Rick Bauer discusses the three top benefits of participating.
The Layer123 SDN & OpenFlow World Congress is almost here, and we can’t contain our excitement. At this year’s event, we will be having our annual SDN Solutions Showcase. Started in 2014, the ONF SDN Solutions Showcase provides the opportunity for ONF members to demonstrate their real-world SDN solutions. Are you an ONF member and have a booth presence at the SDN & OpenFlow World Congress, October 11-14 in The Hague, Netherlands? Then you can participate in the SDN Solutions Showcase for free! The submission form is simpler than ever this year, being only five questions long.
Why participate? Did we mention it’s free to enter? Aside from that, the three top benefits organizations gain from demoing their SDN solutions in the Showcase at the Layer123 SDN & OpenFlow World Congress are:
- 1.Visibility to ONF Member Companies:We will feature all participants, their demos, and their presentations in PDF form in our weekly member emails and the SDN Solutions Showcase section of our website. Our weekly member emails are sent to all of our ONF member companies, meaning that you and your SDN solutions will reach plenty of eyes. Along with this, participants can talk about their solutions being demoed in the Showcase on our blog, which will be shared via the ONF Twitter and LinkedIn.
- 2. Highlight SDN Solutions Today and in the Future:
As a participant in the Showcase, we will be directing people to your booth space by providing all attendees with an SDN Solutions Showcase passport. The passport will provide attendees with a map identifying all participants for easy navigation through the expo floor. Additionally, all participants will receive signage to identify themselves as being a part of the SDN Solutions Showcase. There will also be a reception the night before for ONF members and all SDN Solutions Showcase participants. On top of this, all participants will also be included in future white papers that ONF compiles.
- 3. SDN Solution Showcase Awards:
Participants will have the chance to win two awards, the “Congress Stage Spotlight” (awarded to two organizations), and the “Best in Showcase.” The “Congress Stage Spotlight” winners will be chosen during the Showcase’s dress rehearsal, a week before the show, by a panel of judges. Those judging include Dan Pitt, Marc LeClerc, Bithika Khargharia, Shweta Latawa, Alex Zhang, Judy Zhu, Shahar Steiff, Levi Perigo, Inder Monga, Antonio de la Oliva Delgado, and myself. The two chosen winners will be able to demo their SDN solutions and will be awarded on the SDN & OpenFlow World Congress stage. Both winners of the “Congress Stage Spotlight“ receive approximately 10 minutes to present and discuss their demos to the entire audience! We are excited to be able to offer this main stage time at no additional cost.
For the “Best in Showcase” award, participants will not be looking to impress judges with their SDN demos, but the attendees of the event. The audience will be selecting the winner of the “Best in Showcase” award, which will be presented with a plaque on the SDN & OpenFlow World Congress stage. Attendees will vote for their favorite demo on their passports, which they will turn in to the ONF booth to be counted.
While we have focused on the benefits for those participating in the SDN Solutions Showcase, there is something in it for general attendees as well. The SDN Solutions Showcase passports allow attendees to visit each participating booth and receive a sticker in their passport for each demo viewed. All the attendees with completed passports (visits all the booths and receives all the stickers) will be put in a drawing to win $1,000!
The benefits of participating come with no cost, and the submission process is easier than ever. Enter your SDN solutions by September 26 to participate in the ONF SDN Solutions Showcase at the Layer123 SDN & OpenFlow World Congress this October.
See you in The Hague!
- Rick Bauer, Director of Technology Programs
