Web2.0

Fellow SPNers!  A quick note to let you know we’ve nailed the dates for the BIG OMAHA Conference.

The dates are May 7th & 8th 2009 in Omaha.  Gary Vaynerchuk is confirmed folks!  Amazing news for those who know what Gary is all about.  For those that don’t…please read up on him below.

Gary’s passionate personality, scholarly knowledge of wine as well as his live recordings helped him create a $45 million-a-year empire.

Gary Vaynerchuk.com (make sure to watch his Web2.0 Keynote address here)

Thanks Gary for the support!  Looking forward to having you in the Midwest in May!

We’re working on a host of other folks right now including some huge entrepreneurs in the social media/web2.0 space…Kevin Rose, Merlin Mann, Julia Roy and more…

Next up to confirm, Warren Buffett?

Who else do you want to see in Omaha?

The AIM Institute has partnered with Silicon Prairie News to provide for 5 complementary passes to their upcoming Breakfast Series events which begin this coming week.

The first five people to leave a comment below will be sent instructions on how to register for the Breakfast of their choice.

If you don’t happen to be one of the first five to comment, don’t fret as there will be additional opportunities for passes in the near future!  Thanks AIM Institute!

As metioned last week, Jeff and I had the privilege of attending the AIM Institute’s Futures Forum, featuring Anthony Williams, author of the book “Wikinomics“.

Like many AIM events that we’ve been to, the it was a very corporate crowd, to say the least. Tables had been purchased by large corporations (UP, Mutual, etc). Certainly nothing wrong with this, but I think its important to note, given the topic for the day was about “social media” and “web 2.0″, specifically collaboration methods such as wikis and the like.

Not having read the book, I was a little curious going into this environment, how receptive the audience would be towards the topic. Certainly *I* would be listening with baited breath, but would the rest of the room? I mean, I live and breath social media and the web… Its practically where I live. The question though was whether the rest of the audience could relate.

I must say, that I was completely engaged throughout the presentation. Though I was well aware of many of the topics, Mr. Williams presented them with a tone that made me want to hear about them all over again. Additionally, and more to my main point, there were were many stories that I had *no idea* about. Who knew that Proctor and Gamble had implemented “crowdsourced” much of their R&D? Who knew there was gold mining company which had used prize money to encourage participants to help them locate gold.

These very real, very non-tech-startup examples, served as a great bridge between the audience members, and these new-age topics of social media and collaboration. The theme of “How to enhance your organization with collaboration” resonated throughout the talk, in a very real manor.

At the end of the talk, I was blown away by how insightful and relevant it was for not only me (a social media quasi-expert), but also those in the room that have to go back to Fortune 500 companies and think about how to apply these concepts. My only hope is that those individuals got as much out of the presentation as I did.

Kudos to the AIM Institute for knowing their audience, and bringing in such an appropriate and enjoyable speaker.

All photos curtosy the very awesome and talented folks at Paparazzi by Appointment

Jeff getting his booked signed.

Dusty flailing his arms spouting off about something.

On Wednesday (10/8), our friends over at the AIM Institute are hosting Anthony Williams, author of Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything. Mr. Williams will talk about Web 2.0, and how businesses can (and should) harness the power of collaboration. It should be a great event, its exciting to see Web 2.0 highlighted by events like these in the Omaha area. Silicon Prairie News will be in attendance, and we’ll have a full report on the talk, the crowd, and everything in between.

For more information, visit the AIM Institute site

Press release:

On Wednesday, October 8, nationally-recognized author and technology expert Anthony Williams will present Collaboration, Innovation and Value Creation: How Web 2.0 is Changing Everything to Omaha business owners and CIOs. The event, part of the AIM Institute’s annual IT Futures Forum, will take place at the Embassy Suites Conference Center in La Vista from 11:30am to 1:00pm.  Over 300 people will be in attendance.

For more than a decade, Williams has researched the impacts of new technologies on social, political and economic life. He is the co-author of Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything. Williams will discuss how business leaders today must think differently about how to compete and be profitable and embrace the new art and science of collaboration. A book signing will follow the luncheon.

The AIM Institute’s IT Futures Forum is an annual event that brings together Omaha’s Information Technology community to explore new thinking and ideas in technology. Cost to attend is $40 for AIM Members; $400 per table of 10 and $80 for Non-Members; $800 per table of 10.

So here’s the deal…on October 29th four states will be represented in Kansas City at the first Highlight Midwest Conference.

Highlight Midwest showcases the entrepreneurs, innovators, and early-adopters using web technology to grow their businesses, advance their careers, and enrich the regional economy in new ways.

Three of the area’s up and coming social media strategists will present an overview on how the web is changing their cities for the better and how new opportunities for innovation are expanding the importance of web-based technology in the Midwest.

Here’s how the day looks right now and the links to register:

Focused Highlights
9:00am - 4:00pm at the Record Bar.
A day of sessions focused on the region’s most innovative web projects

Reception
5:00pm - 8:00pm at the Kauffman Center of Kansas City.
An evening event showcasing the cities that make these projects possible
Dinner and Cocktails Provided.

Thanks to Sarah Lacy for linking and providing us additional juice to keep moving things forward in our respective cities!

More info to come soon, but mark the 29th down and join the group from Omaha heading to KC at the end of October!