Last Day to Submit Abstracts for 2016 IT/Dev Connections

IT/Dev Connections returns to the Aria Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 10-13, 2016. We are still looking for talented speakers to provide insights into how they "get the job done" on a daily basis and provide guidance into how to get the most out of the Microsoft Data Platform. We are most-interested in providing presentations on the following topics in the Data Platform and Business Intelligence track this year:

• SQL Server 2016
• SQL Server Azure Database
• Cortana Intelligence Suite
• Machine Learning
• Hadoop
• Data Solutions for IoT

In addition to the preferred topic suggestions above we do have specific guidelines we'll need you to follow:

1. Make your title, abstract, and pitch attention grabbing and eye-catching.
2. Think of an IT/Dev Connections session like a James Bond movie where the attendee is dropped directly into the action even before opening credits and a theme song.
3. Plan your proposal to be a deeply technical experience. You can provide overview information to set context, but the bulk of each session should be designed to educate and provide information not found in other resources.
4. Rely on your experience and expertise, not on product documentation.
5. ITDC attendees want to hear how you would do it in the real-world, not how the vendor thinks their product should work.
6. Prepare your sessions to be free-flowing, conversational, and interactive – more like a User Group meeting than a formal conference. Each general session is 1 hour, 15 minutes in length.
7. Be open to allowing your audience to sometimes lead the conversation and direct the session.
8. Be prepared to be engaging and architect your sessions to include audience feedback and questions. TIP: Include an entire segment just for Q&A. You can do this by inserting slides containing Frequently Asked Questions to help spur interactive discussions.
9. Be a teacher, not a preacher. There’s so much we can learn from each other.
10. We have five distinct tracks for which you can submit content. The tracks are: Cloud & Data Center, Data Platform & Business Intelligence, Enterprise Collaboration, Enterprise Management, Mobility, & Security, and Development & DevOps. Just because you're a SQL Server Professional doesn't mean you're not well-versed in other areas of technology. Don't limit yourself to just SQL Server topics if you feel you can contribute to other tracks!

If you feel you can meet these requirements and have a passion for teaching please visit the Call for Speakers page and submit today before it's too late. Perhaps we'll see you in Las Vegas this October!