Over 400 enthusiastic SAS users gathered in San Diego September 9-11, 2015 for the 23rd annual WUSS 2015 conference. In this “digital age,” where so much of our communication is virtual and social, it was a treat to get out and meet SAS users face-to-face. The two and a half-days were packed with excellent presentations and activities.
For our users who were unable to attend, I thought it would be interesting to share some photos and touch on a few of the conference highlights below.
Conference Program – Conference leadership did an awesome job of putting together a program that featured best practices, trends and case studies that highlighted innovative uses of SAS. The conference attracted an impressive list of SAS experts, who delivered some fascinating talks. Conference proceedings can be found here.
Resource Central – Open throughout the conference, this was truly the place to be when not in presentation sessions. SAS was pleased to provide reps from Training and Certification, SAS Books, Technical Support, Consulting, and more. We also had a “Meet the Presenters” booth where attendees could chat one-on-one with the presenters from SAS. Eleven exhibitors including, Teradata, Experis, Gilead, and Texas A&M were also on hand. Electronic posters (e-posters) were on display, and attendees could relax in the lounge area or tune into topics presented in the WUSS Theater. The WUSS Theater was ideally suited for short demos using SAS software, career tips on organizational skills and how to work more efficiently, and short presentations such as statistics for non-statisticians.
Solutions in the Round – These innovative, small-group discussions were pre-selected by users from submissions posted to WUSS social media channels, including Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and sascommunity.org. Topics included Best Practices for SAS® Enterprise Guide®, Creating Microsoft Excel Output from SAS, Columns to Rows Table Look Up Methods, Professional Service Interviewing Techniques, and others.
Academic Scholar and Junior Professional Programs – Thanks to the generosity of WUSS and SAS, 27 students, 1 faculty member, and 20 junior professionals (those using SAS in a job three years or less) were able to attend the conference. In addition to complimentary registrations, many individuals also received free lodging, two half-day day classes, and travel money.
Closing Session – Just as I was getting accustomed to the time difference, it was time to say goodbye. Conference co-chairs Bill Coar (Axio Research) and Ginger Carey (Carey Consulting) thanked the dedicated team of volunteers that made this conference possible. Next year’s WUSS conference is scheduled for September 7-9, 2016 at the Grand Hyatt on Union Square, San Francisco, California.
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