So. My big moment. A whole week of them.
Not a great day – there were no marching bands, parades or military flypasts to welcome me when I got here. Orlando? Did you not get the memo?
At this stage, I’m ruled by my to-do list. It’s a biggie and it’s getting bigger so I’ve had to prioritize it. The stuff written in RED BOLD UPPER CASE lettering comes first.
1) Check that fingers are crossed (This should guarantee all the boxes and materials have made it onsite).
2) Re-cross them to make sure all the staff are on their way. (Yes, Frank – I understand. I really do.)
3) Check hotel reservations. Then re-check them. Then do it again. (Note to self: have you checked the hotel reservations?)
4) Start sorting shirts for the staff who are on their way. They are, right? Yes?
5) Double-check the video showreel (thanks John Wyer & Purple!) and ensure the right file goes on the memory stick. A Gartner show is no place for my holiday snaps.
6) Meet with the presenters for our speaking session. Check they can all speak.
So in short – my life is an endless loop of checking, double and triple-checking. This is where the rubber hits road – and where any miscommunication will start hurting, big time.
I heard from my taxi driver last night – and they never mislead you, right? – that the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo will bring in more than 13,000 people. So no pressure there, then … (Note to self: We’re gonna need a bigger stand)
The movers and shakers are all here. And I mean literally – the movers are carrying in all the vendor materials and the shakers (ie all of us vendors) are ‘shaking’ their boxes to make sure their giveaways and collateral made all in one piece. AV is being set up here, Internet folks are draping cabling around there. If this is the calm before the storm, it isn’t very calm…
If you are anyone in the IT world, you are here. Or thinking that you should be. Who’s not here, you ask? Frank Borland is off saving another company from another disastrous testing failure, so unfortunately he’s just here in spirit. And video.
Several of our twitterific staff have made it – Kevin Brearley, Archie Roboostoff, Andrew Wickett, Emerson Sklar – tweet them to say hello or better yet, stop by booth #500 to say hi in person. We’ll be there ready to shake hands with new and old friends.
Must run, the delivery guy is here with MORE boxes. Nearly time for curtain up….seeya soon
