Can an experienced attendee chat and give advice?

[Renee Niewald]

This is my first time attending as I ramp up as my company's Jira SME and admin. I am looking for someone to connect with to fill me in on what to expect, especially since I'm attending alone. 

[Jimmy Seddon · Accepted solution]

Hi @Renee Niewald,

There should be a number of sessions available for first time attendees.  I'd recommend keeping an eye out for those.  I'd also recommend finding the Community Booth in the Expo hall as you will find likely find myself or one of the many other Community Leaders wandering around there who would be more than happy to help you find your way.

Hopefully I'll see you there!

[Renee Niewald]

Thanks! I'll make sure to stop by. I am attending the event at 3:30 for newcomers. Just trying to prep expectations.

[Mikael Sandberg]

I agree with everything @Jimmy Seddon said, and one advice that I learnt after my first Summit/Team back in the days (this year will be my 7th) is to not try to attend all the sessions that you find interesting, they will all be available virtually after the event as well. Plan some time to walk around the expo hall and take it all in.

[Nathan Bartley]

Attended last year with a different company and back again this year happy to connect.

[Fun Man Andy · Accepted solution]

I've been doing big corporate events (either as booth operator or attendee) since 2010 and they are exhausting!

Last year in particular - especially being the first big one since Corona - left me exhausted. Sick on the weekend before, jet lagged, working the booth, taking out customers, in full party mode seeing all my friends again after so long.
#GluttenForPunishment

But from an attendee perspective it can be overwhelming and daunting first time... I had a customer join last year that had never been - be it Atlassian or otherwise - and they were full-on "deer in headlights"

It's definitely worth taking some time to work out your strategy, work out the sessions you really want to see, and which partners you'd like to engage with, and then learn the Expo Hall layout, so you move efficiently and with ease.
(And you won't have to pay anything, cause partners will love to take care of your food & drink.)

And keep in mind = lip balm (I prefer Carmex), moisturiser (Nivea hydration is epic), AND not under-dress. The Venetian is bizarre cold thanks to the AC, but the outside is still a dessert. You're body will be a mess for a few days without these items.

[AJ Barks - Old Street]

@Renee Niewald @Mia Paulin - Old Street have budgets for dinner/drinks and what-not. Drop me a LinkedIn DM and I'll add you to the customer dinner on Thursday pre-BASH.

Here's an overview of the Expo Hall, so it helps with your bearings in advance....

We will be at Booth 34 and I myself will be all over the expo. I'll be hard to miss in my colourful, skate border outfit. 

[Mia Paulin]

@AJ Barks - Old Street I think the skateboarder outfit is cool! Do you rock the Vans/Pumas/Adidas with the skinny Jeans and graphic Tees? I used to skate and listen to new school punk rock. It was Ollies and 360 kick flips all day long! Keep the movement alive!

[AJ Barks - Old Street]

@Mia Paulin 100% !!

Struggling to top last year's outfit, tbh, as it was:

VANS, KNEE SOCKS, SHORTS, DRESS SHIRT (love to mix it up), FLAT CAP, SUNNIES...

and of course, the infamous:

RAINBOW JACKET!

(I think this year, I need a bigger, brighter jacket (is that even possible, LOL!), an actual skateboard in tow, and a flat cap that has a digitised message board on it!!)

[Renee Niewald]

@Fun Man Andy Great advice all around (especially since I'm usually cold anyway)! I took a first pass at the sessions and my afternoons are pretty free after 2ish.  Advice on how how to focus on certain partners? I'm becoming our Jira software admin (no one else is) and right now we need to do better planning early on especially at OKR level. I'm already attending one Jira Align talk but open to others. 

@AJ Barks - Old Street Thanks for the map! Is there a legend to say what numbers match what vendors? Or is there a list of vendors anywhere yet?

[Jimmy Seddon]

@Renee Niewald check out the Atlassian Partner Directory.  You can apply filters for the products/services you are looking to get help with, and you can also filter by location to find some one close to you if that's important.

[AJ Barks - Old Street]

@Renee Niewald - this is an old version of the floor plan. I've asked our Marketing Team if the plan with all vendor allocations has been released.

During registration on day 1, this information will definitely be made available to you in your expo pack!

[AJ Barks - Old Street]

@Mia Paulin / @Renee Niewald 

There is no updated floor plan but here's the listing to match numbers to names!

[Darryl Lee]

You @Fun Man Andy - FYI I brought a mini-skateboard with me last year. It was pretty useless on the Venetian's rugs. Would've probably worked better in the Expo proper, but I was going to sessions and stuff, so not worth the carry. I also didn't have a booth where I could stash it, and was staying across the street at TI. :-/

[AJ Barks - Old Street]

Ah man.. wish I knew. We could have had so much fun doing manual tricks on the spot, but yeah... Venetian is not ideal. Totally get you!

Bring it this year again (if you can!) 

I'm hitting up Toronto this week... on the hunt for something I can carry on the plane to Vegas.

Oh, and I'm staying in Treasure Island this year... you!??

[Darryl Lee]

Haha, you must actually be a real skater. I can't do any real tricks. :-}

I got lucky with the Venetian room roulette and got a decent rate, so I decided to "treat myself" (well, my company's treating), but then again, my ticket is "free" and I'm flying on points, so it's the least they could do.

If I was as budget-minded as my colleague who is staying at the Horseshoe (nee Bally's), about a mile away, I might have tried bringing one of my electric skateboards. ;-}

Flying with big lithium batteries can be somewhat fraught tho.

[AJ Barks - Old Street]

Dude... my surfing & snowboarding outweigh my skateboarding. I couldn't even Ollie properly as a teenager when I was doing it daily. Hah hah!

Nice treat!!

Yeah, lithium flying is a big no no... you'll end up with your bags being recalled. Airlines hate it.

Ooh Horseshoe!!!! My favourite off-the-strip is Silverton. Best Casino in the world!!

(But let's take this convo to Slack - also the San Jose trip - so we don't spam the original topic too much! 😜)

[Fun Man Andy · Accepted solution]

For everyone interested, the Community Leaders have been discussion these topics for months, and most intensely in recent weeks.

So we decided to club together and create an event for everyone to join and learn about all these valuable lessons & experiences:

Know Before You Go! Team '23: Don't Just Survive... THRIVE!! [AMER/EMEA]

Know Before You Go! Team '23: Don't Just Survive... THRIVE!! [APAC/EMEA]

[Renee Niewald]

Thank you! Looking forward to this. 

[Fun Man Andy]

Anytime Renee. You're most welcome!

[Mia Paulin]

@renee neiwald @Renee Niewald Are you attending in Las Vegas or Virtually?  This is my first time joining the event.  I'm not an SME or Admin.  I'm a lowly developer, so with humility,and the greatest reverence i say Nice to meet you!!!!  I'm a new kid too!  I don't know what to expect, but I'm just going to enjoy mysle and the people in the event.  It doesn't have to be all business.  I learned by signing on to the community portal and joining some of the groups there that there are some awesome people at Atlassian.  It's an awesome place to connect.  Atlassian.com/community..  It you want to connect with me, hit me up at @MiaPaulin.  Always looking for people to connect with.  I don't know about you, but I'm nervous:  maybe we can be nervous together and uplift each other!  Seriously. I'm excited to meet you!  And sorry about the space at the top of the message

[Renee Niewald]

Nice to meet you! Find me on LinkedIn! The folks above have definitely eased my nerves!

[Mia Paulin]

@Renee Niewald I definitely will!  Thanks!

[Andreas Springer _Actonic_]

Hey @Renee Niewald! As it was my first time last year I can fully relate. Lots of great tips in this thread and I fully support @Fun Man Andy about the lip balm and nasal spray thing. Definitely a must-have to fight the low humidity in the desert. Otherwise feel free to come by our booth #43 to chat. And have fun, we will be in Las Vegas after all! :)