What I am Looking Forward to at 404 Conference

The 404 Conference is a new kind of conference hosted by the folks at Kentico. Unlike their past conferences, this one is not focused on the Kentico product, but instead, it is about bringing people together to share experiences of overcoming project failures to deliver success. The event will be held this November 2-4 at The Mirage in Las Vegas, NV and Bit-Wizards is a Diamond sponsor!.

The final agenda and speaker roster for the conference is still coming together, but even so, there is already enough posted that has me excited to attend. Here are the top five things I am looking forward to at the conference.
 

Ann Handley

I am a big fan of Ann Handley's. I am currently reading her book, Everybody Writes, which is helping me become a better content producer. I highly recommend the book if you have not already read it yourself. I have also followed MarketingProfs for a few years now and have always found value in the content they produce.

I am excited to attend her session on Good vs. Good Enough Content and I expect to take a lot away from it. I am a bit of a perfectionist and always find myself wanting to add more detail and to perfect the content I produce. I feel sometimes that does more harm than good, and I am hoping her session will help me in this area as her book does. I am hoping I might even get the chance to talk with her in person at some point as well.
 

Failure and Success

I think the conference theme of learning the different ways failure has resulted in success is unique, and I am sure there will be much to learn from it. We are all familiar with the thought of not reaching success without first failing at least once. What I am excited about is hearing how different people have overcome difference types of failures to achieve success. There will be a variety of individuals from various industries and different roles who will have had different failures and different approaches in overcoming them. This broad range of experiences will provide many looks on how to solve problems and will undoubtedly give me some new ways to tackle and overcome the problems we run into on our projects.
 

Kentico 10 Product Launch

Though the main focus of the conference is not the Kentico product itself, day one is all about just that. This topic is exciting for those of us who use the product every day. They are labeling the first day of the conference as Kentico Experience and are offering a series of workshops that will dive deeper into the specific areas of the product like online marketing and different technical areas. All of this makes me excited but what I am looking forward to more than these sessions is the keynote when Kentico will introduce us to the latest version of the platform, Kentico 10. 
 
I have used Kentico since version four and have watched and experienced the product's maturity through the years. Each version has offered many improvements and additional features that build out the previous versions and always increase the power and value the platform delivers for its customers. I expect nothing less from Kentico 10, as the previews from their roadmap and the whispers from our interactions with the product team all sound like we can expect another great release.
 

Talking with the MVPs and Product Teams

As a long-time Kentico developer, marketer, and enthusiast, I am always excited for the chance to talk with the Kentico MVPs and product teams. These MVPs are incredibly smart, and I always learn a good bit from them every time we interact. The community of Kentico developers is great, and we all help each other get better at using the platform.

 Talking with product teams is something I always look forward to because they give me the chance to help Kentico shape and optimize their product. The feedback that we provide Kentico from our experiences developing in the platform and the requests and input from our clients who use the system is highly valuable. On the other hand, it is also great to learn how they plan to position the product moving forward and what they currently have on their long-term roadmap. These interactions provide valuable information we can take back, plan for, and discuss with our clients.
 

Roundtable Discussions

Conference sessions are always great to learn information on a particular topic, and I always gain valuable insights from them. However, I find the best learning experiences come from informal and unscripted discussions, and that is why I am looking forward to the roundtables. There is just something about open talks with a small group of people from different industries and level of experience that produces valuable information sharing. It also serves as a networking opportunity, and it is always great to make new connections.

So, that is what I am looking forward to at the 404 Conference. The fact that is in Vegas doesn't hurt either. Except this time, what happens in Vegas (at least at the conference) can't stay in Vegas because it is the experiences and information from these events that help us grow as individuals and organizations. Are you going to 404? I hope to see you there! Register here!