So you want a PGDay in your City | PGConf EU 2023 | Teresa Giacomini Hettie Dombrovskaya

Big events, like PGConf EU, allow participants to interact with a large group of top professionals from all over the world and choose from a variety of presentations. However, not everybody can afford long-distance travel and several days off work. Enter PGDays—local one-day conferences where Postgres users, developers and enthusiasts can gather close to home. PGDays are vital for PostgreSQL community development and growth as they provide smaller, more intimate opportunities for people to network and to learn from each other.

What if your city does not run a PGDay, but you really want one? What does it take to start a new PGDay? Are you the right person to start it? Can you do so alone? What’s in it for you? How can you help if you don’t want to drive the whole thing? Are there less time-consuming ways to help?

What if your city does not run a PGDay, but you really want one? How can you encourage a new PGDay? Are you the right person to lead one? How can you build a great team? How can you help without assuming a leading role? What’s in it for you?

In this session, we will share our experiences as part of the operations teams that organized the first PGDay Chicago and the first PgDay San Francisco, including successes you can copy, and hurdles to watch out for.

Transcript

1. So you want a PGDay in your City? Henrietta Dombrovskaya Teresa Giacomini
2. Teresa Giacomini (She/Her) Senior Program Manager • Co-chair PGDay San Francisco 2020 • Organized events from 15 to thousands • Edits & publishes the Citus newsletter • Worked at INGRES, Oracle, Sun Microsystems, Citus Data & Microsoft • I love to grow fruits & veggies, and chase my chickens About me
3. Hettie Dombrovskaya (She/Her) Database Architect • Working with databases for over 40 years (people do not live that long!) • I love working with app developers! • Local organizer of Chicago PostgreSQL User Group • Author of PostgreSQL Query Optimization • There is no “work-life balance” - it’s called “work-life integration”! About me
4. • PG community likes to talk! • PG conferences are not academic conferences • PG documentation has it all, but what if you are not sure what you need • You can ask anybody about anything in Postgres • Everybody is happy to share Why PGDays? To summarize: knowledge + connections
5. • Save time and money on travel • Easier to get manager’s approval • Attract speakers that a meeting might not Why Local?
6. Postgres User Groups & PGDays • User Groups are important–you need to show to Pg.US that you have a local community • Your primary audience to invite to your PGDay • A ready pool of potential volunteers
7. What does it take to start a PGDay First and foremost - you need an advocate from Pg.US. What if you do not know anybody? See above: Postgres community loves to talk. • Attend a conference • Introduce yourself to somebody from Pg.US • Tell them that you want a PG Day • Repeat until you find somebody who will agree to advocate for your PG Day.
8. …and then you need Money People Time
9. What makes a PG Day happen?
10. What makes a PG Day happen? • Org committee • Set a preliminary event date • Create a budget • Get the budget approved • Create a website • Put together a CFP and CFP committee • Finalize the venue • Finalize the dates • Promote • Find sponsors • …
11. Are you the right person to start a PGDay?
12. • If you want, you are the right person! • You might need to find other right people • You might even need to find that person, who will spearhead the event • But if you want, you can start Are you the right person to start a PGDay?
13. What can you contribute before the day given your experience? Finding Sponsors Promotions Graphic design WEB dev Be creative! Social Media Advertising Organization Speakers’ gifts Speakers/ volunteers dinner Event bags* Venue details Budget Website banners Event logo Event t-shirt* Stickers Prompt updates *Optional
14. • Staying at the venue to receive merchandise from sponsors • Running around to order prints, receive supplies, etc • Site setup • Bag stuffing (optional) What can you contribute one day before?
15. • Site setup (something won’t arrive until the day of!) • Registration • Room monitors • Site takedown • Time keeper • Traffic director What can you contribute on the day given your experience?
16. What if you don’t know where to start? You’re here! • Reach out to other PGDay organizers • Talk to organizers of other events • Watch this talk: Running a Community Conference, Stacey Haysler & Mark Wong @ PGCon 2023 https://youtu.be/Np1IrgobzOE?feature=shared
17. Types of Lessons Planning People Execution
18. Planning Lessons
19. Lesson #1: Choosing a date can be tricky • And it’s needed early to recruit your team • Avoid holiday weekends • Mid-week is best, Fridays work too • Consider religious holidays too–all faiths • Consider other events • In your city • In the PG world • Examples: Oracle Open World, UN Week, Fashion Week etc
20. Lesson #2: Setting goals drives behavior • # of attendees • # of sponsors • Accessibility ◦ Venue ◦ Captions • One and done? Long tail? ◦ Video recordings
21. Lesson #3: It takes money • Creating a budget ◦ Income: sponsorships, ticket sales ◦ Expenses: • Getting sponsors • Working with PG Associations ◦ Policies ◦ Turnaround time ◦ Cautious • Doing your own thing (not recommended) Venue Speaker gifts stickers Speaker dinner Video recording Live captions Event signage catering Tables & chairs dishes linens wifi security printing Bathroom baskets design insurance swag childcare
22. Lesson #4: Event structure influences cost • 1 or 2 tracks • 1 or 2 days • Talk length • # of talks • Attendee bags • Event t-shirts
23. Lesson #5: Getting sponsorships the 1st year is hard • It is hard in general! • Building a prospectus ◦ Look at other events for ideas ◦ Levels ◦ Benefits • Brainstorming outreach ◦ Get the whole team involved ◦ Look at sponsors of other events
24. Lesson #6: Your venue matters • Location within the city ◦ Locals (easy to reach via transit, parking) ◦ Out of town speakers (close to hotel, central) • Amenities ◦ Quiet room, Green room ◦ Wifi ◦ A/V • Layout ◦ Elevator if more than one level ◦ Good location for sponsor tables, registration, meal service, storage ◦ Flow ◦ Meet your specific needs? Multiple tracks, tutorials ◦ Stage • Interesting? Fun?
25. Lesson #7: Catering options • Do you need to use their vendor • Can you contract on your own • Food served in allotted time • All day beverage • Dietary options, labels
26. People Lessons
27. Lesson #8: Clearly defined roles & responsibilities • Avoid making assumptions • Lots of ways to organize your team • Example: who determines # of talks, talk length
28. Lesson #9: A diverse talk selection team is essential • Required to be a community conference • Ensures broad range of topics are considered • Real commitment is critical • Meeting deadlines is imperative
29. Lesson #10: Not everyone has the same sense of urgency • Things take longer than you think • Examples: ◦ Some people are slow in responding to emails ◦ Budget approval may take more time than you think ◦ Site launch might take way longer than you think ◦ USPS takes way longer than you could ever imagine!
30. Lesson #11: There are lots of ways to skin a cat • Some folks like big jobs • Some folks like quick jobs • Some folks like to be told what to do • Some folks like to do the telling • Structure your team to suit your volunteers • Recruit folks to fill the gaps • Remember community policies WHAT!??
31. Team structure PGDay SF: Team structure recommended by Pg.US: Lesson 11 examples… Team structure PGDay Chicago: Co-chairs, Talk Selection Chair, Web Dev, Design, Sponsor, Code of Conduct Planning was almost single-handed, help from Pg.US Operations, Program, Sponsor, Web, Marketing, Technical (A/V), Grants, Visa, Sprints, Code of Conduct
32. Lesson #12: Volunteers are a special kind of resource • Different company cultures • Different individual cultures • Different communication styles • Organization skills
33. Lesson #13: There are never too many volunteers • Somebody will get sick a day before • Somebody may have family emergency • Somebody might not show up without explanation • Somebody might abandon their assignment or turn out to be bad in it
34. Lesson #14: Consensus is good, but it takes time • And money • More comprehensive input • Probably a better result, but not necessarily worth it
35. Lesson #15: So many ways to communicate • Establish preferred methods up front • Email • Regular meetings • Slack or Teams or Google Chat? • Whatsapp • International teams might have their preferences you never thought about!
36. Lesson #16: So many people to please! • Sponsors • Speakers • Attendees • Volunteers • Postgres Association • Companies volunteers work for
37. Execution Lessons
38. Lesson #17: It takes time • Individual time • Flexibility • Similar to scoping a technical • Rule of thumb = 6 months recommended
39. • Speeds up the process • … but you still need a second set of eyes Lesson #18: It helps to have a web dev on your team
40. • This might be THE most important thing • The social world is split • More people promoting, the more people touched • Encourage speakers to promote their talks • Use the personal touch • Stickers Lesson #19: Promotion is more important than you think I’m Here! HERE! I’m Here!
41. Lesson #20: Speakers need a place to stay • No examples or learnings from us! • A list of recommended hotels is nice to have • Don’t sign up for room block if possible • Close proximity to venue
42. Lesson #21: Merchandise arrives late! • Negotiate earlier parcels acceptance • Example: It can take up to 6 days for a parcel to be delivered within Chicago city limits! (Could you possibly know that if you are not in Chicago?!) LATE! ! !
43. Lesson #22: Be ready for surprises on the big day • Anything can happen on event day • Brainstorm in advance what could go wrong ◦ Weather ◦ A/V ◦ No show volunteers • Have a go-to person or persons • If possible have staff easily identifiable • Recruit more volunteers than you need There’s no toilet paper… I can help… I got you! HEEEELP
44. Lesson #23: Social events are fun, but not required • People want / need to have unstructured time • Build community • Have a list of nearby gathering places • Consider noise - can people hear each other • Consider a sponsorship to cover costs
45. Lesson #24: Showing gratitude • Critical in a community • Verbal gratitude • Speaker gifts • Volunteer team gifts • Hand-written notes • Public appreciation - at event, on social media • Sponsor acknowledgement
46. Lesson #25: So VERY gratifying • What do you get from being part of a team? • Thrill from starting something new • Satisfaction from seeing a job well done NEED IMAGE
47. PGDay Chicago 2024 April 26, 2024 Closes January 15, 2024 CFP is open! https://2024.pgdaychicago.org
48. Questions?
49. Thank You Hettie Dombrovskaya Teresa Giacomini