Develop Denver
Hello,
I found a Medium post that helped me make my decision to go to Develop Denver, so I wanted to make a post to share my experience!
First of all, let me just tell you that it was awesome! I really enjoyed my time at Develop Denver. Here is why:
Networking
I made about 40 LinkedIn connections and counting from my two days spent at Develop Denver. In the tech industry, as with almost any industry, it really can be about who you know. Yes, it is important to have the skills for the job, but networking can differentiate you from the other 50 people who have the skills for the job.
Learning New Things
There were four workshops, forty-two talks/panels, three live streams, a four hour Ballmer Peak hackathon, and five one-hour blocks set aside for lightning talks. There were so many good choices, it made it hard to choose what to do. The workshops were split into hour and half blocks while everything else was in an hour block. Thank you to everyone who took their time to present a talk for this. I was not disappointed with any of the ones I went to.
Making Friends
Some might call this networking, but I wouldn’t put the two in the same category. I made connections with some people that I would love to see outside of a business setting. I just moved to Denver, so it was extra nice to feel like I had made some real friends at this thing. It wasn’t something I expected, but an extremely pleasant surprise.
Open Bar & Food Situation
So I’m a foodie. I love all things food. There was breakfast and coffee served both mornings. We were allotted $10 a day to spend on lunch at Zeppelin Station. There was an open bar that started at noon each day. It consisted of three different cocktails, and a variety of beer choices. There was an opening night happy hour at Big Trouble in Zeppelin Station. There was also a closing party with a taco bar from Illegal Pete’s & more drinks at General Assembly. There was not a shortage of food or drinks during this conference, and I’ve got to say — I love how the Denver tech folks do conferences.
Conference Set-Up
The conference set up was unique in that it was held in different venues, within about 2 blocks of each other, in the RiNo District. The venues include: Zeppelin Station, Bigsby’s Folly, Helikon, Catalyst, The Source Hotel, and General Assembly for the afterparty. It was really nice to get some walking in while being outdoors while changing venues.
Needless to say after you’ve read my overview, this conference was incredible. It was like a short summer camp for adults. I can not wait to attend in 2020.
If you are looking for more information, check out the Denver Devs website & join the slack group while you are at it! https://denverdevs.org
