Are any of you attending conferences or user groups over the past few years?
In the before times, back in 2015-2019, while working for a digital agency, I was attending many local user groups and traveling to software development (and Kentico) conferences.
During the days of COVID that travel decreased significantly - some conferences held virtual events, others stopped functioning. Since working for Kentico I've attended quite a few conferences and most feel the same as they did in the 2010s. However, it seemed local user groups were hit even harder by COVID's disruptions and they have not bounced back at all. Maybe it's a generational thing? Maybe it's a trend away from in-person towards digital?
Have you attended any digital marketing or software development conferences this year? What about local user groups? If you participated in these events in the past, do they seem different now?
I ask because Kentico recently announced we're sponsoring Beer City Code 2025 in Grand Rapids, Michigan this year. Hopefully some people from the Kentico community show up and say hi to each other!
Are there other events you imagine multiple members of the Kentico community might attend that you recommend others check out?
Two events near me that are well loved are CodeMash and StirTrek, and surprisingly ... I still haven't been to either!
Answers
I don’t often get the chance to attend conferences outside of official Kentico events like Connections.
That said, I try to join as many Umbraco meetups as I can in my local area - there’s a great community of meetups and user groups across the UK. I attend local ones regularly and drop into virtual sessions whenever possible.
Last year, Michael and I launched the Kentico User Group UK. We’ve both been really busy this year, so we haven’t managed to run our first in-person meetup yet - but I’m hoping to arrange one soon! If you’re based in the UK, feel free to drop me a message. I’m thinking about hosting the first session at IDHL’s Leeds office.
I’ve definitely become more selective about attending in-person events compared to a few years ago. Mainly for three reasons:
- I moved from a city to a smaller town, so getting to meetups now involves more travel and time.
- With kids and work, I’ve learned to value my time more carefully.
- There’s so much great content online these days, from tech influencers to recorded sessions, that I often feel pretty well covered.
That said, I’d still make the effort for a meetup if it meant catching up with friends I don’t get to see often or if it focused on something I really care about. And yes, Kentico is high on that list!
The event you mentioned sounds great, but since it’s in the US, it’s not realistic for me. The thing is, the Kentico community is relatively small and scattered around the world. So I’ll be looking forward to the next Kentico Connections instead.
To answer this question, you have to login first.