Convince Your Boss

[Email template to ask for approval below!]

We know it can be tough asking for budget to attend an event. Even though we think attending GOTO Berlin is a no-brainer, with 60+ expert practitioners and thought leaders covering the full stack of software development, including Cloud Native, DevOps, Security & Ethical Hacking and emerging technologies like Machine Learning, Serverless and Quantum Computing, it can be a hard sell to a manager who might view this as losing your valuable developer hours.

This article has great tips around how to get your manager to agree to send you to a conference like GOTO Berlin. If you need more convincing, check out this post on the importance of attending conferences for software developers.

But why GOTO Berlin in particular? Here are our top 5 reasons why we think you should attend:

  1. Hear what the future of software will bring directly from industry experts and top practitioners, including:
  • He chaired the Italian Serie A referees from 2007 to 2010 and then he moved to UEFA where he worked as Chief Refereeing Officer and Chairman of the Referees Committee until 2018. He is currently the Chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee, Pierluigi Collina
  • Author and illustrator of Hello Ruby, a children’s picture book about the whimsical world of computers, as well as the founder of Rails Girls, a global movement to teach young women programming in over 270 cities, Linda Liukas
  • Java Champion with 25+ years of experience building complex and high-performance computing systems. Known for his work on Aeron and SBE and previously at LMAX he was the co-founder and CTO when he created the Disruptor, Martin Thompson

And to top it off, you'll be able to meet speakers during breaks, meals and perhaps even at the conference party!

  1. Understand how to leverage new technologies, tools and methodologies

This directly helps you prepare for future advancements in our world of software, deliver new business value and improve your team's everyday work.

  1. Share war stories with other attendees

You’ll meet many developers at the conference working on real-world problems similar to yours. We prioritize the opportunities to network so that you can not only connect with other developers, but learn from them too.

  1. Gain practical skills by learning (or advancing your knowledge!) across many disciplines in software development with a hands-on masterclass

Whether you’re interested in application security, software development methodologies like agile testing, emerging software architectures like serverless, or all of the above, there is so much to learn at GOTO!

  1. Get inspired!

The whole program is focused on exploring every layer of software development, with speakers discussing more than just the technical aspects of software development — though we cover plenty of that too. GOTO Berlin is your chance to take part in and be inspired by a global innovation movement full of explorers, pioneers and trendsetters.

Still need help convincing your boss? We’ve got you covered. Below is an email template you can use when requesting approval to attend the conference from your manager. We strongly recommend that you add in details on which talks and masterclasses you would like to attend. Please also feel free to customize the text!

 

Dear [MANAGER'S NAME],

I'd like your approval to attend GOTO Berlin (gotober.com) on October 21-25 at the bcc.

GOTO Berlin 2019 consists of three days of conference talks and two day of hands-on masterclasses on many topics related to my everyday work like [TOPIC] and [TOPIC]. I'm especially interested in hearing [SPEAKER] present their talk on [TALK TITLE]. You can see the full conference program here: gotober.com/2019/schedule

I would also like to attend these sessions:

  • [TALK TITLE - recommend including the link!]
  • [TALK TITLE - recommend including the link!]
  • [TALK TITLE - recommend including the link!]

At the conference, I’ll get the chance to network with the 800+ software developers, architects and engineering managers attending, not just to connect with them, but to learn from them and to understand how other companies are solving similar problems at work.

GOTO Berlin offers a flexible package — this means I can customize my experience with a pass for 1 to 5 days. I'll be provided with lunch and a full day of refreshments and snacks on the days I attend. During the conference days, there are also a few special evening activities, including an inspirational keynote from world renowned football referee, Pierluigi Collina!

I'm confident that attending GOTO Berlin will help me better understand how to leverage new technologies, tools and methodologies to help our project and team, and I'm really looking forward to gaining more practical skills to improve our everyday work. If I am able to attend this conference, I would love to then present a summary of my experience, recommendations and findings back to our team.

Do you agree that this conference is worthwhile for me to attend? If so, I'd be happy to discuss which sessions and masterclasses I would attend in more detail.

It would be great to get your approval or discuss more soon so I can make the appropriate travel arrangements before hotels and transportation costs get more expensive.

Thanks in advance,

[YOUR NAME]
[YOUR TITLE]