When mentioning to friends that I’m going to Orlando for SAS Global Forum 2107, they asked if I would be taking my kids. Clearly my friends have not attended a SAS Global Forum before as there have been years where I never even left the hotel! My kids would NOT enjoy it… but, I think the conference could also be referred to as “SAS Disney World” with all the excitement, new discoveries and fun characters that you can enjoy during those action-packed days.

Training at SAS Global Forum 2017

This year I’m especially looking forward to teaching attendees about SAS Studio and SAS Enterprise Guide during and after the conference. I am extremely passionate about both products, and I love teaching existing SAS programmers about making the transition to either interface. I will be leading a 45-minute hands-on workshop on Monday to introduce SAS Studio to SAS programmers. And if you can stick around after the conference, I will be teaching a 1-day course titled SAS® Enterprise Guide® for the SAS® Programmer. To register, just visit the post-conference training page to view my class as well as the other course offerings from SAS Education.

Although I’ve selfishly plugged my own sessions, I’m probably most excited about three hands-on workshops that my colleagues will be presenting during the conference. So have you heard about SAS Viya yet?  If not, you will!  There is a reason Forrester named SAS the #1 Leader in Customer Analytic Solutions in terms of both our current software and future strategy. SAS Viya is our future strategy, and those who know the industry have confirmed we’re on the right track.

My fellow instructors will be leading hands-on workshops during the conference about SAS Viya. Davetta Dunlap will show you how to access and manipulate data using SAS Viya, Nicole Ball will lead you through a workshop on SAS Visual Analytics 8.1 for SAS Viya, and Andy Ravenna will showcase SAS Visual Statistics 8.1 for SAS Viya. If you just want to get your hands on the software and see what all the excitement is all about, these free workshops will provide you with the opportunity to give SAS Viya a look.

I’m excited for all SAS Education has to offer our users at SAS Global Forum! Hope to see you there!