If you sampled and enjoyed the HOOPSapalooza beer at COFES….Tech Soft 3D Master Brewer and Western North American Sales Manager Zach Violett has agreed to share his secret for the tasty ale.
Every year COFES is on my calendar. I think I've been to 11 of the 13 annual events in Scottsdale, where I reconnect with many industry contacts, kindle quite a number of important strategic partnerships and get into stimulating conversations.
Recently, I attended the International Robot Exhibition (IREX) in Tokyo. My friends, the days of iRobot are closer than you might want to know. It had been awhile since I’d been updated on the state of robotics technology ̶- and the industry has definitely been advancing at a rapid clip. I couldn't help but think about the population issue that Japan and other industrialized nations are facing. With a birth rate of 1.7 in Japan, the population is actually shrinking, creating a pressing need for robotics to fill both manufacturing and service jobs.
Last week, I attended a conference called Business of Software (www.businessofsoftware.org). It's an interesting gathering of software business leaders, both start-ups and established firms. The speakers were great, including a keynote from Clay Christensen, author of the Innovator’s Dilemma, and the Innovator’s Solution and other breakthrough business texts. Another speaker was Darmesh Shah, CTO and Co-Founder of hot inbound marketing firm Hubspot (www.hubspot.com). They measure something called the Customer Happiness Index (CHI), which they track consistently.
Last Wednesday, we hosted an Executive Summit at L'Espalier restaurant in downtown Boston. Our objective was to bring together leaders of engineering software firms in the Boston area to learn more about what Tech Soft 3D has become over the past few years with our expanded solutions set and increased global presence. We also talked a bit about our products, the role of 3D PDF, and the formation of the 3D PDF Consortium.