boston_intro

I have recently found out that I have been selected to present at this years SharePoint Saturday Boston.  I skipped last year but very excited to be returning to Boston and getting back into the swing of presenting.  The break from the scene was much needed as business has been booming and a good night’s sleep was more like a power nap :).

I have missed getting up in front of SharePoint Admins, Developers, Project Managers, Enders, etc. and providing them information that they can go back and utilize in their day to day job.  Hopefully, I’m guiding them in a direction that makes the work life simpler, less time consuming and potentially less stressful.  At least those are some of my goals.  In addition, to the attendees I have missed hanging out and engaging in deep dive conversations with the other speakers.  Which means not only am I there to teach I’m also there to learn from others and that’s what it’s all about!

In Boston I will be presenting my Good vs. Evil: Customizing & Branding for User Adoption
and ROI presentation.  Some of you may have seen the presentation before however, I have done some updating so it just might be worthwhile to stop by the session and check it out.  I will also be doing a raffle or two during the session but you must be present to WIN!

Session Description:  There has always been a struggle between the good admin and the bad developer.  Or maybe it’s the good developer and the bad admin?! Depends on who you ask…right?    At every level there is give and take and the battle has been lengthy.   As the demands of a new site build and change from simple logo and theme updates into the coveted ‘rounded corners’ and data view web parts, there is much to consider.  Branding and customization sounds great and normally looks great, but at what cost?  In this session I will be discussing the difference between branding and design, and the effects it can have on the functionality and effectiveness of a site.  More importantly there will be an overview of Basic Customizations (OOTB) vs. Advanced Customizations and how to avoid the rabbit hole of non-stop customization requests and tweaks. To ensure you get the most out of your SharePoint site, we will discuss best practices and governance, planning, and testing based on real word scenarios.

For more information on SharePoint Saturday Boston 2014 check out the new site at  http://www.spsevents.org/city/boston/april2014 and you can follow the event on twitter @SPSBoston.  While your at it check out the newly revamped SPS Events site at http://www.spsevents.org/ and follow event updates via twitter @sps_events.  The organizers have done an amazing job with the site, event organization and ensuring that the SharePoint Saturday events go off without a hitch and the attendees get exactly what they signed up for plus a little (yes that was totally a Kroger commercial reference).

Hope to see you all very soon in Boston!