ASUG Pacific Northwest Chapter Meeting - 08Sept2011
The Pacific Northwest (PNW) ASUG meeting was held in Redmond, Washington, at the Microsoft Campus. In addition to the all-day meeting, there was a golf outing the day before and a Utilities SIG meeting the day after. Although I wasn’t able to attend golf, it was a perfect opportunity to catch both meetings on one trip.
First a quick story about my travel on Wednesday afternoon. The plane boarded on time and just as we had all settled in, the pilot announced that he had seen bird remains in one of the engines. He had called for a detailed inspection and the decision had been made that the plane was not safe to fly. We all needed to return to the boarding area and wait on instructions. At this point, I should mention that the majority of the people were elderly and on the 1st leg of their Vacation Cruise Tour and one of the tour coordinators looked like Elvis. You can imagine the confusion and slow responses – but who cared, it was more entertaining than sitting in the boarding area. We quickly learned that the next flight would be in 2 hours, but within 5 minutes of that announcement, we were told they found another airplane and would board as soon as it was ready. More confusion, excitement, and Elvis with his clipboard! We finally boarded and landed in Seattle only an hour or so behind. Unfortunately that put me on the Shuttle Express during peak rush hour and it took us much longer than I expected to reach the hotel.
Ok, back to ASUG. There were 160 registered for the meeting on Thursday, but not as many attendees. This included 35 installation companies and 29 associates/vendors. We were in the Microsoft Visitor Center (Bldg92) and had several of the rooms and hallway on the 2nd floor. I had never been to the Microsoft Campus but it was as expected and could be compared to a University setting with plenty of funding. I saw a few familiar faces, but most attendees were different than those that attended the February ASUG meeting in Tacoma.
AccM did not sponsor at this meeting, but there was a room setup for the sponsor tables that also included the refreshments and food. As a sponsor, I preferred the layout in Tacoma where the sponsors were in the open space used for networking. We all attended the Opening Keynote by SAP, then there were 4 Breakout Sessions to choose from each hour until the Closing Keynote by ASUG. I think all of us snuck downstairs to the Microsoft Store during lunch to do a little shopping or over to the Commons which included a soccer field, restaurants, and more shops.
As most ASUG meetings this Spring and Summer, there were several sessions on Business Objects (BOBJ) and they appeared to be the most attended. I haven’t had the opportunity to get involved on a BOBJ project, but I do like the energy that the group had and their focus on improvements. In the Opening Keynote, we heard the Nike SLO (System Landscape Optimization) success story and how they are leveraging SAP to reduce downtime. All the breakout sessions I attended were informational and showcased customer case studies. I encourage you to go to ASUG, review the meeting agenda, and download any of the presentations that are of interest.
The Closing Keynote on SAP Influence was inspirational. June Keszeg, ASUG HQ, told an entertaining story about her history in IT and how she ended up at ASUG. As SAP Community Members, we have the means to interact and influence SAP and believe it or not, SAP wants us to influence them! June described the new Executive Exchange which meets in October, the 60+ Influence Councils, and the Customer Connect process coming in 2012 to address small ideas and quick wins. We were also asked to jot down some ideas on an index card so she could take them with her and begin to action. These included both things we could do to make ASUG better and also what ASUG/SAP could do to make our lives easier. I noticed as the meeting wrapped up and prizes were raffled, June was reading thru the cards and most everyone turned one in.
That evening, I was able to take advantage of the amazing weather and wandered around Marymoor Park. Everyone was out enjoying the sun and warm temps – I saw bicycling, softball, cricket, rugby, rock climbing, model airplanes, and lots of parties. I had such a good dinner the night before at a small Asian restaurant that I returned and tried a different menu item. The owner asked if I would be back the next day, but I had to disappoint and let her know I was flying home.
After such an informative day and relaxing evening, I was anxious to return to Microsoft the next morning and attend the Pacific Northwest Utilities Meeting.