I'm a DevOps engineer, and I'm heading to KubeCon in Amsterdam next week. My company sees this as a mix of a perk and a mission to scout for automated tools that might lighten our workload. I've only attended one big event before, where I mostly just collected swag and food. I'm looking for advice on how to actually gain value from this experience. It seems like there will be a lot of pitches, and many businesses offering similar solutions for automating pod requests. I'm wondering how to differentiate the truly useful tools and find ones that fit well with our environment.
3 Answers
KubeCon tends to be mostly about pitches rather than substantial info 😓. A good tip is to skip the sales pitches and focus on asking very specific questions, like, 'What are the drawbacks of your tool?' Good solutions will give you clear answers, while less impressive ones might dodge your questions. Also, narrow your focus to about 3-4 key issues your team needs to solve and filter everything you see through that lens.
I totally messed up my last KubeCon experience because I tried to see everything!
Before you go, it's crucial to narrow down what you're looking for and do some research on relevant tools and their competitors. If you skip that step, just go for the swag and don't stress about pitches! I recommend chatting with vendors after the sessions—they often reveal useful insights if they’re presenting. Just remember, they’ll be qualifying you as a lead, so be prepared for questions about your team size and budget. Keep your answers brief and avoid going into technical details for this event.
Thanks for this! Now I know what to focus on asking when I get there. Do you think attending the presentations will help me figure out the vendors' specialties, or are they too specific to really help?
Definitely echo the homework sentiment. If you don’t come prepared, you might as well just look at their websites for info. Also, remember to let them lead the qualification—if they’re interested in you, you can start checking if you’re a good match for their product. If you're looking into pod requests, I really like Zesty. Not sure if they'll be at KubeCon, but they've been great for us with auto adjustments!
3-4 challenges sounds like a lot to tackle in just a few days of booth hopping. Do you just sense when it's all BS and then move on?