Help On How To Organize Your First SAP TechEd

[JimSpath]

I saw this on Twitter (probably due to their time warping algorithm updates) today and thought I'd share a few veteran tips:

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i need some help on how to organize my first #SAP #TechEd  in Barcelona. 608 workshops and i want to attend all of them! Any suggestion from the veterans like @JelenaAtLarge or @frommikki or @casertz  ? Save a poor n00b! 🙂

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https://mobile.twitter.com/SMilesi81

As it turns out, Simone is not really a N00B [ simone.milesi ]; he was member of the month not long back: https://blogs.sap.com/2016/08/01/simone-milesi-scn-member-of-the-month-august-2016/  Doesn't matter though, as the tips that follow are from my perspective and attendees should adjust to suit their style.

1. Overload your agenda. I've hit conference session planners in the past that would not let you schedule two things at the same time, but the more recent style allows this, and should alert you if you've double or triple booked.  Maybe you go to your top choice at 10AM and find after a few minutes you're not getting what you hoped. Don't be afraid to skip out to the second choice.  As a speaker, I wince when this happens but audience should be where they need to be not where the speaker needs them.


2. For TechEd, pick 2 hour hands on, not 4. This is not a hard-and-fast rule, but since there are so many other things going on at the same time, locking yourself in one room for half a day minimizes the breadth of your learning. Good hands-on sessions fill up so the window of opportunity to sign up may have already gone, though you can wait in line in case of no-shows for a topic you really need to pick up.


3. Get to the conference early, and look for people to chat with. If there's a pre-conference day and you can be in town, go there even if you aren't registered. Introduce yourself to speakers and attendees (and even SAP Mentors, who are very approachable).  For a slide talk, sit as close to the front and to the center aisle as you can, to better sense the speakers nuances.

 

Hope to see you in Barcelona!

 

p.s. some links to my past posts:

• https://blogs.sap.com/2007/10/07/a-week-of-teched-networking-influencing-educating-part-5/


• https://blogs.sap.com/2008/10/16/emea-teched-days-2-and-3/


• https://blogs.sap.com/2011/10/13/teched-marathon-last-minute-preparations-bollywood-homage/

and this is me on the right should you wish to say hi... beard's a bit longer now.



pps I have grown to detest keynotes.