Learning opportunities - Conferences (#CLUS)
Most large technology vendors and disciplines have a showcase conference. Cisco is no different with Cisco Live.
The real questions though are: why go to a conference about a particular set of products that is sponsored and run by the vendor who makes those products? Isn’t it just going to be a week long sales pitch with marketing banners galore? Why would an engineer suffer through that? Is there any amount of conference swag that would offset the horrible pain of sales pitches and marketing baloney?!?!
What has drawn me back, personally, year after year is that the Cisco Live conference is an engineer’s conference, both at its heart and in its roots. There are 4 and 8 hour technical seminars, 90 and 120 minute technical breakouts, and 4 and 8 hour instructor led labs. The majority of these options are led by real engineers from Cisco, whether they are from TAC or product development or a solutions architect.
I’ve found immeasurable value from these talks led by real engineers on several fronts: First, these guys know their products. You have a question and they almost always have an answer. When they don’t, they know the person that does and get you the answer usually before the conference is over. Second, these guys shoot straight and don’t sugar coat deficiencies in the product. They understand the value of the conference – namely, we need to know what you can really do and can’t do with the products. Third, these guys are interested in how you are actually using their products. We can be a bit creative in the use of technology and these guys want to hear about it.
Outside of the talks, the conference has a couple additional opportunities to chat and brainstorm ideas with Cisco engineers: Meet The Engineers and Technical Solutions Clinic. I’ve personally found the MTE too hard to get booked in the short time windows they give you. The TSC, though, is in the World of Solutions and staffed by TAC engineers. It’s a walk-in clinic of sorts and has much better hours. In either case, great brainstorming opportunities.
So, in short, everywhere you turn at the conference, you have Cisco engineers and as direct access as possible to the information you need.
Now, I won’t lie to you: there are components of Cisco Live that have a heavy marketing angle and some that focus on management and executives. Cisco is a business and no business engages in any activity that ultimately does not drives sales. The best part is that you can go the whole week and see very little (if any) of it.
If you are like me, you simply can’t get enough learning about technology. If you are fortunate like me, your employer supports training and career development. With this conference, you’ll find that there simply isn’t enough time (5 days) to see all the great talks that are present… just like me.
If you are curious, head on over to the website at http://www.ciscolive.com/us/?cid=000524216 to check it out. Doing so could also help me get some free training too!