Sharing is Caring: DAM and Everyone Else. by Leala Abbot
I spent the last few days at createasphere, great conference. The panel format was a big WIN!. Panels are so much more informative than the usual “death by deck” that gets dolled out at these events. At the end of the day I took so much more away from each talk, as it was “experts” often times speaking “off-the-cuff” and answering questions from the audience. This was truly the first “interactive” conference I have ever attended. The speakers seemed more approachable, because the audience got to see them “expose” themselves on stage, whether that was “digging a hole” or showing how truly passionate they are about the topic of DAM.
So the conference overall was one of the best “professional” conferences I have ever been to. However, we all drink the same Kool-aid (a more in-depth post about this drinking problem to follow). The conference was incestuous. Mostly all attendees were already well established DAM professionals (ie. Speakers) or Vendors. I think I met only one non-DAM inductee.
So what’s the point of the valuable message that was being given if no one but your peers is around to hear it? Yes, they might gain valuable insight as I did, but isn’t it also possible to both help your peers and help others outside the realm of DAM?
To do this, information has to be accessible. We of all people (DAM professionals) should understand this. However, these conferences are not accessible. Most folks are struggling just to implement DAM in their organization, let alone convincing their superiors that they also must attend a conference with a high ticket price. I wont even get into how much KM world costs to attend (Taxonomy Bootcamp included). One of my coworkers is currently in the process of writing, filling out forms, meeting with people, convincing others all just to be able to go to KM World.
Continues @http://lealaabbott.com/wp/archives/260
