Top 10 Reasons to Attend DevLearn this October

It’s hard to believe the DevLearn Conference & Expo is only a few short months away. Since we’re celebrating the 10th year of DevLearn, I thought it might be fun to go the “David Letterman Top Ten List” route and share my top 10 reasons to attend DevLearn this fall:

#10: Outstanding Pre-Conference Workshops

For Many members of the Guild Community, the DevLearn experience begins before the conference by attending one of the many Pre-Conference Certificate Programs taking place one the two days before the conference begins. Each Certificate Program takes a deep dive into a specific topic, providing participants with an opportunity to build skills and form relationships with other attendees. With over 20 great pre-conference Certificate Programs available this year, you;re sure to find something of interest to jump start your DevLearn experience.

#9: The Adobe Learning Summit

If you use Adobe tools like Captivate, Creative Cloud and more, you should consider adding the Adobe Learning Summit to your DevLearn experience. It’s a full-day event dedicated to exploring the various Adobe Tools that can be used for elearning. If you use Adobe tools, this is a great event to attend.

#8: The Bellagio and Las Vegas

This year DevLearn moves to the Bellagio, one of the most elegant resorts on the Las Vegas strip. While you’re in Las Vagas for DevLearn, be sure to enjoy being in the heart of the Las Vegas strip, at the home of the famous Fountains of Bellagio.

#7: The Docent Programs

The eLearning Guild wants to make sure every attendee has a great conference experience, so we have two Docent Programs available to newcomers to the conference. Our main Docent Program is for professionals that are attending their first DevLearn or are looking for more of a “guided tour” of the conference. We have a number of industry experts that will serve as guides to those participating in the Docent Program, helping them get more out of the conference through guided experiences and exclusive programming opportunities.

We’ll also be adapting the Docent Program for newcomers to our industry via our new Student Docent Program. This program is part of the eLearning Guild’s new College Partnership Program, and provides students with discounted registration and a student-tailored guided experience to the conference.

#6: New Messages from Names You Know

We’ll also be hosting six featured sessions from well-known leaders in our leaders in our industry that will be sharing new and unique messages that you haven’t heard before. Our featured speakers at DevLearn include Allison Rossett, Karl Kapp, Marc Rosenberg, Steve Foreman, Tom Kuhlmann and more.

#5: Over 175 Learning Sessions

The eLearning Guild ultimately exists as a forum through which those who know can help those that want to know. That driving force is present in the well-over 175 unique learning sessions being conducted by members of the Guild Community. If you want to hear stories of how organizations are using technology to redefine what learning and performance support look like – you want to be at DevLearn.

#4: The Largest Learning Technologies Expo in North America

DevLearn hosts the largest expo in North America dedicated to learning technologies. If you are interested in finding out what new technologies are available and how they might be able to help your organization reach it’s goals, you definitely want to take some time to explore the DevLearn Expo.

#3: DemoFest

At DemoFest, members of the Guild Community share their elearning and mlearning projects in a science fair-like environment. This year we’ll have over 80 different projects on display. You’ll have the opportunity to talk with the designers and developers of each project, and learn why they made the decisions they did, what barriers they encountered, and how they overcame them.

DemoFest is consistently a highlight of the DevLearn experience and something that keeps attendees coming back year-after-year.

#2: Neil deGrasse Tyson Headlining a Great Keynote Lineup

DevLearn is known for having great keynote sessions, and this year is sure to be the best keynote lineup ever. It’s highlighted by our opening keynote speaker, Neil deGrasse Tyson, American astrophysicist and host of the 12-time Emmy nominated series COSMOS: A Spacetime Odyessy. Dr. Tyson will be exploring the importance of science literacy and how it is shaping the future of work.

We’ll also be featuring Dr. Beau Lotto exploring how perception shapes the ways we learn, and Belinda Parmar discussing the differences between how we use technology in our personal lives and how we use technology in the workplace.

#1: The Guild Community

When I ask people why they come back to DevLearn each year, I hear about the great sessions, the outstanding keynotes, the amazing value of DemoFest, and more. The one thing that consistently emerges as the top reason people attend DevLearn is the community that is present at the event. DevLearn is a community-driven event, and the connections are made at this conference stay with people throughout the year. Joe Ganci described the DevLearn community when he wrote in a recent post “the caliber and friendliness of the attendees and speakers is unmatched”. I’d have to agree. DevLearn has always been the most important conference for me to attend every year, because the people I wanted to connect and learn from were there every year.

That’s my top ten list, but I could go on. Is there anything I missed that you would add to your DevLearn Top Ten List? If so, add it to the comments.