Another One Bites the Dust: 2009 Year in REVIEW
The year 2009 was transitional in so many ways: for the country, the economy, and IT Martini! Thanks to YOU, it’s been an amazing ride.
Five IT Martini events were thrown in Columbus and Cincinnati this year, which raised a grand total of $8500 for charity! It was a privilege to work with such class, technology savvy nonprofits like Groundwork Group, TECH CORPS Ohio, and EdHeads – and leading humanitarian organizations like The Buckeye Ranch, King Arts Complex, and the Bootsy Collins Foundation.
Want to make it a very special holiday season for someone in need? Reach out to an IT Martini charity partner, and give them your best.
But 2009 wasn’t just about giving back to charities – for the first time ever, a $1000 prize was awarded to the best DEMO at IT Martini Hour 8! It was a thrill to give something back to the entrepreneurial IT Pros that help drive innovation locally.
Twenty-three (23) DEMOs showed off at IT Martini events this year, but only five were lucky enough to take home the Community Choice Award: congratulations again to eEvent , Zakta, TasteCasting, MobileDefense, PerformanceWorks Portal. If you want to learn more about the people behind these DEMOs, stay tuned in 2010.
All of the DEMO competitors deserve a special thanks: Brand Thunder, Hash Party, Fuelmilage.com, DB-NET, Blackbook EMG, Technology Medical Partners, MobileWait, Cornhole Allstars, CheddarGetter, cNotify, Click360, Balanced Insight, DitoAdvisor, Toobla, YourLiveTrainers, TRN360, Recess, and dPop. Innovation is everywhere in YOUR IT Community!
Got feedback about any of these DEMOs? Reach out directly, or engage IT Martini if you’d like a more personal introduction.
From an enterprise perspective, senior leadership was engaged for every IT Martini event, with topics like Learning from Past Projects, Building Better Software, Handling Career Adversity, IT Pro Contributions to the World, and Diversity. It was great to hear from the twenty-one (21) leaders that participated in IT Martini’s evolving panel discussion format – all of which are available on video.
Did any of these senior leaders give you something new to think about? Find that panelist and tell them about it!
And last but not least, where would IT Martini be without its Top Shelf Sponsors? Please take a moment to thank CBTS, Quick Solutions, MindLeaders, Technology for Ohio’s Tomorrow, PMI Central Ohio Chapter, Grip Technology, American Digital, CincyTech, PSI Group, and Datacenter101 any way you can, for such fantastic support in 2009.
IT Martini is continuing its charge into 2010! Got any suggestions for making YOUR IT Community better? We want to hear it – reach out and give us your feedback.
Erica Brown
Erica Brown is a St. Louis native who joined the IT Martini team in Fall 2009. She is pursuing a degree in Japanese Language and Literature at The Ohio State University and anticipates graduating this Spring. Her ambitions include a career in international communications with a Japanese focus.
