Join us on August 24th for the Dallas/ Fort Worth Product Group monthly social mixer at the Blue Mesa Grill in Addison from 5:30 – 7:30pm.
This is an open event. RSVPs are appreciated!
If you would like to help coordinate or sponsor any future DFW Product Group event contact us via the form on the JOIN US page.
It’s a Saturday morning and I am up at 3am out of the house by 4am and on my way to Austin for my first ProductCamp “unconference”. Having offered to volunteer with registration, I needed to be there by 7:30am…what was I thinking! But honestly, I was very excited and even woke up before the alarm went off!
After a pleasant 3.5 hrs drive (no one was hogging the fast lane) I arrive at the AT&T Conference Center and wow…it is a pretty snazzy state of the art venue. So anyway, my immediate job (along with a few other volunteers) is to help separate name labels, alphabetize and once attendees arrive – check them in, give them a goody bag, map, answer questions and direct them to the main meeting room…sounds easy right…did I mention how many people attended? We had close to, if not more than, 500 people attend; 700 registered! The ProductCamp Austin team pulled together an excellent production.
I could not help but notice the energy in the atmosphere; friendly but charged…it kind of felt like a game day. You could tell that attendees were there to meet others, participate, learn and to have as much fun as possible. All the sessions I attended were relaxed, very interactive and I learnt a ton. I also met some pretty impressive professionals. Choosing which sessions to attend was the hardest part, they all sounded great and there were 7 choices for each time slot! Of course I had to attend the “Mobile Strategy and Product Development” session. “My PowerPoint sucks! Now What?” sounded really intriguing while “Seven Foundational Practices to Creating a Compelling Product & Market” was another great option…choices, choices, choices!
What did I think about the “Mobile Strategy and Product Development” session? I think it was an excellent workshop for application developers who are wondering what OS (WinMO, Symbian, Android…) and business model to use. Beyond the OS, developers should also have a business plan, expecting the app store or mobile carriers to develop one for you is not a good strategy 
. But of all the sessions I attended, my best session vote was for “Enterpreneurship in a Down Economy” by Yuen Yung, Owner of the How Do you Roll sushi franchise. Part of his strategy was based on filling gaps in a market that is fragmented and at best only regional. He talked about one of the best advice he received was from his grand pa (or dad); ‘if there is no plan B, plan A works a whole lot better’…isn’t that the truth!
But all good things come to an end and it was time to haul myself back home…this time the drive was really long…we need a ProductCamp Dallas!
Cool Water Bottle Freebie!
We had an excellent official launch of the DFW Product Group. Thanks to all who attended! Not only did we have a great time networking but we scored…how about those cool water bottles courtesy of Clearworks?!
Starting something new is sometimes intimidating but guess what, you never know how it will turn out until you try…right? So I proceed with a bold yet cautious attitude wondering is the group valuable…judging from the interest so far, I most definitely think so! Now the trick is making sure the value resonates with everyone. So do tell – what kinds of activities, venues, topics, speakers, are ya’ll interested in?
In the meantime, mark your calendars for our upcoming meetings. We would love to meet you!
August 24th, 2010 @ Blue Mesa Grill in Addison
September 28th, 2010 @ UTD School of Managment in Richardson
Cheers my friends!
We are set for our first meeting tomorrow.! Thanks for those who have RSVP’d via Eventbrite, LinkedIn, Email or by accepting the outlook meeting maker! The turnout is going to be great…don’t miss out on being one of the founding members and the opportunity to take an active role in shaping the DFW Product Group!
I am already working on the second meeting scheduled for the last week in August…we already have a potential location and even guest speakers…so be on the look out for that event registration soon!
If you would like to help coordinate or sponsor any future events contact us via the form on the JOIN US page.
See you tomorrow @ the Piman Asian Bistro in Irving, TX (5:30pm – 7:30pm). This is an open event, no RSVP is needed but would be appreciated!
Welcome to our the official DFW Product Group webpage! We will be updating it in the coming months so keep checking back!
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