What’s a Hackathon and Why Would I Want One?

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The name 'hackathon' conjures up images of a room full of computers and intense, college-age programmers typing away trying to break the security of sites. While that intensity and innovation may have been the inspiration for these events, today hackathons are being used for good.

Hackathons are defined broadly as a place where programmers collaboratively code with a specific project or focus. The roots of these gatherings are found in the open source community, but many events today produce a product that will be owned by a company or organization.[Tweet "Hackathons: a place where programmers collaboratively code with a specific project or focus."] Continue reading →

Jobbing the Job Fair

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We recently featured some tips on how companies can get the most out of job fairs and open houses.  Now it's time to look at the other side -- how can government job seekers get the most out of attending job fairs? Here are some of our thoughts:[Tweet "How can government job seekers get the most out of job fairs? #GovEventsBlog"]

  • Treat it as an interview - Job fair organizers, like Bradford Rand of TechExpo, say overwhelmingly that job seekers are expecting interviews at the job fairs. With many job seekers still employed, these fairs are one-stop-shops for them to get an initial foot in the door with a number of companies while only taking one day of PTO. So, advice to seekers is be prepared to interview - your peers at the event will be doing so and the companies exhibiting are expecting you to be ready for an interview.

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2015 Summer Events of Note

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At the beginning of the year, we highlighted a number of key events happening in the federal market. We're back again to provide a look at some of the events happening this summer we think provide great educational elements as well as access to key thought leaders and decision makers. Before you begin to check out for vacation, review this short list of events happening this summer from GovEvents.[Tweet "2015 Summer Events of Note from @GovEventsGroup #GovEventsBlog"]

  • GEOINT 2015 Symposium (June 22-25)-The United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (USGIF), a non-profit non-lobbying educational organization, hosts and produces this annual event. It is the nation's largest gathering of intelligence professionals and the preeminent intelligence event of the year. Held in Washington, DC, this year's theme is "Opening the Aperture. Charting New Paths." The show will feature keynotes from high-ranking government officials as well as interactive panels with intelligence experts from the public and private sectors.

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Overcoming Charm City Challenges

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The recent unrest in Baltimore, MD forced the cancellation of a number of large conferences as well as many smaller events. For our GovEvents audience the most significant cancellation was the AFCEA Defensive Cyber Operations Symposium. The event has now been rescheduled for June 16-18 in Baltimore.

Now that the city is in a more stable place, we wanted to take a look at what these cancellations mean for event planners, attendees, and the city itself.Overcoming Charm City Challenges: The effect on event planners, attendees, and Baltimore. #GovEventsBlog Click To Tweet

For attendees there is the rearranging of schedules and the disappointment of not being able to attend the conference. Typically in these situations refunds will be given by conferences and hotels and should always be asked for. If refunds are granted, attendees can show their understanding and appreciation by re-registering for rescheduled events and patronizing (if possible) the hotel and other facilities that have waived any financial commitment. Continue reading →

OPM to Agencies: You Decide Whether Or Not a Conference is Legit

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From time to time GovEvents will come across information we feel our members and audience would benefit from. Here's something we wanted to share:

Originally posted on www.govexec.com

The Office of Personnel Management has stopped its long-time practice of reviewing individual agency conferences to decide whether they qualify as employee training under the regulations.

OPM Director Katherine Archuleta said in a May 1 memorandum to the government's chief human capital officers that OPM would discontinue issuing such guidance and wanted "to make clear that agencies are responsible for their employees' training and development as provided by the statute and regulations, 5 U.S.C. chapter 41 and 5 CFR Part 410." Continue reading →