Your TechDays 2010 Frequently Asked Questions

techdays_canada_3One of my favourite parts of being the “face of TechDays” in all communications is that I also get the opportunity to reply to every email that is sent to the td_can@microsoft.com email alias.  I get lots of emails – over 1000 at last count – and I reply to each one.  Keep them coming – I really love reading them and having the conversation.

The fact that developers and IT Pros across Canada are passionate about growing their skills at TechDays is of special importance to me.  Many of the emails I get talk about how you are looking to come to TechDays for a second or third time – thank you for your continued support, or maybe for the first time – we look forward to meeting you. 

Some of the emails I get provide great suggestions on how TechDays can be improved, and we take all ideas into consideration and make changes based on your feedback such as adding a Local Flavours track to TechDays this year to allow individuals to submit sessions that they want to deliver reflecting the topics of importance to each geography we visit. 

Finally, there are some emails that have a common theme and question that I get to respond to repeatedly.  That’s the idea behind this blog post – to share those common questions (and answers) with all of you whether or not you sent me an email.  Here they are, in no particular order of importance or frequency.

Question: When will you be announcing the list of sessions for each track at TechDays?  

This question is usually accompanied by the need to provide a manager more info to get approval to attend TechDays, or a desire to plan your personalized agenda for when you attend TechDays.

Answer: We will be announcing the final list of sessions in early July. In fact, the team is currently working on the final session list for the five TechDays tracks that will be the same in all cities, with the exception of the Local Flavours track. We are narrowing down the choices to 10 sessions per track and are very close to the final agenda. Stay tuned to this blog and the www.techdays.ca site for an announcement when this process is completed – early in July.  

Once the final list of sessions is published we will also open up the Schedule Builder functionality so that you can create your customized agenda for attending TechDays.

Question: I am interested in submitting a session for consideration in the Local Flavours track. What is the process for doing so?

Answer: At the same time as we are defining the final session list for TechDays 2010, we are also finalizing the submission process and criteria for the Local Flavours track. We will be announcing the process at the same time as the session abstracts for the other tracks – in early July. We are really looking forward to your submissions and hope that many of you will want to share your expertise and experience with your peers.

Question: As an attendee of TechDays 2009 I received a one-year TechNet Plus subscription. Are you offering the same benefit again this year?

Answer: Since we started TechDays two years ago our focus has been to provide a great learning experience for attendees both during and, through the Learning Kit, after the event. We work with many organizations to help make the overall experience the best possible. Over the last couple of years, we were fortunate that Microsoft Corporate has provided a promotional and complimentary TechNet Plus subscription exclusively to all TechDays attendees. Sadly, this complimentary promotional offering is no longer available.

We are working hard to provide additional value to all attendees through special offers from our Partners and other organizations, but our key focus is always to ensure that you have the best technical learning experience possible at the event and walk away with knowledge you can use today. That has always been, and will continue to be our focus – helping you grow your technical skills. Stay tuned over the next little while as we announce more details on session content, but also on what will be available to help you to continue to grow your skills after the event.

Update: While we will not have a TechNet Plus subscription available to all attendees at TechDays 2010, we are close to finalizing some great offers both from Microsoft as well as our key partners that we will be announcing later in July. I am sure that you will find these compelling and additional value to the great learning you will get at TechDays 2010.

Question: I need to get approval to attend TechDays and also want to take advantage of the Early Bird Price of $349.99 (50% off the full conference price of $699.99). How long will the Early Bird price be available?

Answer: The Early Bird pricing at $349.99 will be in effect until 6 weeks before the TechDays 2010 event in each city. For Vancouver this means that you will be able to purchase a ticket at the Early Bird price until July 31st, after which time the price will be $699.99. While there is plenty of time to ensure you get a great price, but you may want to act now as TechDays has a tendency to sell out in some cities, like it did last year.

 

Question: I registered for TechDays 2010 but have not yet received a email confirmation that I am indeed registered or a receipt for my credit card payment. Can you help?

Answer: If you have not received an email confirmation of your registration within 2-4 business days after you registered, please send an email to td_can@microsoft.com and I will look into it. Please note that the registration confirmation email will not come from Microsoft but from Starshot, our event management vendor, as indicated on the TechDays web site when you registered:

Credit card transactions will appear on your monthly statement as Tech Days care of Starshot. Once you click submit, please allow up to one minute for the transaction to process. An email receipt will be sent to the email address listed above. To ensure you receive our email communications, please add techdays@starshot.com to your safe senders list.

You should also check your Junk Mail folder in case the confirmation was routed their by your email client.

Question: I would like to register a group of individuals from my organization to attend TechDays. The TechDays website does not take group registrations. How can I do this and what payment methods are available?

The answer to this question also applies if you would like to register someone to attend and will be paying with a credit card in a different name than the individual being registered.

Answer: We would be happy to process your registration as a group to help with the admin side of things. To register a group to attend TechDays, please call 1 (888) 361-3343 and speak to one of our representatives. Our call centre is open from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Please note that the only payment method accepted for TechDays registrations is a major credit card. We do not accept company purchase orders or other payment methods.

 

So there you have it.  These are the most common questions that I have been asked through your emails to td_can@microsoft.com.  If you have a question about TechDays, send me an email at td_can@microsoft.com and I’ll get you an answer.  I REALLY do love getting your emails.

 

Damir Bersinic

Damir Bersinic

TechDays 2010 Program & Skills Manager

Microsoft Canada