SQLSaturday Numbers For Period Ending June 30, 2013

Just saw this in the PASS Connector: The SQLSaturday numbers are in for our fiscal year, which ended June 30, with a total of 81 SQLSaturday events (49 US/32 international) compared to 61 events (37 US/24 international) the previous year. That feels like good, sustainable growth. I hope the trend continues!

Notes from SQLSaturday #231

First time event in Cocoa Beach went really well! Speaker dinner well attended Friday night at Florida’s Seafood Quite a few out of town speakers, and it seemed like more speakers brought their families. Having the event at a hotel on the beach certainly made it What are the odds – the speaker shirt (red […]

Encourage Someone You Respect To Run For The PASS Board of Directors

PASS is accepting candidate applications for the 2013 election through August 7th, 2013. Later this year we – the PASS membership – will be voting to fill three seats on the Board. To have a good election we need a great selection of candidates. I hope for a slate of candidates so good that we […]

PASS Nominating Committee for 2013 Elections Announced

I was pleased to see the email this morning announcing that community volunteers Erin Stellato, Ryan Adams, and Tamera Clark will be joining Board members Sri Sridharan and Rushabh Mehta for the 2013 Nominating Committee. More information on the election site. The work of the NomCom is not glamorous and if anything can be tedious […]

The End of SQLRally in the US

I saw it in the Connector, but just had time to read the minutes to see what was behind the decision to end the SQLRally franchise in the US. The minutes had precious little to say: The Board evaluated the revenue, resources, and sustainability of the SQLRally NA model and decided that there will not […]

Picking a Conference Venue

I was reading about the American Association of Woodturners annual symposium that will be held in Tampa this year (and yes, I plan to attend) and ran across this document that describes their process for picking a site each year. It’s not an equation, but here is the opening section that drives it: “The Board […]

The PASS BA Conference–Good Idea or Not?

Ever since it was announced I’ve been ambivalent about the PASS Business Analytics Conference. I believe PASS should look for places to grow the community and the craft. I believe PASS should take some risks and endure the occasional loss (as long as it is not a bet the company kind of risk). I believe […]

Wrapping Up 2012

Looking back at 2012 I feel like I’ve written less than I planned to, and in some ways done less than I had planned, yet it was a year of tremendous growth for me and not a lost year by any measure. Less travel has been good, if hard to pass up so many great […]

How About a PASS Holiday Ornament?

One of the simpler pleasures in life is having an idea and putting it up for discussion. Not all ideas are good, but good ones are made better by discussion. Will this one be good? We shall see! This post was inspired by two separate events. The first was a friend in my SQLFamily sent […]

PASS Outgoing Board Members Allen Kinsel and Kendal Van Dyke

Allen Kinsel will be leaving the Board of Directors this year after serving a two year term and Kendal is finishing up his one year appointment. Both served the community well, doing quiet good behind the scenes, and I’ll miss having them on the Board. If you see them today I hope you’ll thank them […]