Last weekend five Rochen colleagues from around North America, including our CEO Chris Adams, CTO Ben Johnson, our Enterprise Solutions Group Leader Tom Canavan, Support Staff member Mike Hamanaka, and myself, had the pleasure of attending the Joomla! World Conference in Boston.
What is Joomla! World Conference? JWC is a gathering together of like minded Joomla! folks for three days of fun, camaraderie, and much valuable education and sharing through various sessions led by experts in the Joomla world. If you’re in to Joomla, and haven’t been to one of the previous two events, I highly recommend going to the next one. (I hear it’s going to be somewhere nice and warm)
We had a great time all three days of the conference, meeting up with friends old and new from the Joomla! Community. As the official host of joomla.org, Rochen and Joomla have gone hand in hand since 2005. Looking back over the years it’s amazing to reflect on how the community and project have grown. It’s not surprising though given the consistent dedication and quality of volunteer efforts put forth by so many. That’s always evident in the online Joomla world but, when you get to witness Joomla folks together in one place at one time, it’s palpable. Thank you Joomla Community, most especially to the organizers of the JWC, for making the event happen. We can’t wait to do it again next time!
Another benefit to attending events like this, is the unique opportunity for us to meet valued Rochen customers face to face. Some whom we’ve met many times in the past, and some who we’ve been waiting many years to meet. Since the majority of our interaction is online, it always feels good to get to know customers in person, share a few beers and laughs, and talk to you about your experiences with Rochen and how we can continue to assist you with your hosting needs. If I recall correctly, a new phrase was even coined: “We’ve ticketed together.”
Oh, and our Rochen penguins had fun too! As a Gold (and beer) sponsor of the event, Rochen was able to include a fun contest in the JWC attendee bags. Two iPad Airs were awarded by us to two lucky folks, for creative pictures taken around the event with our Penguin friends. We’re still having fun looking at all the entries, and now seeing our new friends posting pictures of the little guys in their own homes too. Thanks to everyone who participated!
Here are a few snapshots taken by Mike Hamanaka, of his experiences at the event.
Thanks everyone for the great memories. Until next time!
-Wendy
Wendy Robinson joined the Rochen team in June 2010 as a sales support staff member, where she still handles inquiries while also looking after Rochen’s billing and new accounts. Wendy volunteered for the Joomla! project from 2006 to 2012 in various roles including as a member of the Open Source Matters board and the Community Leadership Team.