We kicked off our first day with our Head of Delivery, Hannah McDermott, and CEO, Will Huggins, delivering a presentation to a packed crowd on our experience managing client relationships and expectations throughout delivery. Central to this presentation was a discussion on navigating conflict, and advocating for transparency and communication from the offset in order to maintain partnerships that extend past the initial project.
This was followed by our Lead DevOps Engineer, Alex Johnston, presenting on how to manage a high profile Drupal 9 launch, focusing on the approach and priorities for before, during and after going live. Some of the key tips that Alex conveyed during this presentation were:
- Mapping non-functional requirements and checklists
- Communication plans for each phase of the launch
- Iterate and improve each time, maintaining comprehensive documentation
The Driesnote is always a highlight of any Drupalcon and this year was no exception. Dries spoke on the importance of the Open Web and the long term vision for Drupal, with an infectious enthusiasm for that went on to mark the following days of the conference.
We know it takes the whole community to ensure DrupalCon can run as smoothly as possible. Across the week our team got involved at the registration desk, as session monitors, and through contribution and mentoring wherever possible, helping to keep the Drupalcon wheels turning.
Lead DevOps Engineer, Titi Dumitrescu, and CEO, Will Huggins, closed the show for Zoocha delivering our final talk on the last day, sharing our approach and the impact of the Hospitality Helps platform. This is a project that Zoocha are especially proud of being involved with due to the measurable impact that it had on helping Ukrainian refugees. Some of the key highlights from this project include:
- Launching the platform within just one week of the conflict emerging
- 200,000 guest nights booked through the service
- Donations of free services from both Google and AWS
Finally, after 3 days of learning, contributing and engaging with the Drupal community, our team headed to the Trivia Night, sponsored by ourselves at Zoocha and Acquia.
Our team have spotlighted a few of their highlights from this year's Drupalcon as we already get excited for next year's event in Lille, France.
Will Huggins - CEO
“My focus this year was community engagement and contribution. The highlights included a round table session with other local Drupal associations from around the world to discuss how we can better support local Drupal events and initiatives.”
Kimberley Massey - Senior Drupal Developer
“My highlights were seeing my colleagues present and contribute back to the Drupal community and seeing the impact this has, as well as connecting with other members of the community through training and mentoring.”
Titi Dumitrescu - Lead DevOps Engineer
“Doing my first Drupalcon talk, chatting to members of the community during the organised events, and learning both technical and non-technical things from the interesting talks attended”
Hannah McDermott - Head of Delivery
"My overall highlight from Drupalcon was having the opportunity to be around like-minded, passionate people (including my own colleagues) who were happy to freely share learnings from their experiences working both within the Drupal community, as well as the wider tech sector. I left Prague feeling motivated to look for ways to get involved in the community moving forward."
Hannah O’Leary - Business Development Manager
“Great to hear about the various practical applications of Drupal for positive change, particularly highlighting organisations such as Octophin Digital on powering Drupal for wildlife conservation work"