Where to start? I’ve asked myself this question a lot during the Summit, and now that it’s a wrap, it’s hard to narrow down where to begin! Looking back at my goal for the Summit, “to engage in the experience and breadth of the conference, and of course to soak up as much knowledge as possible”, I can say with absolutely certainty that I have far exceeded this goal.
First and foremost, I could probably fill a book with all that I learned during the conference, and to that end, I would like to thank the following people who’s sessions I attended:
- Jason Horner (B|T)
- Konstantin Melamud (T)
- Brian Knight (B|T)
- Chris Webb (B|T)
- Neil Hambly (B|T)
- Benjamin Nevarez (B|T)
- Sandy Rivas
- Andy Leonard (B|T)
- Davide Mauri (B|T)
- Tim Mitchell (B|T)
- Borko Novakovic (T)
In addition to this list, I would also like to convey a special THANK YOU to my employer, Slalom Consulting, for supporting me on this trip.
Secondly, experiencing a technical conference like the Summit is un-matched to any other conference I have been to in the past. I met many people from all walks of life and from very dynamic backgrounds. The best part is that these people enjoy working with SQL Server and the Microsoft Data Platforms just as much, if not more, than I do. This is truly inspiring and has re-invigorated my drive and passion for what I do in the data world everyday. Furthermore, this experience has pushed me to become more active in the SQL community and to branch out my network of peers. I hope to attend many local and virtual chapter meetings in the coming months and possibly present at a few.
Lastly, it was great to meet and talk to all the vendors that made such an event possible – Microsoft, Dell, and HP to name a few. It was really cool to learn about the new products and tools coming down the pike that scale and extend SQL Server functionality. Also, it was a real eye opener to see how many freebies they give away. I got more than enough books, software, and flyers to keep me busy for a while.
All in all, this was by far the best technical conference I have attended. Counting down the day till the next Summit!