VMworld 2018 is fast approaching and in the last 24 hours, notifications where sent out to those lucky enough to have their session submissions accepted. Having been on the wrong side of that email multiple times I understand the disappointment that comes with not having a session accepted. The great news about VMworld is that there is another way to get your session seen and heard…and that is through the vBrownBag Techtalks.

The TechTalks have been a staple at VMworld’s (and other industry conferences) for a number of years now. Last year saw a stepping up of the vBrownBag game by having the TechTalks listed in the VMworld Content Catalog. I’ve had the pleasure of presenting tech talks at three VMworld’s over the years. The first one was back in 2014 but I remember it being a significant milestone in my career…regardless of the fact it was just a TechTalk it meant a lot to present at VMworld.

Make no mistake…these talks have the power and potential to catapult careers!

While the TechTalks offer the opportunity for folks that have not had sessions accepted, the real power of the talks is in offering a platform for the community to step up and present relevant, thought leading content that generally isn’t driven by marketing. In many ways I see more value in these sessions than in the VMworld sessions proper and there is a lot that can be taken away from the sessions.

That said, it’s great to see a number of vendors sponsoring the TechTalks and as per usual, Veeam is leading the way in our support of community at VMworld. As of last week there where around 50 TechTalks submitted and the team expects to have space for over a hundred TechTslks between the both VMworld conferences.

There is still plenty of time to submit your session, more information is in this post.

Here is a Playlist of the 2017 VMworld TechTalks. For those interested, there is a blog post by the vBrownBag team on what it takes to get get a presentation up live streaming and onto YouTube so fast…I found it a fascinating read.