Fresh off my first User Summit and I had some thoughts...
So yeah, I’ve been pretty active on the old CiviCRM forums and even more active on the new Stack Exchange setup. I’ve successfully submitted three pull requests thanks to Coleman. I’ve written a couple of blog posts. I’ve set up a Make it Happen campaign. My organization even made a donation to CiviCRM for all they have done for us over the years. All the while, I've leaned on the folks in the CiviCRM community for help and guidance. But for all of that time, I’ve been having these interactions without knowing the person on the other side.
When I decided to attend the User Summit in Washington DC, my expectations were pretty low. I’m not particularly into conferences. They typically have little to do with my actual role and I usually leave unsatisfied. But I signed up and hoped to learn a thing or two.
Socks officially blown…
After months of communication, I got to talk shop (in person!) with the National Urban League and Canine Companions for Independence, both of whom had reached out to me in regards to our CiviCase implementation.
I also met some new groups that were interested in having me take a look at their set ups and got to know some key Civi players in Palante Technology Cooperative, BackOffice Thinking and Gingko Street Labs.
All of the sessions that I attended were well thought out and the folks in attendance knew their Civi! Folks were speaking my language! I got the jokes.
But the highlight for me was the “Ask us Anything” session led by three members of the core team. Dave, Coleman and Josh fielded questions that ranged from the ridiculous to the sublime. It was very clear that these guys knew what they were doing and were happy to be doing it.
I had some significant interactions with many like-minded individuals and finally got to put some faces to those names.
When the curtain came down on the Summit, I wanted more. That’s my kind of conference.
See you at CiviCon.
Comments
Thanks for this great summary, Paul! We didn't know what to expect in the "Ask Us Anything" session, however I think we all really enjoyed the range of questions. What stood out to me was how many folks from the audience, in addition to the Core Team, participated in answering these. I think that speaks to how enthusaistic and engaged the CiviCRM community is, which reflects on the health of the project. Great write up! Thanks again. - Josh
I walked in and away with many of the same impressions. Great to meet you, Paul!