Obviously, you are all, by now, very aware of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Quite understandably, it is dominating every news feed around the world. We are all feeling a mix of fear, incredulity, uncertainty, and confusion. As an organization that prides itself on bringing people together globally, both face-to-face and virtually, The Open Group sees this terrible virus as both a huge challenge, and an opportunity.
Never in our history have we canceled one of our quarterly face-to-face events. Not even in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, throughout the SARS pandemic, and during those surreal times when global travel was seriously impacted by Icelandic volcanic ash. Well, we are not about to start now!
However, our primary consideration is the health and safety of our staff, Members, and all of our event attendees, and the only responsible course of action, based on current circumstances, and the latest-available information is not to hold any physical events in the near future. As a result, we will be transforming our upcoming event in Mumbai, India to a virtual event. The theme of the event is “Digital First”, so you can look at this as part of our own digital transformation.
Our physical conferences and Member Meetings have been consistently improved over many years to become the world-class events for which we are known. Out of the current adverse situation, we will now deliver the high-quality, virtual events that you deserve. There remains no substitute for face-to-face interaction, and we look forward to safer, calmer, times when our physical events can resume. In the meantime, however, we look forward to attracting a significant community of virtual attendees to our events over the coming weeks and months.
We intend to consult with event speakers and contributors, and post a revised agenda for the virtual event, across multiple time-zones, in the next week or so. This Digital First virtual event will be free to access for all Members and registered attendees. Please watch this space.
If you are a speaker or participant and have any questions concerning the Digital First virtual event, then please contact us at: events@opengroup.org
http://www.opengroup.org @theopengroup
Thank you for clarifying the situation – it’s the right decision, and the responsible action to protect the community.
We would like to participate in larger numbers . Please let us know if the conference fee has changed due to this .
Vish
HI Vish! Hope you are well! You should’ve received an email from The Open Group with details. If not, please email events@opengroup.org and you will receive a reply. Or details can be found here – http://www.opengroup.org/mumbai2020 Thank you!