Last week Diversified put on one of the two best conferences that England, heck Europe, offers in terms of IT Service Management: SITS. Once known as the Service Desk show, SITS provides a magical mix of vendors, speakers and networking over two days for anyone interested in agile, devops, leanIT, ITIL, SIAM, Mental health for IT, leadership and more. People, processes, and all of the fun stuff in one event!

Before the pandemic, many of my conference friends and I had built up mental and physical conference skills and attributes. Two years away, wow, what a difference. Let’s start with shoes. I have not worn proper shoes for a long time and now for two days, well shoes. SITS is a tremendous experience in a large conference facility covering a vast floor space. You walk a lot at SITS.

Networking. I have not seen my friends and colleagues in person for over two years. Do you shake hands, hug, or elbow bump? Forget the two-metre rule because SITS attracts hundreds of people! Some people had masks, but most did not. Beer and wine at the end of day 1, coffee baristas inside the event, pizza or curry at night. This is SITS!

Vendors galore. Some had exciting software to measure the experiences of staff and customer satisfaction. Imagine knowing in real-time whether what you delivered as a service met the customer’s needs or helped your teams. Experience knowledge and leadership are the fundamental concepts of 2022. Warning to vendors: make sure your staff can tell a story that matters to the person. Asking what would you like to see or saying we sell ITSM software means nothing. After 50 years of dealing with vendors and consultancies in my career, I am happy to teach you how to act at a conference.

Speakers: loads of speakers on every conceivable topic important to those that want technology to enable their staff or help customers. Regular sessions, panels, hot-topic discussions (I did one on metrics), free advice at stands, interviews of legends being taped, and breakfast sessions. SITS is a learning and sharing experience.

Back at hotel day 1: I had walked miles, my feet were sore, my hands and elbows hurt, my head was pounding with all that I had learned, my stomach was full of wine and pizza.

See you at SITS 2023!

Daniel Breston: 50 years of leadership and consultancy in IT. Now rebranded as the Retired Coach (working his way), Daniel speaks at events, blogs for himself and others, board member of is itSMF UK, a Fellow of the British Computer Society,  and generally is just having fun keeping up with the opportunities being offered by technology to individuals and organisations.