ITPalooza took another big step to reinforce South Florida’s reputation as a technology center at December’s annual gathering, which moved to the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention Center.
Attendees were able to take one of 12 different educational tracks, says Tammy Kennedy, who is the 2017-18 president of the South Florida Technology Alliance, which supports the show. Some of the material, such as four packed sessions about agile project management, provided appeal that went beyond technology companies.
The student track helped young local talent realize they can stay in South Florida and find fulfilling work. “I don’t have to move to New York and I don’t have to move to Silicon Valley. I can stay here and have an amazing career,” Kennedy says of the resulting mindset.
“Content is king. We knocked it out of the park,” she adds. Moreover, “among the panelists and moderators, 98 percent were all here from our own backyard—all C-level executives. The fact that we had so many execs and great information and people getting together for ITPalooza was truly amazing.”
Altogether, it fit the alliance’s mission: “Learn, connect and grow.”
The ITPalooza committee in front of toys donated by attendees for Toys for Tots: Kelly Boyle, Financial Advisor & Senior Vice President, Boyle Torres & Associates, Ameriprise Financial; Beth Ryan, Consultant, True Digital Security; Glen Benjamin, Social Media Chair, & Board Member of South Florida Technology Alliance; Allie Hernandez, Director of Marketing & Partner Development, 365 Data Centers; Lenny Chesal, Evangelist, Cybraics; Tammy Kennedy, President, South Florida Technology Alliance; John McLaughlin, Enterprise Architect, Nexenta Systems; Nicole Ciccone, Executive Director, South Florida Technology Alliance; Rick Sebaly, Senior Account Manager-Enterprise, Dell EMC & ITPalooza Committee Chair; Alex Funkhouser, CEO, Sherlock Talent; Steve Earle, Founder & CEO, E2Marketing; and Kristen Knauer, Client Success Manager, 365 Data Centers
Read the complete SFBW article here: http://sfbwmag.com/2018/01/tech-conference-demonstrates-local-impact/
