The SharePoint Conference is Back!

In case you’ve been living in the backwoods of Arkansas without internet or electricity (in which case how are you reading this blog post?), you’ve probably heard by now that the SharePoint Conference is back!

That’s right! The jewel of the SharePoint Community, the one place us SharePoint nerds had to call home. “Our People”. The abused, the “working on it”, the “unexpected error has occurred” crowd. No one gets the SharePoint Community like the SharePoint Community.

For those of you not indoctrinated into the SharePoint Conference, let me give you some background. Long before Microsoft had the ignite conference, there was this conference called The SharePoint Conference. An entire conference by Microsoft about SharePoint… thousands of SharePoint geeks, sharing war stories, sharing pints, sharing morning runs, and sharing knowledge. Previous keynote speakers included Bill Clinton and previous attendee parties included Huey Lewis and the News and Bon Jovi. It was THE conference to go to in order to immerse yourself in SharePoint, connect with like minded folks, and maybe attend a party or two if you were so inclined.

It was a good time.

However, a few years ago Microsoft decided to combine several of their conferences (TechEd, Management Summit, Exchange, SharePoint, Project and Lync) and create one gargantuan conference: Microsoft Ignite. I for one was not thrilled. Now, suddenly I became lost in a sea of tens of thousands of people. SharePoint sessions were scarce. I didn’t recognize most of the vendors. I didn’t know every 3rd person I ran into… I felt so… neglected… is this how normal people feel ALL the time?? 😉

In fact, the first Ignite conference in Chicago was rough for us SharePoint folks. People were clamoring to bring back SPC.

I should point out at this point that the two most recent Ignite conferences provided a really fantastic SharePoint experience. More content, more community speakers, and a stronger SharePoint message have definitely made Ignite feel more like home to us SharePoint folks. So, if you only went to the first Ignite, don’t let that influence your opinion too much. I’m a fan of Ignite and hope to be going back this September.

But… maybe you don’t like walking 20,000 steps a day to get to your SharePoint content? Or wading through a crowd of people that just don’t get it? Maybe you don’t care about the other Microsoft technologies and you just want your SharePoint and Office 365 fix? Maybe you utterly despise the humidity of Orlando and long for the artificially treated air of a Las Vegas casino?? If only we still had SPC…

This is the part of the blog where you close your eyes and imagine the sun rising and a chorus of SharePoint geeks singing “ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh” as it crescendos into a photo of Vegas and people having a great time even though they are obviously losing last weeks pay check at a craps table.

SPC is back baby! Microsoft has heard our pleas folks and is co-producing the SharePoint Conference re-incarnated as SharePoint Conference North America. Taking place May 21-23 at the MGM Gand in Las Vegas! Everything you missed about SPC all packaged up and delivered to you.

“Wait a second” you may be thinking. “Didn’t you just say that Ignite had great SharePoint content. Why should I care about going to Vegas in May?”

What an excellent question! I’m glad you asked. Well, let me give you just a few reasons why you SHOULD attend the SharePoint Conference North America.

Don’t get lost in the crowd

Yes, Ignite has some amazing SharePoint content but it also has a crowd ten times the size located across a massive convention center where you could walk miles to get to the content you care about. SPCNA is all about SharePoint and Office 365 where you can get more content, from more community speakers without getting lost in the shuffle or overwhelmed by the other technologies.

Microsoft will be there in full force

Because of the scale of SPCNA and the number of Microsoft employees in attendance, I did the rough math and there will be approximately 1 Microsoft employee at this event for every 20 attendees. Let that number set with you for a moment. You will have unparalleled access to folks that created and support this platform. Pick their brains, ask them questions, buy them a drink. Where else will you get this opportunity?

Be the first to know

SPCNA will be the conference to attend to get the latest SharePoint news and announcements. Part of the impetus for SPCNA was for Microsoft to give a larger platform to its previous “Future of SharePoint” announcements where they let us know all the cool things coming for SharePoint and Office 365. Much of the content being presented at SPCNA will have never been presented at any other conference. Be one of the first to know what’s coming!

The Keynote  by Jeff Teper

Look, I may or may not have given Jeff a hard time about bringing back SPC… publicly… on more than one occasion… I know… I know… Hard to believe that I’d do something like that. But listen, if you DON’T come to SPC it makes ME look bad..

Party with the B-52’s!

B52s

That’s right! The B-52’s will be playing at an exclusive poolside SharePint party for us at the MGM Grand.

Whether you want to be the first to know what’s coming, schmooze with your favorite SharePoint geek, or rock out with the B-52’s. SPCNA gives you the opportunity to come home to SharePoint.

 

 

I might be looking forward to it… a little. I’ll also be presenting two sessions in Vegas. So, here’s your opportunity to come heckle me as well.

So, what are you waiting for? Register today!! There are lots of registration codes out there too to save you some money. You can use code RACKLEY to save $50, but because I like you guys so much I found out you can use code SPSNYC and save $100, just think about it.. $100 to lose at Blackjack!

STILL not convinced? Check out what my business partner and fellow speaker Stephanie Donahue has to say on the subject:

Join Me at SharePoint Conference!

See you in Vegas!!