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NorDevCon 2015: The Business Sessions‏


NorDevCon 2015 means business. Literally! This year we’ve added some business sessions to the conference to make sure that there really is something for everyone. Whether you’re an agile addict, a .Net aficionado or a techno-phobe, this year’s conference will benefit anyone that works in a business that uses technology, which let’s face it, these days is nearly every business operating today.

Mobile Commerce: Past, Present, THE Future

Neil Garner

Mobile Commerce has come a long way from basic automated voice and text messaging services in the late 90s, through basic WAP services on feature phones in late 00s through sophisticated shopping apps of today.

Mobile Commerce is still at early stages of evolution in western economies like the UK despite many emerging countries like Kenya using services like m-Pesa instead of cash. What will the future bring? Growth of Proximity Commerce linking digital with physical wallets… wearables… Biometrics and authentication… death of Apps… however the future pans out the mobile will be at the heart of commerce in 2020. Neil has been working in the m-commerce sector for almost 20 years and is CEO of Proxama, the Norwich HQ-ed AIM listed mobile technology business.

How to get the best from developers when you haven't got a clue

Ali Clabburn

Ali has spent the last 16 years dedicated to helping communities to travel more sustainably. In 1998 whilst in his final year at University, 2 weeks before Google was born, he set up liftshare.com – a clever website which helps people find others travelling the same way as them so they can share their journey.

In this session Ali explains how, if we make better use of what we have by sharing then we can make huge reductions in the resources we need. Ali and his team have been awarded the Queen’s Award for Innovation through Technology as well as a whole host of other prestigious awards.

Selling a promise

Burkhard Kloss

Burkhard goes on an exploration of how investment banks are structured and actually work, and how that impacts how financial software is built in practice.

Since coming to the UK 24 years ago, Burkhard has been primarily writing software and leading teams in the front office of financial services institutions, working closely with traders and quantitative analysts in C++, Python and a variety of other languages.


How Not to Run a Youth Club

Steven Flower

Steven works somewhere between the business of government, technology and education.  A typical week could involve modelling open data with a local authority, filing bugs for international development teams visualising overseas aid, and running a youth club for kids who code.  Sometimes, projects combine at the intersection of this Venn diagram. Quite often, they don’t.

One weekend a month, 150 developers gather in a Manchester warehouse between the hours of 11 and 3. There’s music, young people, soft drinks and light effects, plus a wait list and security.  Sound familiar?

Join this session to learn how supporting opportunities for youngsters to code is something that can benefit us all.   And be quite enjoyable.

Elite Sponsor: Embracing Technology for Competitive Advantage 
Will Farnell

Farnell Clarke is a firm of chartered accountants and business advisors that delivers its difference through the use of technology.

In this  Elite sponsors presentation Will Farnell, the founder and Managing Director of Farnell Clarke, will discuss the evolution of technology in the accountancy profession and explore how technology providers are the single most important element of change in this, and almost every other, marketplace.

In 2009, before most of the large accounting software providers had even launched a cloud-based solution, Farnell Clarke was one of the first accountancy practices in the UK to fully adopt the cloud. 75% of Farnell Clarke clients now use the cloud and this approach has seen Farnell Clarke deliver an average 38% year on year growth.  Will regularly presents to industry peers to encourage and drive a technological change in what is seen as a very stagnant and reactive industry.


Pre-conference special & dinner

You can now RSVP for the pre-conference special and dinner on the evening of Thursday 26th of February(the evening before the conference). If you're able to make it, please do come along to both. The details are below.

Everyone is welcome at both events and you don't need to attend the conference to attend the pre-conference events.

Pre-conference Special with Allan Kelly and Kevlin Henney

Thursday, 26th February 2015 @ 5pm
The Kings Centre, Norwich

The Rule of Three - Kevin Henney

The three-act play, the given–when–then BDD triptych, the three steps of the Feynman problem solving algorithm... a surprising number of things appear to come in threes. This talk walks through — and has some fun with — a number of triples that affect and are found in software development.

Every business is a software business - Allan Kelly


Pre-conference Dinner at All Bar One

Thursday, 26th February 2015 @ 7.30pm
All Bar One, Norwich

This year the pre-conference dinner will be at All Bar One (a short walk from the Kings Centre) at 7.30pm. All are welcome and the fixed price menu is here:

View the menu.

When you RSVP you'll need to pay £11 for the meal and then for your drinks on the night. Please specify a starter, main meal and dessert when you RSVP.


Student& Unemployed Discounts

If you’re a student or are unemployed you can attend NorDevCon for just £25 + fees. If you purchase a discounted ticket you will be required to prove your status when you register on the morning of the conference.

Click here for student tickets and here for unemployed tickets.

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