Marcella McKeown, Senior Program Manager for PASS Data Community Summit, gives you a sneak peek into how the content program is shaped…
As you know, the PASS Data Community Summit call for speakers closed earlier in the Spring, and we were impressed (and humbled) by the incredible response we received. In total, there were 1,090 proposals submitted by 440 speakers!
Having worked on the PASS Summit program since 2008, this year brings the highest number of submissions for an in-person conference that we have ever seen, which is a fitting way to celebrate the event’s 25th anniversary this year. Thank you to everyone who submitted a proposal. Your passion, expertise, and willingness to share your knowledge enriches our conference and strengthens our community.
What comes next?
Now that the call for speakers has closed, all submissions go through a multi-phased review and selection process between now and the end of June. Once that is complete we’ll send out speaker notifications in the Summer.
Selected speakers will then be sent access to a speaker portal in which they will have tasks to complete before the start of PASS Data Community Summit (4-8 November).
We would like to alleviate any concern over registration and have locked in the launch price of the 3-day ticket ($1,595) for those speakers not selected. This offer is only available to the registered email address used in the call for speakers and cannot be combined with other offers.
A peek behind the curtain
Now that we have formed our 2024 PASS Summit Program Committee, and the call for speakers has closed, the real work begins!
Before we dig in, a quick and heartfelt thank you to the selected volunteers of the 2024 Program Committee. Your roles are not easy, and we appreciate your time and commitment in helping to build this year’s conference program.
Each member of the program committee was chosen based on their specialty, experience, and industry, as well as geographical location and gender diversity to ensure a global perspective during the review.
Of the 25 selected volunteers, each are assigned a specific role within the committee based on their specialty and expertise. The committee structure includes:
| Team | Team Lead | Members |
| Track Team – Analytics | 1 | 4 |
| Track Team – Architecture | 1 | 3 |
| Track Team – Database Management | 1 | 4 |
| Track Team – Development | 1 | 3 |
| Track Team – Professional Development | 1 | 2 |
| Special Projects | 1 | 3 |
The committee now faces the difficult and demanding task of reviewing every submitted proposal to make sure that each submission is given the attention it deserves. With over 1,000 submissions, this is a mammoth task.
Phase I runs until the middle of May, and is a blind review, which means that our committee members do not see any speaker information and are judging each proposal solely on the merits of their title, abstract, goals, and prerequisites – as well as any additional comments made by the submitter.
Each submitted session will be reviewed by no less than three reviewers, based on the following high-level criteria:
- Novelty and originality
- Methodological soundness
- Clarity and coherence
- Alignment to conference tracks and topics
- Free of marketing and sales
In Phase II, speaker information is introduced to the process and Team Leads will be able to match speakers to sessions. They will take the recommended sessions from each of their team members and pull together a final recommended list of sessions based on the Phase I criteria, but with a focus on diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB).
Based on last year’s session evaluations, the 2024 Insights survey, and current trends, we continue to see a steady need for SQL Server, but have seen a big uptick of interest in PostgreSQL, with 30% of this year’s Insights survey expressing interest in learning more.
With a global trend moving towards cross database, AI, and Automation, we are looking to expand our sessions to include up to 15% PostgreSQL and more AI and Automation sessions across all tracks.
Once complete the final list goes to the Special Projects team for one last review to ensure that all content areas have been met and that the program is well-rounded and complete. Our main goal is that the final program will not only resonate but leave a lasting impression.
As you can see, shaping the program for this event relies on many different people. It’s a hugely rewarding job, and something we all take very seriously, to ensure we meet the needs of the data community and provide the best learning experience we can. We always love to hear what you think, so if you have any comments, feedback, or suggestions, please let us know at speakers@passsummit.com.
Best of luck to all our submitters! We appreciate everyone’s time, passion, and commitment.
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