Sunny San Diego: Higher Ed Summit Is Coming Ashore

By: Joanna Iturbe, Salesforce MVP, Vice Chair, Salesforce.org Higher Education Advisory Council

For those of us who live in winter wonderlands, you may not need to say any more than “San Diego” for us to pack a swimsuit and jump on a plane to San Diego for the 2019 Higher Ed Summit. But, there are a lot more reasons than sun and sand for you to join us next month.

Here are a few Higher Ed Summit pro tips for attendees:

1. Attend The Opening Keynote

Make sure to wear your school colors and come to the main ballroom at 8:45 am PT on Tuesday, April 16, to kick off the Summit. The keynote is guaranteed to be jam-packed with cool things that current institutions are already doing as well as some really exciting plans coming down the Salesforce.org product development pipeline.* This session sets the tone for the entire week, so don’t miss it!

But, the opening keynote is just the beginning of an amazing roster of keynote speakers, including: Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Admiral William H. McRaven and Tara Westover.

2. Hands-On Workshops, Theater Sessions and Breakouts – Oh My!

There are going to be more than 100 sessions. If you’re a Type A planner like I am, that can be a little overwhelming! Make sure you have the Salesforce Events mobile app downloaded to your phone. Look under the Agenda tab for Agenda Builder on the Higher Ed Summit 2019 page to find and pre-register for sessions you want.

DO: Pre-register for any hands-on workshops you want to attend and arrive 15 minutes before the session begins, or else your spot may be given to walk-in attendees. Hands-on workshops are NOT recorded (unlike breakout sessions), so you will not be able to attend them virtually at a later date.

DON’T: Pre-register for so many sessions that every day is jam-packed and you’re left running from
session to session. If you can hit a keynote, a few breakout sessions and some theater sessions each day, consider it a win. You’ll find as you have organic, hallway conversations that will pique your interest in a session you may not have previously thought of; or, you’re having such a great conversation with your new connection that you decide to walk with them to the session they’re headed to.

3. Be a Cool Kid – Hang Out in the Quad

The Quad will be one of those places that you don’t “schedule time” on your Agenda Builder to go visit, but you MUST go to the Quad. Why? Because that’s where you’ll be able to find familiar faces and meet new people from other institutions and partners (over 30 sponsors will be ready to show you their great products and services!). This is also where you can stumble on some great theater sessions. Theater sessions are 20 minute sessions from partners and institutions that are intended to get your wheels moving on something you may not have been previously thought about.

Speaking of stumbling across things: Make sure to check out the Equality Networking Lounge directly across from the Quad! On Day 2, there will be community-led meetups focused on diversity and inclusion hosted in the lounge.

The Higher Ed Advisory Council, from the 2018 Higher Ed Summit

4. Go to Birds of a Feather

I don’t want to ruffle any feathers, but if you’re looking to feed two birds with one scone, Birds of a Feather is the place to be. These will be taking place during lunch both days so pre-register in Agenda Builder when it goes live. You’ll be able to grab one of the provided lunches and eat while chatting with members of the Higher Education Advisory Council about one of eight “top-of-mind” topics in an open and inclusive format. From recruitment and admissions pain points to how to manage the advancement pipeline, this is a great way to meet new folks who are working to solve the same problems. This is where long-term connections are made!

5. Enjoy the Fun and Games

As if the sessions during the day, visits to the Quad and Equality Networking Lounge and hallway conversations weren’t valuable enough, there are a lot of fun events planned, too. Consider:

• Celebrating Day 1 at the Opening Night Party at Rustic Root (Tuesday, April 16, 8:00-11:00 PM). Register now.
• Registering to attend the University of San Diego campus tour (Wednesday, April 17, 4:30-6:30 PM)
• Attending the official Summit Reception on board the USS Midway Museum (Wednesday, April 17, 6:30-8:30 PM). Register today, and DON’T FORGET YOUR SUMMIT BADGE – it’s required to get in!

These are just a few bits of advice for how to make the best out of your trip to San Diego. Feel free to reach out to me on Twitter (@joannaiturbe) and use the Summit hashtag #HESummit19 if you have any questions, ideas or comments. I hope to see you there!

Stay classy, San Diego! Get ready to ride the wave of change as we Make Change. Make Changemakers.

Go to the Higher Ed Summit 2019 website to build your agenda today!

BUILD YOUR AGENDA

About the Author
Joanna Iturbe has worked in higher education for 12 years. Currently, she is the Director of CRM for the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado Boulder. Within the Salesforce ecosystem, in addition to serving as a Salesforce MVP, she is also the Vice Chair of the Salesforce.org Higher Education Advisory Council, leader of the 2,000-member Denver, CO Administrators Community Group, member of the Apoorva Board of Directors and former member of the Amplify Board of Directors.

Her certifications include Certified Scrum Product Owner, Salesforce Administrator & App Platform Builder, Database Management and Project Management. Before diving head first into IT, she worked in marketing, recruitment and admissions in the private sector and at Baylor University. Her work with student success software applications brought the 2016 Eduventures award to Leeds for Creative Use of Technology to Drive Student Success.

When not “talking shop,” Joanna loves to ski, camp, hike and travel with her husband and two trailblazing daughters.

*Any unreleased services or features referenced in this or other blog posts or public statements are not currently available and may not be delivered on time or at all. Customers who purchase Salesforce applications should make their purchase decisions based upon features that are currently available. Salesforce.com and Salesforce.org have headquarters in San Francisco, with offices in Europe and Asia, and Salesforce.com trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “CRM.” For more information please visit https://www.testforce.org, http://www.salesforce.com, or call 1-800-NO-SOFTWARE.