Hello Everyone;
As I indicated in my last post, this is truly the calm before the storm. Next week marks the official launch of the fall SAS user group season! Two Toronto-specific groups will be kicking off the end of 2010, and they couldn't be more different. The first, the Toronto Management Exchange, is an invite-only event for a small number of Directors and Executives from a select group of customers. Leveraging SAS' global thought leadership capabilities, the group will be joining Aiman Zeid, SAS Global Business Practice Leader in the Business Intelligence Competency Centre space. With a tight attendee list, the conversation promises to be pointed and robust!
The following day, I'm helping to run our annual King St. Kicks soccer tournament. Benefitting Market Lane Public School, this fun-filled day features co-ed amateur soccer teams from a variety of SAS customers and local businesses. In addition to supporting a great school, the event itself is something I look forward to each year. The school often turns up with African drums to cheer on their favourite team (ahem, SAS, ahem) and the comraderie which develops between the teams is lots of fun to watch. But wait: no rest of the wicked!
The following day, Friday, September 17th, the TASS meeting officially kicks off the general, open-invite event schedule. We currently have over 200 individuals registered for the day, and the numbers keep climbing! You can find a detailed agenda of the full slate of presentations and breakout sessions here. I'm very much looking forward to seeing friends and colleagues and catching up on the details of everyone's summer vacations.
Speaking of TASS, I wanted to make mention of one individual in particular. Adrian Boldan has been a long-time SAS user and TASS attendee, thoroughly engaged with the group and his fellow SAS users. He could always be counted on to spur discussion in the Statistics Breakout groups, and always had a pleasant word for myself and the other SAS users. It has recently come to my attention the Adrian's life was cut short by a speeding car in recent months. I wanted to take a moment to pay tribute to a good person, and a member of our community.
While this may seem like a sombre note to end this blog, I prefer to think of it as a celebration of our growing community. We mourn the loss of one of our own, to be sure, but it also warms the heart to see the outreach of support and sympathy. We're all SAS users, but we're also all human beings possessing compassion and morality. I think I speak for all of us when I extend our best wishes to his family at this difficult time.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
The Fall User Group Season Looms Ever Larger...
... and I couldn't be more pleased about it!
Within another few weeks, I'll be starting my semi-annual blitz of the regional user groups. This fall, I plan on attending and presenting at meetings in Toronto, Quebec City, Hamilton, Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, Victoria and Vancouver. It promises to be a very busy - but very exciting - fall user group season.
Many of the meeting agendas remain open. We have a couple of keynote speakers booked - Marje Fecht, SAS legend, is set to present in Edmonton and Calgary... and the Executive Committees of VANSUG (Vancouver) and SUAVe (Victoria) will be taking my constantly repeated refrain around community-building to heart by travelling/presenting at each other's groups! I love the pro-active, energetic nature of these two groups, and I'm very much looking forward to getting together with them in November.
It occurs to me that I should explain the 'ins and outs' of a SAS user group for those of you who may not have attended one previously here in Canada. In essence, the groups are a support system for SAS users. It provides a forum for learning and discussion for SAS professionals from a variety of industry verticals, with SAS experience ranging from rudimentary to expert. It's a great place to get SAS tips and tricks, and to network with other SAS users from a whole host of backgrounds. They are a great resource for SAS users of any level of experience. We've produced a few videos to give you a 'sense' of what to expect at the meetings if you haven't attended one previously.
The full User Group schedule can be found here. To drill down into specific user groups, you can go the the SAS Canada User Group page. In addition to giving information about upcoming meetings, each group has a long archive of past presentations: yours to access, for free! It's an amazing source of knowledge.
Video content is becoming more and more important. In a few soundbites, you can get a sense of the style and content of a presentation and the tone of a specific meeting. Moving forward, we'll have lots of video on the SASSoftware YouTube Channel to point towards as resources for your use. Interviews with guest speakers, presentation excerpts and more!
So what's on the docket for the near future? Well, we have a few events in September which will kick off the new user group season with a bang! TASS, one of the largest groups, meets on September 17th. You can have a look at the agenda and register for as much of the full-day meeting as you would like here.
I'll be back a little later in the week with more news/views... for now, a question: are you enjoying the video content that SAS is starting to provide with more regularity?
Within another few weeks, I'll be starting my semi-annual blitz of the regional user groups. This fall, I plan on attending and presenting at meetings in Toronto, Quebec City, Hamilton, Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, Victoria and Vancouver. It promises to be a very busy - but very exciting - fall user group season.
Many of the meeting agendas remain open. We have a couple of keynote speakers booked - Marje Fecht, SAS legend, is set to present in Edmonton and Calgary... and the Executive Committees of VANSUG (Vancouver) and SUAVe (Victoria) will be taking my constantly repeated refrain around community-building to heart by travelling/presenting at each other's groups! I love the pro-active, energetic nature of these two groups, and I'm very much looking forward to getting together with them in November.
It occurs to me that I should explain the 'ins and outs' of a SAS user group for those of you who may not have attended one previously here in Canada. In essence, the groups are a support system for SAS users. It provides a forum for learning and discussion for SAS professionals from a variety of industry verticals, with SAS experience ranging from rudimentary to expert. It's a great place to get SAS tips and tricks, and to network with other SAS users from a whole host of backgrounds. They are a great resource for SAS users of any level of experience. We've produced a few videos to give you a 'sense' of what to expect at the meetings if you haven't attended one previously.
The full User Group schedule can be found here. To drill down into specific user groups, you can go the the SAS Canada User Group page. In addition to giving information about upcoming meetings, each group has a long archive of past presentations: yours to access, for free! It's an amazing source of knowledge.
Video content is becoming more and more important. In a few soundbites, you can get a sense of the style and content of a presentation and the tone of a specific meeting. Moving forward, we'll have lots of video on the SASSoftware YouTube Channel to point towards as resources for your use. Interviews with guest speakers, presentation excerpts and more!
So what's on the docket for the near future? Well, we have a few events in September which will kick off the new user group season with a bang! TASS, one of the largest groups, meets on September 17th. You can have a look at the agenda and register for as much of the full-day meeting as you would like here.
I'll be back a little later in the week with more news/views... for now, a question: are you enjoying the video content that SAS is starting to provide with more regularity?
Monday, August 16, 2010
Wide-Eyed & Wo(a)ndering at SAS HQ in Cary, NC
Hi Everyone.
Well.
It's been a little while since I've committed word to paper and pushed out the thoughts burning at the edges of my brain... or perhaps its just the extreme heat here in Cary, NC, which is giving me that impression! I can practically see my colleague Martha Casanova rolling her eyes: she generally doesn't get out of bed for any temperatures under 100F... Martha, I have new respect for you - and a little fear (you have to be a little crazy to thrive under these conditions!)
I've just completed three days of meetings and events here at the SAS head offices in Cary, and for those who haven't been before, I thought I'd try and capture a few shots of some interesting sights. Please forgive this, my first pass at 'in the field' video recording/editing! Normally I have a tripod, a microphone, and wonderful support through Kerry Blanchard at SAS Canada... but it's a small taste of Cary life that I wanted to share.
So what were my meetings about? Well, in a nutshell, social media. I now have some great insight into what my colleagues at SAS USA are doing, where they plan on taking things, and what resources they're leveraging to give as much support as possible to their SAS user community. This is extremely relevant as I continue searching for that 'magic bullet': what can I, and SAS Canada, provide to you, the SAS user, to make your life a little easier through social media? There are LOTS of resources for tech support, training, and beyond... so what can little ol' me do to add to these resources?? Where's the value for the SAS user within social media?
I can honestly say, the last few days have been enlightening and inspiring. I'm armed with fresh ideas, new energy, and a whole lot of excitement. For those of you who know me, this is perhaps not a good thing: I'm generally more excited that an unstable molecule in a cappucino... I'll be sure to report back on what I've learned once I've had a chance to digest it all, but for now, here's some quick hand-held shots of Campus Cary. Federico Fellini, I'm not... but with a little practice, I'll get better, I promise!
More soon...
Well.
It's been a little while since I've committed word to paper and pushed out the thoughts burning at the edges of my brain... or perhaps its just the extreme heat here in Cary, NC, which is giving me that impression! I can practically see my colleague Martha Casanova rolling her eyes: she generally doesn't get out of bed for any temperatures under 100F... Martha, I have new respect for you - and a little fear (you have to be a little crazy to thrive under these conditions!)
I've just completed three days of meetings and events here at the SAS head offices in Cary, and for those who haven't been before, I thought I'd try and capture a few shots of some interesting sights. Please forgive this, my first pass at 'in the field' video recording/editing! Normally I have a tripod, a microphone, and wonderful support through Kerry Blanchard at SAS Canada... but it's a small taste of Cary life that I wanted to share.
So what were my meetings about? Well, in a nutshell, social media. I now have some great insight into what my colleagues at SAS USA are doing, where they plan on taking things, and what resources they're leveraging to give as much support as possible to their SAS user community. This is extremely relevant as I continue searching for that 'magic bullet': what can I, and SAS Canada, provide to you, the SAS user, to make your life a little easier through social media? There are LOTS of resources for tech support, training, and beyond... so what can little ol' me do to add to these resources?? Where's the value for the SAS user within social media?
I can honestly say, the last few days have been enlightening and inspiring. I'm armed with fresh ideas, new energy, and a whole lot of excitement. For those of you who know me, this is perhaps not a good thing: I'm generally more excited that an unstable molecule in a cappucino... I'll be sure to report back on what I've learned once I've had a chance to digest it all, but for now, here's some quick hand-held shots of Campus Cary. Federico Fellini, I'm not... but with a little practice, I'll get better, I promise!
More soon...
Monday, July 5, 2010
Rested & Refreshed...
... from my vacation,and ready for some exciting new developments in the SAS world!
As those of you who regularly attend regional user group meetings can attest, SAS Canada has been quickly joining the social media frenzy. You will have heard myself - or one of my colleagues - talk at length about what we hope to achieve through online communities: strengthening SAS knowledge and connectivity not only locally, but globally as well.
I had the opportunity to take some 'baby steps' into this arena with last month's trip to Ottawa as well as with the Toronto Area SAS Society in my home town. I'll be very happy to share my experiences - and soon enough, the edited videos - with all of you. Some early learnings:
1) Videography can be tricky. I was lucky enough to have a couple of assistants in Toronto who were able to manage and adjust the camera as required: not so lucky a couple of days earlier in Ottawa! Let's see what the difference might be in quality and content over the next few weeks as we post the content online.
2) SAS has it's own YouTube channel! Will this be the home of our user group videos? Quite possibly... in the meantime, excellent content is being posted daily: I highly recommend having a look-see.
3) There is a LOT of content to get through, and I mean a lot! So much, in fact, that I've had to purchase an external hard drive to hold it all in its un-edited state. As we get more and more practiced with the 'fun stuff' - determining appropriate sound bites, the right enticing and valuable bits of info that you just can't do without - I expect this will change... but you'll still be receiving high value. Maybe it's an unbelievable demo. Maybe it's a presentation which had the room on it's feet. Whatever comes down the pipe, rest assured that it will be dissected with the utmost care and re-purposed to give you the best of the bits!!!
Well, that's all for the moment. Stayed tuned for my next installment: I'll be talking about the Fall user group schedule and the highlights as they currently stand, as well as pointing you towards some new, high quality SAS video.
And now, a PowerPoint slide-deck of my vacation to San Diego. Only 1,432 pictures to get through! What do you mean it's lunch? A hair appointment? Your dog's at the vet? You're late for your WEDDING? I get the point....
As those of you who regularly attend regional user group meetings can attest, SAS Canada has been quickly joining the social media frenzy. You will have heard myself - or one of my colleagues - talk at length about what we hope to achieve through online communities: strengthening SAS knowledge and connectivity not only locally, but globally as well.
I had the opportunity to take some 'baby steps' into this arena with last month's trip to Ottawa as well as with the Toronto Area SAS Society in my home town. I'll be very happy to share my experiences - and soon enough, the edited videos - with all of you. Some early learnings:
1) Videography can be tricky. I was lucky enough to have a couple of assistants in Toronto who were able to manage and adjust the camera as required: not so lucky a couple of days earlier in Ottawa! Let's see what the difference might be in quality and content over the next few weeks as we post the content online.
2) SAS has it's own YouTube channel! Will this be the home of our user group videos? Quite possibly... in the meantime, excellent content is being posted daily: I highly recommend having a look-see.
3) There is a LOT of content to get through, and I mean a lot! So much, in fact, that I've had to purchase an external hard drive to hold it all in its un-edited state. As we get more and more practiced with the 'fun stuff' - determining appropriate sound bites, the right enticing and valuable bits of info that you just can't do without - I expect this will change... but you'll still be receiving high value. Maybe it's an unbelievable demo. Maybe it's a presentation which had the room on it's feet. Whatever comes down the pipe, rest assured that it will be dissected with the utmost care and re-purposed to give you the best of the bits!!!
Well, that's all for the moment. Stayed tuned for my next installment: I'll be talking about the Fall user group schedule and the highlights as they currently stand, as well as pointing you towards some new, high quality SAS video.
And now, a PowerPoint slide-deck of my vacation to San Diego. Only 1,432 pictures to get through! What do you mean it's lunch? A hair appointment? Your dog's at the vet? You're late for your WEDDING? I get the point....
Monday, June 7, 2010
The Siren-Like Call of OASUS and OPUS
Well friends, I'm off tomorrow for a really pleasurable experience: the semi-annual OASUS and OPUS user group meetings in Ottawa. Run by an extremely tight executive committee and supported strongly through the SAS Canada offices in Ottawa, these groups really do set the bar very high for planning, vision and size.
As I mentioned previously, we're trying out something new to better support the SAS user community: we're adding the element of video. Coming up: interviews with the President's of both groups as well as footage from the meeting (Q & A sessions, networking breaks, book reviews). This should provide a candid, honest platform for cheering - or jeering! - the structure of the meetings.
I'll have videos and pictures to post from the meeting: I hope you'll find it useful, and do let me know if I could improve my technique at all (Oliver Stone, I'm not!)
On a personal note, I'll be headed to sunny San Diego to visit my (much) better half for a few weeks beginning on June 12th, so this space may be quiet until month's end. Have no fear: I'm not going anywhere, and will be sure to regale you with wonderful tales from Ottawa shortly!
Look forward to reporting back shortly....
As I mentioned previously, we're trying out something new to better support the SAS user community: we're adding the element of video. Coming up: interviews with the President's of both groups as well as footage from the meeting (Q & A sessions, networking breaks, book reviews). This should provide a candid, honest platform for cheering - or jeering! - the structure of the meetings.
I'll have videos and pictures to post from the meeting: I hope you'll find it useful, and do let me know if I could improve my technique at all (Oliver Stone, I'm not!)
On a personal note, I'll be headed to sunny San Diego to visit my (much) better half for a few weeks beginning on June 12th, so this space may be quiet until month's end. Have no fear: I'm not going anywhere, and will be sure to regale you with wonderful tales from Ottawa shortly!
Look forward to reporting back shortly....
Thursday, May 20, 2010
... and Off We Go!!!
Hello, Blogosphere.
I must admit, typing these first few words is both exciting and daunting at the same time. Exciting to think of the possibilities ahead: the connections to be made, the stories to tell, the points to be debated. Daunting because the excitement of the 'tabula rasa' of this blog also represents a commitment from me; a commitment to regularly contribute, to read, to answer, and to immerse myself deeper than ever in the SAS user community. Am I ready? I think so!
As I prepare to head to Ottawa for their user group meetings, I'll be sure to update you on some exciting new initiatives which we'll be hoping to test in their robust SAS environment. Stay tuned for more soon...
I must admit, typing these first few words is both exciting and daunting at the same time. Exciting to think of the possibilities ahead: the connections to be made, the stories to tell, the points to be debated. Daunting because the excitement of the 'tabula rasa' of this blog also represents a commitment from me; a commitment to regularly contribute, to read, to answer, and to immerse myself deeper than ever in the SAS user community. Am I ready? I think so!
As I prepare to head to Ottawa for their user group meetings, I'll be sure to update you on some exciting new initiatives which we'll be hoping to test in their robust SAS environment. Stay tuned for more soon...
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