To view recordings of the 2020 spotlight, lightning talks and sessions, visit the IT Unconference webpage.
Many things looked different in 2020, and the Stanford IT Unconference, celebrating its tenth anniversary, was no exception. Instead of an in-person conference with food and mingling, this year’s iteration was orchestrated through Zoom.
The format limited some of the social aspects of the annual event, but IT Unconference fans found a silver lining. With no caps on the total number of attendees or limits imposed by room capacity, people could participate in all sessions that interested them. This benefit was not always available in previous years, as the event would “sell-out” quickly.
New style, same spirit
Transitioning to an online platform required organizers to adapt the experience. Knowing that it would be a struggle for participants to dedicate a full day to a virtual event, they split the program over four days: Dec. 3, 8, 9, and 10. Opening remarks from University IT CIO Steve Gallagher, plus a series of spotlight speakers, kept attendees engaged throughout the week.
Despite the pivots, the spirit of the conference remained intact. IT professionals from across the university queued up in Zoom rooms to pitch their session ideas and secure a speaking opportunity. To stitch it all together, Smartsheet replaced the traditional whiteboard. Rounding out the itinerary was a selection of five-minute lightning talks.
Planning for an unplanned event
What’s unique about the IT Unconference is that the agenda is made during the conference, not before. This ensures the talks are current and participation flows unstructured. As John DeSilva, planning committee chair, explains, the ethos of the conference is “whatever happens is what’s supposed to happen.”
“Participants are free to join and leave sessions as they choose. Nobody takes offense. We used to call this the law of two feet, but this year it was more like the law of two clicks,” said John.
Despite its casual vibe, Marco Wise, one of the event’s founders, revealed there’s actually a good deal of behind-the-scenes planning.
“It appears to be just something that happens on the day. But in reality, there are many volunteers who step up,” said Marco. “And this year, the CRC (Computer Resource Consulting) team was instrumental in making sure the technology went perfectly.”
Looking ahead
While nobody is ready to predict how the IT Unconference will look in a post-pandemic future, organizers say they hope to keep some of the new technologies and processes that made this year’s event successful and accessible.
