastic speakers with a fantastic message. I’ve been blessed to live blog the keynotes for the past 2-3 years. Each time presents new and exciting messages to be heard.

Summary

Again, I will miss everything about PASS Summit this year. Personally what has started off as an eager data professional has turned into much more. I deeply care about the event and everything it entails. Walking through the vendor areas talking with old friends, to spending time at the after events catching up. Or the one-off conversations in the halls – some of those have impacted me more than anything.

If you don’t catch anything I’ve said thus far, then please, listen to this. Enjoy yourself, learn as much as you can, and maybe…just maybe the PASS Summit will mean a bit more to you than when you first got there this year. Until we meet again down the road my friends ~ Take care and Let’s Roll.

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A Data Professional’s Story – PASS Summit 2016

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This year is different. Why? I’m not sure yet. There is a lot of reflection going on since my return from PASS Summit 2016. As I look at the long laundry list of “to do’s” to get completed in the office; this past PASS Summit reminded me to slow down and take a minute to breathe – to take it in so to speak.

The recap post you are about to read will be a bit different from my past ones; gone is the synchronous order of how each day went. Instead, this post will be more relaxed and share view points through my eyes on how I went through the conference in which I’ve come to have a strong passion for.

The Story

As you first come into Seattle it is very difficult not to see a lot of its natural beauty. It never ceases to amaze me when the plane flies past Mt. Rainier and the breath-taking views that it holds. I often wonder to myself what it must be like to be near something on such a grand scale. I remember back to my first PASS Summit when I would be in such a hurry to get to where I was going; I took things like this for granted – not anymore.

One thing I’ve come to thoroughly enjoy is noticing all the “first timer” ribbons. The look of excitement and overwhelming elation of knowledge that has been received all over their faces speaks volumes. If you are ever walking around and notice someone with this ribbon on please take a moment and see how their day is going; offer them some encouragement if needed. I was once in their shoes and I remember how I felt at my first conference.

This year I had the pleasure of speaking at SentryOne’s Boot Camp. One thing is for certain; this shop knows their stuff and have a stellar crew in place to bring excellent products to the community. Some colleagues of mine (Monica Rathbun (b|t), John Morehouse (b|t), and Chris Wood (t) in the community shared how SentryOne has helped in our respective shops and businesses. I spend a lot of time in slide decks for my current work and this was no different; I had some slides made up and was planning on talking from the slide deck, but as I got up on stage I had a “change of heart moment”. I wanted to divert attention away from the slides and just have a heartfelt conversation with the attendees on what I felt was important. After initiating the “wave” in the crowd (yes folks Kevin Kline (b|t) was involved) we had a good talk and I was happy to be a part of it. Some better terms in being a part of the boot camp are thankful and blessed.

The keynotes were nothing short of amazing. For the second year in a row I had the privilege of live blogging. It’s always fun to provide data professionals who are not able to attend an avenue to get the information from the conference. I did get a kick out of sitting next to Rob Farley (b|t). We’ve become friends over the years and always look forward to seeing him; not sure how he gets hand delivered coffee while live blogging, but then again – – it is Rob Farley.

Speaking of friendships; a good friend reached out to me earlier in the week letting me know he’d be near by. After some going back and forth on timing I felt it was important to leave the conference and share some time with him. Tom Roush (b|t) has been an inspiration to many and he allowed me into his life a little bit that day. It was the first time I got to meet his wife Cindy in person; together all 3 of us were able to share a cup of coffee and just talk for about 30 minutes. This, to me, is what PASS is all about. I would have never had the opportunity to meet Tom several years ago had it not been for PASS and the mentality of Share, Connect, Learn. The PASS Summit is much more than just a technical conference; it is a people conference. It is a place where friendships are made, ideas our bounced off of each other, and a place to grow. Tom, here is to you buddy ~ cheers!

Sponsors are huge at events like these; wouldn’t be able to put on a good show without them. As I walked through the vendor area my mind began to wonder just how many people each of these vendors have reached. If you look past all the swag and fluff you’ll find that these vendors are doing some phenomenal things for the community. I’ve already mentioned SentryOne above, but another one that has had a huge impact on me personally is RedGate. Yes, I am a Friend of RedGate and yes I utilize their products at the shop – one thing that stands out to me is their strong passion for the community in which they serve and have built a business for. I cannot go through and name every vendor, but from me to every one of you ~ I thank you.

The conversations had this year were amazing. You’ll find these happening in one off’s all over the convention center, restaurants, hotel lobbies, etc. I’ve never been to a PASS Summit where I haven’t had a conversation that has either helped or inspired me. Mike Fal (b|t), Mike Walsh (b|t), Warwick Rudd (b|t), Wendy Pastrick (b|t), Tom Larock (b|t), TJ Belt (b|t), Tim Ford (b|t), and Steve Jones (b|t) had a huge impact on me this year. It’s humbling when individuals take time out of their day and just pull up a chair and talk. Investing in others is key; I’ve had a lot of people invest time in me; what am I going to do now? It’s time to invest in others the same way and build up another generation of data professionals.

One aspect of the conference I was extremely pleased to help with was Steve Jones and Andy Warren’s idea for a networking dinner. I had spoken briefly to Steve prior the meetup as he was needing some hands to help. It was after the sessions had ended and we were to congregate in the lobby at the convention center. I didn’t know what all to expect; just knew that help was needed. What unfolded next was pretty amazing…..seeing people from all around coming up to talk about their interests and have the ability to meet new people. Saw a lot of “first timers” again and getting them paired up with 4-6 people in a group was something to behold. The event itself was very successful and hopefully if one person was reached or changed then it was all worth it. Nothing but respect for Steve and Andy, would gladly go into battle with either of them any day of the week and twice on Sunday.

This year had a twist for me in that I was invited to eat lunch with Rimma Nehme, Mark Souza, and Mitra Azizirad from Microsoft. This opportunity, along with five other data professionals, was nothing short of amazing. A casual conversation over a myriad of topics on how we as data professionals relate to Microsoft at our respective shops. I could see quickly that we were in the midst of some great minds, and trying to be a sponge is an understatement.

Another highlight was getting to see, as I was live blogging, Malathi Mahadevan (b|t) receive the PASSion Award for 2016. I’m a product of the hard work she has put in over the years. Her tenure has spanned a decade now here in the Louisville, or as we call the ‘ville. It has only been a few years since we have crossed paths; little did she know when she started down this path for SQL Community how big of an impact she would have. It’s an honor to serve along side her and a testament to what hard work can do; sticking with something through both good and hard times. Job well done and well deserved. You can read her blog on the award here.

We were able to meet and send Karla Landrum (t) off with appreciation in the community zone. For those of you who don’t know Karla she has been a steadfast presence in PASS as a Community Evangelist. She has gone above and beyond in her tenure and from the many people who stopped by to wish her well it is obvious she has hugely impacted a lot of data professionals. No, this won’t be the last we hear from her, but here it to a job well done ~ cheers

As the halls are emptied and we close up another successful PASS Summit I can only hope that the future remains bright. It is my understanding that we had a record crowd on hand this year; may we continue to build on what has been started. If I may leave one thought with you I will leave this (again my viewpoint and opinion). At the very core of what we do day in and day out as data professionals we find data and people. People make up the PASS Community, people make up the shops you are in, and yes it is people that make an impact on one another. I personally, am blessed to have been one of the ones impacted. May we continue to give back in avenues that we can whether it’s volunteering, speaking, organizing, mentoring – – whatever the case may be. This community; this is our community

Thank you to all the PASS volunteers, staff, sponsors, speakers, convention help, caterers, attendees, etc. It takes all of us to make the wheel go round…..until next year.

Be an impact player ~ let’s roll

PASS Summit – What Does It Mean To Me?

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PASS Summit – what does it mean to me? So listen, I’m not perfect. I will never claim to be and you will never her me utter those words. I make mistakes every day, but I try to learn from those mistakes as much as possible.

I was asked by several people yesterday via email and word of mouth conversations what PASS Summit meant to me and how are community is. During the work day I was not able to keep up with all the happenings since session selections came out, but I did catch quite a bit on my feed. Since being approached and being just one voice in this big game I thought it prudent to share with others what PASS Summit has meant to me.

For me personally, PASS Summit changed my career. I rolled into town (Seattle) back in 2011 not sure what to expect. Brand new to this scene; I didn’t know anyone from anybody. I can still remember to this day walking into the convention center thinking to myself, “What in the world did I get myself into?”

Each session I went to seemed to give me something I could take back and incorporate into my job. I was able to meet and interact with fellow colleagues in technology from all over the world. It exposed me to another part of what we call “The SQL Family” I had not known before.

I can recall purchasing the Deep Dives book and introducing myself to all the MVP contributors. Eating breakfast and lunch with 5000 people before going to learn and try to enhance my skill set. It lit a fire in me for my career that I hadn’t had before. Some of the techniques learned then are still part of my everyday work now. So, as you can see the PASS Summit has meant a great deal to me and where I am at today.

Fast forwarding to today; what spawned these questions to me by others stems from session selection discussions. I will not dive into processes or procedures as I am not privy to the background and the inner workings of selection of sessions. That’s not my goal nor do I want it to be with this post. I see many points some valid and some not in my opinion; however I do believe that is part of being a SQL Family / community. We can share our thoughts, opinions, concerns and review processes, policies, and procedures. It is the basis and foundation on how we grow and improve. At the end of the day we are all in this together.

I look forward to attending this year and learning from a great group of speakers. Heck all the volunteers, speakers, attendees take time out of their families lives, work schedules, and the like to attend. It is definitely a unique environment and one that I hope can continue to grow and overcome hurdles. Who knows I hope in the very near future my session is selected maybe then I to can share what I’ve learned along my journey.

Looking back I can honestly say the conference in its entirety changed my career, my outlook, and my drive. I don’t have all the answers but I will continue to give it all I got day in and day out, and from a past attendee I thank all the speakers (both old and new) and the volunteers that make this happen.

What about you? What do you think about PASS Summit? What are some of your opinions on the process for selections? Can we improve; if so how?