There were many jokes made about the “AI Drinking Game” It’s a joke made a lot in the tech sector these days, but it would earn you a sore liver at Oracle Cloud World 2024 faster than most regular trips to Vegas.
Three key take aways:
AI is everywhere. Analytics, infrastructure, applications, its embedded in everything.
I used ChatGPT to write Python code for the first time this week. Pretty neat!
Cloud & Multi-Cloud. Since most companies have at least some data in all the major hyper-scalers already, it makes sense to manage it. This includes the annoucement that Exadata and other OCI components are now co-hosted inside Microsoft Azure datacenters.
This is in addition to last year’s announcements about similar co-hosting with AWS and GCP.
Some business partners and I had a go at this ‘Engineered Systems as a Service’ or ESaaS about 8 years ago, but it never took off.
Industry vertical solutions. Oracle has been asking their partners to do this for years and the push will continue.
Something from a JDE show years ago was: “Look at those SEC codes! Please develop solutions of each one!”
What is interesting about this graphic is how much Cloud Services has taken over in the income statement. There was A LOT of talk around OCI.
What is up next in tech shows? Well, JD Edwards is Colorado-born. The JDE ‘INFOCUS’ show is October 1 to oct 3 at the Sheraton in Downtown Denver.
Two huge networking events are coming up this month: Oracle Cloudworld in Las Vegas and Denver Startup Week right here, across various venues in and around Denver. I’ll be at Oracle CloudWorld at the Venetian in Las Vegas, Monday to Thursday next week with the Crosstech team.
For you Oracle nerds out there, Oracle OpenWorld was renamed to Oracle CloudWorld in 2020 and the venue was moved from San Francisco to Las Vegas in 2020. This rebranding and relocation were part of Oracle’s strategic shift to focus more on its cloud services and technologies rather than just its broader product offerings. It MAY have had something to do with the recent “official” HQ moving away from SF, CA, also.
For Denver Startup Week, running September 16th to the 20th, I’m teaming up with some amazing public figures in the Denver tech and business scene: come check out my ‘super-meetup taking place in the highlands on the 17th. My session runs for 4 to 5PM, with a HH after.
If you attend, upon request, we can make you own customized AI generated Funko Pop Doll:
Disclaimer, it’ll just be an image, not a 3-D printed product. 😦
Our day on the 17th starts at 10AM at the Elks lodge in the Highlands.
Embracing the Pajama Factor: Navigating the New Normal of In-Person Meetups
Something me and other meetup leaders have noticed: Meetup turnout has been wildly variable vs. RSVP rates in the pre-covid world. Why is this?
It might be the ‘new normal’ of Tuesday to Thursday’s in-office (meaning Monday plus Friday at home) is causing a lot of folks at home to not get ‘out of the pajamas’ and go out to events on Monday nights. Hence, we’re moving most of our events to Tuesday nights for the foreseeable future.
In an age where remote work has become the norm for many, the concept of the “pajama factor” has emerged as a significant consideration in determining people’s willingness to attend in-person meetup events. The shift to remote work brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic has blurred the lines between work and personal life. With the flexibility to work from home, many individuals have grown accustomed to the convenience and comfort it offers. However, this newfound comfort can also pose challenges when it comes to re-engaging with in-person activities, such as networking events, workshops, or social gatherings.
To address the pajama factor and encourage participation in in-person events, organizers must be mindful of scheduling and programming. By strategically planning events on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, when individuals are more likely to be in the office and already out of their homes, organizers can increase the likelihood of attendance
Businesses can also play a role in addressing the pajama factor by fostering a culture that values in-person interactions and encourages employees to participate in events outside of their homes. By emphasizing the importance of networking and professional development, companies can motivate employees to step out of their comfort zones and engage with the broader community.
Seems every new years since covid has had us all sighing a collective ‘Whew!’ when we make it to that next year. Personally, I have very high hopes for 2024. 
The economy is solid
We avoided a recession
Economic fundamentals are pointing up
Economic metrics are strong
We should all be able to do well in 2024. Lets make it happen!
In events, instead of a guest speaker, I’m leading my own event in February. I have been studying the ‘Hero’s journey’ as a customer-centric methodology since 2021. I’m bringing this knowledge to the CTSP meetup next month.
Every customer facing company, and internal operations team uses the Hero’s Journey to maintain a customer centric solutions mindset.
Our February event will show you how to develop this story / movie narrative and be the “Obi-Wan” to your “Luke Skywalker” customer, making them the hero.
We’ll walk you through this process, teaching you how to guide your customer:
1. Your client is the hero; the hero has a problem. 2. You are their guide to a solution. 3. You unveil a plan, the Executive Pitch, the actions required to resolve the problem. 4. The solution is implemented. 5. Success or Failure?
wallup.net
AGENDA:
5:30 to 6:00 Networking / Pizza 6:00: Introductions around the room and Icebreaker (15 minutes) 6:15: Feature Presentation 7:00: Conclusion, final thoughts, Wrap-up, additional networking.
Movie Examples Showing the Hero’s Journey
1. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)
2. Star Wars (1977)
3. Black Panther (2018)
4. Airplane! (1980)
5. The Matrix (1999)
6. The Lion King (1994)
7. Avatar (2009)
8. Hacksaw Ridge (2016)
Other notable tech networking events and other resources I recently discovered:
https://stillhiring.today/ If you are job hunting, check this out. It’s some hard intel on who is hiring.
The CTA always has some of the top tech networking events in Colorado. 2024 is no exception:
Jason, my co-organizer, and I were brainstorming about programming ideas for 2023. An idea we settled on was to try sales “skill workshops”. This as opposed to the typical ‘guest speaker’ or ‘panel discussion’ format we’ve had recently.
FIrst up in April is the Elevator Pitch Workshop. Sign up here:
Our June event, scheduling TBD, will be the ‘Sales Escape Room’ No, we won’t be having anyone locked up at Venture X’s conference rooms, but it should still be fun. Stay tuned for a link to this event, once we hammer out the details.
As always, is anyone reading this has ideas to present, or other feedback, please feel free to call or ask for time on my calendar.
One other event we have to promote: C-Level at Mile high. THE event to be at this year.
C-Level at Mile High on May 11th. $450 and totally worth it.
We had a great meetup on Monday night, Dan Levitt provided some great back-to-basics sales training around BAT methodology:
Behaviors
Attitudes
Techniques
The Media and Technology Collective
Friend of the CTSP meetup Rachelle Salem invited us to the Media and Technology trivia night this evening (January 25th) Contact me for a special discounted rate here. Their 2022 Golf Tournament was awesome.
Our group took a much needed break in December. The thinking in going ‘light’ at the end of the year is that many of us are very social and are thus, totally slammed with invited to holiday parties from Thanksgiving to New Years. Who needs another get-together, even if you get to see Bob in a Santa Suit?
UPCOMING CTSP EVENTS:
JANUARY:
Dan Levitt is a long-time member of our group and this is his third time presenting for the CTSP. Dan is presenting on Sandler Sales Methodology, the same sales school that I was taught at Oracle Corp. We’re really excited on this return visit. If you are up for it, we also do an informal HH across from Venture X co-working after the meetup January 23rd.
FEBRUARY:
We were approached by several CU Boulder Grad Students late last year. They were impressed with our programming and asked if we’d be interested in presenting at CU Boulder. We jumped on the opportunity.
This audience will be geared towards CU’s MBA and CS Graduate students, but all are welcome. Pizza by Cosmo’s!
We hope this is the start of an on-going collaboration with CU Boulder.
OTHER EVENTS COMING UP IN 2023:
The inspiration for our meetup and tech sales community, the CTA, has some great things coming up this year. Check them out:
JANUARY:
MAY:
The grand-daddy of all tech and sales events in Denver is the C-Level at Mile High event, this year taking place on May 11th. The registration link will be published soon. You do not want to miss this event. THere si no better place to connect with 50 IT Executives in one spot.
Our event page will be updated soon with a proper registration link. Please check back in March or so….
Jason August, Founder of ‘Denver Growth Hackers‘ and I are combing forces and will be running events together. They’ll be under our respective meetup banners, but the meetings will be one-in-the-same, taking place at the same place at the same time. Our first event is this Monday, January 10th. We have a fascinating story to share RE: “Personal branding colliding with national events.”
You only need to register for one or the other. It’s helpful to know how many are coming so we don’t over-budget on food & beverages.
What do you need to do to accomplish more in 2022? We will walk you through the steps you need to take to establish your personal brand and your story.
TOPICS: – Establish your own website – Managing Social Media – Scaling your brand
AGENDA:
5:30 to 6:00 the 1/2 hour social hour, pizza, salad, networking 6:00 to 6:15 Introductions around the room 6:15 to 7PM Feature Presentation 7:00 to 7:30 Q&A, more networking 7:30 Optional HH at Junction Bar –across the Plaza–
“Ask a Sales Pro”
I am soliciting your questions from either here or the meetup page for sales questions you may have. I hope this provides more frequent interactions among our community.
i.e. “How do I overcome this objection” or ‘Is this sales process viable?’, or “Is a prospect blowing smoke?” or “How do I manage expectations with my sales leadership?“
email: bob.mcneil@coloradotechnologysales.com
And yes, I had to buy readers earlier this year. 😛
Stephanie coaches a time management and life management methodology of getting more done, faster. It starts with the premise of setting shorter deadlines. When you have 12 month deadlines, it’s often not urgent enough to achieve immediate goals. Of course, there is a lot more to it than that.
We will be covering the ‘There’s more to it than that” part of the 12 week year on Monday, October 11th, 5:30 at Venture X Denver South. Sign up for this in-person event here:
5:30 to 6:00 Meet & Greet, Networking 6:00 to 6:45 Feature Presentation 6:45 to 7:30 Q&A, more networking. 7:30 to 8:00 Optional HH at http://www.junctionfoodanddrink.com/
Stephanie Shivar-Hogan has been coaching in the corporate world for more than two decades. With experience across multiple industries including finance, accounting, real estate, healthcare, insurance and marketing, she has partnered with Fortune 500 CEOs, front line leaders, corporate team members, entrepreneurs, and everyone in between.
Sales professionals who fully adopt this mindset can increase their sales 10X.
NOTE FROM BOB: Since meeting with Stephanie and reading her book, I’ve dramatically accelerated accomplishments in 2021 in several areas of my life. This is nothing short of life changing:
1. Financial Goals (got back on track with tax planning, financial planning, etc.) 2. Career Goals (got interviewing and changed jobs) 3. Personal Relationships (you have to show up to get any of these details) 4. Travel (took several weeks off between jobs to hit some road trip / bucket list items across 9 states) 5. Fitness Goals (re-tooled my gym routine with a personal trainer & dropping the other Covid 19…meaning: that 19 .lbs)
More about Stephanie:
Working with and for large organizations like Merrill Lynch, AIG (Formerly Chartis), Northwestern Mutual, and Pulte Homes, Stephanie has first-hand knowledge of what success looks like in the results-oriented workplace. Her instructional philosophy is built around client-centered coaching that helps individuals to gain clarity and achieve desired outcomes by creating sustainable steps toward personal goals and dreams. Stephanie founded Gallantry Coaching and Consulting to pursue her passion around helping executives and teams reach their greatest potential.
Stephanie is a third-generation, native Coloradoan who lives outside of Denver with her husband and four children. She enjoys taking advantage of the beautiful Colorado landscape, skiing, and traveling with her family. Contact Stephanie directly at stephanie@gallantrycc.com
There will be a free drawing for a copy of the book & more copies will be available for purchase that night.
Salad, Pizza, beer, wine, sparkling water and other beverages will be available from Pete’s a Pie. See you there!
In September 2021 we were able to try all the specialty pies and Caesar salad from Pete’s a Pie in nearby Junction Food Hall. Great food and great service from Joel Mehr.
Well, what a long, strange trip it has been! We adapted and dealt with the COVD crisis as best we could, some better than others. Fortunately, we’re coming out of the pandemic, albeit with vaccine skeptics enabling new variants to dog us for the foreseeable future.
What I noticed was about the May / June timeframe, once a lot of started getting vaccinated and lockdowns came to an end, was that my phone / email / social media al burst back to life with recruiter calls & interview requests. Did you see that, too?
I started talking to my fellow event organizers around this time about getting some in-person stuff happening again. The consensus on that was that August was a good time for fully vaccinated people to start hanging out in-person. Thus, our August 2nd event was like a breath of fresh air, it felt as if we were all being released from a locked basement after 18 months. The meetup was in the beautiful Venture-X Five Points co-working space on Welton Street.
Melanie Williams did a fantastic job hosting and Jennifer Bilger presented an amazing, fun networking exercise for the attendees. Jennifer showed all of us, with a card game, how to get far more out of a networking event than anyone thought possible. I recommend her coaching to anyone looking to expand their business.
This brings us to our September Event.
The Sales Recruiter Panel Discussion has become our meetup’s signature event.
These Recruiting Professionals can and have placed candidates they connected with at our past events. Companies are making up for lost time in their hiring, and those of you who were waiting things out, well, this is your time to make a move.
As always, Pizza, Salad, beer, wine and other beverages will be served.
• What to bring $5 donation per person is suggested. If anyone wants to contribute to the Pizza Fund but didn’t have small bills with you, I can always accept PayPal to robertmcneil00@gmail.com or you can Venmo to 4152657434
AGENDA: 5:30 to 6:00 Meet & Greet, Networking 6:00 to 7:00 Panel Discussion 7:00 to 7:30 Q&A 7:30 Optional HH at Junction Bar
Colorado Technology Sales 