CompTIA ChannelCon, the premier training and partnering event for the IT channel, kicks off today in Chicago and runs through August 5. Themed “Minds in Motion,” the event brings together a cross-section of solution providers, vendors, distributors, and media. Also, more than 150 exhibitors will showcase channel-focused products and solutions, enablement tools, and partner initiatives.
Today starts with a Community Day Kickoff Breakfast featuring eight community chairs detailing the day’s meetings. Breakfast is followed by community meetings throughout the day as well as exhibitor events and CompTIA certificate training courses. The first day ends with a technology vendor fair and reception.
On Tuesday, Todd Thibodeaux, president and CEO, CompTIA, gives the state of the industry opening presentation. He is followed by the morning keynote, presented by Adam Alter, author of the New York Times bestseller, Drunk Tank Pink: And Other Unexpected Forces That Shape How We Think, Feel, and Behave. He will explore how businesses can better understand and predict the behavior of their customers.
Tiffani Bova, VP and Distinguished Analyst, Gartner Research, gives the opening keynote at the Vendor Summit. She will be talking about macro trends in technology, and how they’re being consumed. She will discuss their impact to the channel, and how the partner base has evolved based on today’s technology trends. Her presentation will also provide an overview on the three types of partners†– traditional reseller, hybrid, and born-in-the-cloud.
Also on Tuesday, CompTIA will begin its Track4Techs educational programming. Developed specifically for the IT pro community, the Track4Techs sessions will explore how big data, cloud computing, cyber security, mobility, and other innovations are impacting their jobs. All Track4Techs sessions qualify for continuing education unit (CEU) credit for CompTIA certification renewal.
†”The inaugural Track4Techs program year proved to be among the most well attended and highly rated sessions, so we’re bringing it back to ChannelCon 2015,” said Kelly Ricker, senior vice president, events and education, CompTIA. “It’s a program and a setting that’s unique within the IT channel – where IT pros come together for leading-edge education, a chance to network with their peers and to gain insights into the latest technologies and trends impacting their jobs.”
Some of those insights will come from CompTIA’s latest industry research report, Building Digital Organizations.
Tuesday sessions are:
- Refrigerators Telling Secrets: How the Internet of Things Will Change Privacy, presented by Tim Hahn, distinguished engineer, IBM
- Building the Next Generation of Help Desk Support, presented by James Stanger, senior director, product management, CompTIA
- What’s this Open Source Thing All About?, presented by Margaret Dawson, chief marketing officer, RivalIQ
On Wednesday, Kevin Murai, president and CEO, Synnex Corp., gives the Thought Leaders Keynote: “Connecting the Strategic Process to IT.”
There is also a Channel Insights Panel: Building a Bigger, Better, Stronger Business. Panelists will explore various hot topics impacting solution providers – from managing CRM and ERP processes to gain efficiencies to leadership strategies and effectively leveraging social media to grow your business.
Track4Techs continues on Wednesday with these sessions:
- Putting Together the Pieces of a Mobility Solution, panelists Reid Estreicher, Samsung and Jillian Offutt, Solstice Mobile; moderator Carolyn April, senior director, industry analysis, CompTIA
- How Cloud Storage Makes Life Harder and Simpler At The Same Time
- A Seven Step Plan for Making Sure Your Network Can Handle Big Data.
- Securing Datacenters as the World Goes Webscale, presented by Aaron Hackney, Rackspace
For the second year in a row, virtual audiences can gain real-time access to CompTIA ChannelCon, through ChannelCon Online.
The technology fair and educational sessions continue throughout the day, ending with a “wine down” at the end of the event.
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