Timing / Room Setup
- It might work better if the next camp is set up from 1-5 pm...followed by a happy hour or after party. This can prevent the loss of momentum and even bring more people in. (From SF session "Future of LaidOffCamp)
- Given the attendance drop off after lunch and the high cost of lunch, I think it would be better to have future events occur from ~12:30pm - 5:30pm. Also, I think that having more than 4 rooms would have made the sessions more discussion-oriented and thus much more benefitial to every attendee/participant. (From Chris Hutchins)
Name
- A few of us expressed a bit of reserve in using facebook to let everyone in our network know that we would be attending LaidOffCamp. There seemed to be a bit of a stigma in the word LaidOff...specially since a few were freelancers or were still employed. (From SF session "Future of LaidOffCamp)
Website
- There were also some suggestions on how to make the website more "user friendly". Information should be organized in a way that it's easier for the not too web savvy users to find the details of the camps. (From SF session "Future of LaidOffCamp)
Sessions
- The first comments reccomended that the first 2 rounds of sessions should be set up in advance in order to avoid a chaotic start. Chris mentioned that he thought about meeting with potential presenters the day before the event, but decided against it. (From SF session "Future of LaidOffCamp)
- Since so many of the sessions were geared towards encouraging us to freelance, or decide to launch our own start up, it would be great to hear more about a future camp tailored to these themes. It also seems that freelancecamp.org is already taken. (From SF session "Future of LaidOffCamp)
- It would be good to balance Basic Organization with Dynamic participation. Be clear with the "presenters / facilitators" that the format is to be dynamic, in order to tap the wisdom of the crowd instead of "power point presentations" and "Q & A". (From SF session "Future of LaidOffCamp)
- The organizers should vet a little more the "presenters / facilitators" before hand. (From SF session "Future of LaidOffCamp)
Other
- The signage and way finding can be improved a little bit. Specially the schedule should be bigger, more visible and accessible to everyone present. (From SF session "Future of LaidOffCamp)
- Word of mouth and the media coverage for sure will bring much more people to the next Bay Area LaidOffCamp. Be prepared for that. (From SF session "Future of LaidOffCamp)
- How often to repeat this? The responses ranged from every quarter to everymonth...In the Bay Area, I think it can be every month if it's rotated between SF, East Bay and Silicon Valley. (From SF session "Future of LaidOffCamp)
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Feel free to add suggestions and your own personal experiences, and many thanks to the organizers, volunteers and sponsors.