Jaipur Dev Fest (JDF) for me

The highly anticipated, one of the most awaited event is over. I am glad and fortunate to be part of the history by attending as well as speaking at this event. This blog is about my experience attending Jaipur Dev Fest or JDF 2017.

What?

JDF is India's first-ever community led Salesforce event in India. There are many such events across the world - Midwest Dreamin', Tahoe Dreamin', London's Calling to name few. Check this blog by Apttus which has details about the various events happening in 2017 (of course it doesn’t have all the events but it will give idea about events happening across the world).

Why?

As mentioned above there are so many community led events happening throughout the world. India has 2nd largest Salesforce professionals and there was no community event in India!
The idea is not just to do what others do, but to inspire, educate, collaborate and spread about Salesforce, just like all other community events.

Who?

The core team consists of awesome Indian MVPs and experts from Jaipur - Abhinav Gupta, Ankit Arora, Bhawani Sharma, Durgesh Dhoot, Gaurav Kheterpal. There were 38+ awesome volunteers too, who were key in the success of the event.

How was the experience for me?

Amazing! The event was organized very neatly. Starting from the pre-event dinner conducted for speakers, registration, keynote, sessions, lunch, panel discussions, after party, everything was well organized and was of great quality. The sleepless nights of the organizers and volunteers was very evident since the overall event was flawless and super fun.

The WIT had good percentage of overall session. There was WIT Panel Discussion too which included some entrepreneurs and WIT Leaders. The discussion and the ladies were (are) very energetic, inspiring and delivered powerful message.

Networking was much more friendly and warm. I met most of the India Salesforce Community leaders who I knew through Twitter and other online media. These folks are actually more energetic and creative than what they are in Twitter. Also met many students who sought guidance from their carrier perspective - the kids are lot smarter than we think! It was pleasure discussing with international delegates and our own Salesforce India team members. Where else do you get chance to meet?

Do checkout the Twitter and Facebook handles/pages to get a feel about the event. There are multiple Live videos posted by various attendees. Also check hashtag #JDF17 in Twitter & Facebook.

Psst.. do check the crazy after party dance. We danced as if we were the world's craziest dancers :P

When I heard about JDF announcement I was sure that I will attend; if not as a speaker as a volunteer or attendee. I am glad that my submission was selected and I presented on Apex Design Patterns.

The response was overwhelming. The hall was full and people were standing behind the last row! I got good feedback and inputs from some of the experienced folks who were leading and practicing design patterns in their organizations. This is more than what any presenter wishes for.

Some tweets about my session:

Great session #Apex #designpatterns by @goabhigo. A must for any #development. We @Zen4orce are stern followers of #designpatterns #JDF17

— Jina Chetia (@JinaChetia) April 1, 2017

FullHouse @ #Nahargarh in #JDF17. Every @SalesforceDevs wants to know more about Apex Design Patterns. @goabhigo is a #Rockstar. pic.twitter.com/eHTKl1TAwZ

— Durgesh Dhoot (@ddurgesh28) April 1, 2017

Full house for @goabhigo session #JDF17 Great knowledge pic.twitter.com/oOBcAVKSRS

— Vipul Goel ☁ (@vipulgoel19) April 1, 2017

kick start on apex design patterns by @goabhigo must attend this @jaipurdevfest #JDF17 pic.twitter.com/3RmXFmvYg6

— M U S T A F A (@MustafaJhabua) April 1, 2017

I am grateful to Andrew Fawcett for all the amazing things he does to the community. I cannot imagine my session without his blogs. Keir Bowden, my mentor, who always believed and encouraged me.

Thank you JDF. You made many of us stronger and proved that Salesforce Community in India is very strong.