What's the buzz? Service management conferences and events

Welcome to the Service Management Show from the team here at Eficode. My name is Gary, and I'm a Service Manager Practice Lead with Eficode. I'm joined by two guests who I'll let introduce themselves.

My name is Max Templeman, and I'm one of the Service Management Solution Specialists here at Atlassian. I've been in the ITSM space for about eight years, working at various vendors.

And I'm here with my colleague.

Yes, my name is Akshay Anand, and I'm a Principal Solution Engineer here at Atlassian, focusing on service management. Like Max, my background has been in service management for many years. Prior to joining Atlassian, I was the Product Ambassador for ITIL, working at Axelos. I've attended many service management conferences, vendor conferences, and industry conferences, and I'm here to talk about what those could offer to you, lovely listeners.

So, as A mentioned, the topic this month is conference season for service management. Every spring and, to a lesser extent, every autumn, is really the main conference season. Within the service management world, we love a conference. We enjoy getting together with our peers to discuss various topics, and we thought we would share our take on those events, what we've gained from them in the past, and the real benefits they offer.

To kick things off, A, since you've probably done more of these than anyone else, what are service management conferences, and what do they tend to focus on?

Sure, there are many different types of service management conferences, really dependent on who is organizing them. One of the most well-known types is ITMF, or IT Service Management Forum. There is an international body, ITMF International, with several chapters in different countries, such as ITMF UK, ITMF Finland, and so on. These chapters organize their own calendar of events, which can range from big annual conferences to local meetups or master classes on specific topics to share information with the community.

ITMF events tend to be volunteer-driven and very much for the community, by the community. Then you have a couple of organizations that are for-profit and host some excellent service management conferences, such as the Service Desk Institute and Help Desk Institute. Additionally, many vendors, like Atlassian, host their own events. Just a couple of days ago, Gary, Max, and I attended an event hosted by Atlassian.

There are also local user group or community events focused on specific tools and the problems users are trying to solve. So, broadly speaking, those are the four different types of conferences.

Max, what sorts of events have you attended in the past that you feel have provided real value to attendees?

That's a really good question. I think every event offers something slightly different depending on what it is. Obviously, your SITS events are quite valuable, and we'll probably talk about that more.

As the industry evolves, there's a conversation that needs to be had about how service management updates itself to align with modern product management techniques. It's encouraging to see this conversation gaining traction.

I had a discussion about this very topic earlier today. I also want to mention the ITMF and their collaboration with the Women of ITMF this year, as they have an event planned to address the challenges women face in this industry, particularly around issues like childcare.

Now, let's talk about Atlassian Connect. Max, can you give a brief overview of what Atlassian Connect was for anyone who didn't attend?

Absolutely! This was actually my first Atlassian-hosted event, and it was interesting to compare it with other vendor events I've attended. It was a great opportunity for clients and non-clients to engage and learn.