Today, October 15, 2013: PASS SUMMIT DAY1

It’s October, and it’s PASS SQL Summit time, 2013!  PASS Summit is the world's largest, most-focused, and most-intensive conference for Microsoft SQL Server and BI professionals. Organized by and for SQL Server and BI users, PASS Summit delivers the most technical sessions, the largest number of attendees, the best networking, and the highest-rated sessions and speakers of any SQL Server event in the world.

So, what, it happens every year, you say?  Well, there’s a lot that’s different this time around.  First of all, you’ll notice something about the geographic locale of this year’s super Summit.  No, it’s not a glitch in SQL Server’s geospatial coordinate data types, it’s dead-on accurate, and it’s not in Redmond.   This year’s grand gathering on SQL Server professionals from around the world will converge on the Charlotte Convention Center, from October 15-18, 2013.  That is a lot of learning in four days’ time, but the experiences will last a life time! 

PASS wants you to join them in Charlotte and get the top-notch training, technical tips and tricks, and networking and connections you need to take your SQL Server skills to the next level.

Over 150 SQL Server experts will share their expertise at PASS Summit 2013 in 190+ sessions across 6 tracks, helping you get the most out of your database implementations and advance your career. These in-depth and terrifically tuned tracks include Application and Database Development; BI Information Delivery; BI Platform Architecture, Development & Administration; Cloud Application Development & Deployment; Enterprise Database Administration & Deployment, and Professional Development.  There is definitely a session for everyone!

What is it all about, who will be where, and how best to navigate among the myriad of merry Microsoft engineers, vendors, sessions, and the sheer volume of SQL Server MVPs, experts, and other IT professionals?  I launched a Call to Action for participation in my PASS Summit round up, and happy to bring you some of the folks who are sharing their expertise, advice, opinions and itinerary for the upcoming conference next week.  It is obviously a very busy time, as many of them are preparing for the summit, so, therefore, I would like to thank those that took a brief time-out to participate in this interview. 

Here are some highlights from the SQL Server MVPs on why they’re going, what they’re doing, where to find them, and some sage advice for first-timers and all attendees.  We also asked some of the incoming administration, PASS President and elected Board of Directors, on the future direction of PASS.

I will be posting our SQL colleagues’ questions and answers throughout the week.  Here is the first question and answers of our participants.

Rick Heiges, of Scalability Experts, SQL MVP who served on the PASS Board of Directors for 9 years and remains an active volunteer with PASS on special projects, is one person pleased with the change of venue. It’s about 90 minutes from downtown Charlotte, which means no long cross country journey.   Here is Rick’s blog on the Conference being in Charlotte, PASS is in Charlotte This Year, including some great points of interest in the area.  We caught up with Rick and others to answer some questions.

We first asked of our panel, what are your primary objectives for attending PASS Summit this year?  The consensus among our group is about networking, reconnecting and community.

Rick Heiges: As always to Connect/Share/Learn.  What else would I do at the PASS Summit?  Seriously, I want to reconnect with my SQL Family members (even ones that I do not know yet), to help out an attendee with an answer to a problem, and to attend at least 8 sessions over the week to keep myself up to date. 

Red Gate Software product evangelist and SQL MVP Grant Fritchey, aka TheScaryDBA, says, “Networking, networking and more networking” But perhaps he has a more sinister goal: “Or, to paraphrase a quote, ‘Same plan as we have every year Pinky. Try to take over the world...
through networking’”

As an alternative to world domination, and delusions of grandeur, Kathi Kellenberger, aka AuntKathi, Sr. Consultant for Pragmatic Works and SQL MVP, offers up a more modest objective: “Of course I hope to learn more about what's in store for SQL Server 2014 and some of my favorite topics like SSIS, but probably the most important reason is community. The week of Summit is just amazing!”

And what would an Aunt be without an Uncle?  SQL MVP and PASS Regional Mentor for the Northeast region, Jack Corbett (blog), aka UncleBiguns, wants to reconnect with those already in his network and to add new connections. He could just join LinkedIn, but he’s attending PASS Summit 😉   He also seeks to grow professionally through attending sessions and side conversations that challenge me to learn and implement new things and to gain a better grasp of BI technologies and architecture.

SQL MVP Matias Lind (blog|twitter), concurs with the others with this multiple choice list: “As with every conference I attend:
a) Connect with peers
b) Learn new stuff
c) Share my point of view”

I suspect the correct answer is d) ALL OF THE ABOVE.  

Erland Sommarskog, who has worked with SQL Server since 1991.and was first awarded as an MVP in April 2001, as well as being select as MVP of the Year, has a more succinct reply: “Have fun. Listen to good sessions. Socialise”

Thanks again, guys!  I will be bringing more highlights and questions and answers, so stay bookmarked to PearlKnows blog!

Have Great Day at PASS!

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