From the Chair - Global Changes?
Consolidation has been a watchword for system administrators in recent years, but on this occasion I’m not using it to talk about servers or storage, but user groups. You may have seen a flurry of activity during February about an international consolidation of HP user groups, bringing together more closely Encompass (the US-based user group which grew from the DECUS heritage), HP-Interex-EMEA (the impossibly long name for the loose amalgamation of HP-centric user groups in Europe) and ITUG (the International Tandem – or Non-Stop – User Group). The flurry, however, quickly died down and from a UK-perspective we have heard little about international plans in recent weeks.
The aims of consolidation are laudable – to bring additional benefits to HP user group members (used here in the broadest, non-proprietary sense), greater benefits from membership, and to bring a more powerful and coordinated customer voice to HP. But as we move forward in such an endeavour – and HPUG is supportive of the endeavour – it’s important to remember that first and foremost we are all members of national user groups. Issues, cultures and expectations vary across the world, and any consolidation of groups must constantly bear this in mind. Indeed we must do more than that; we must hold it to the fore in everything we do. By way of an example, the US-based groups hold a very successful multi-day conference annually; this June it is in Las Vegas. But in the UK we ceased holding multi-day events several years ago because you told us it is just too difficult to justify more than one day out of the office. So, in the UK, we concentrate on focused, one-day technical workshops and, from the feedback we get from you, this is exactly what you want and need. So HPUG will contribute to the consolidation discussions, we will be enthusiastically supportive of any moves that bring real benefits to the user community, whilst always ensuring services to the UK members are maintained and expanded.
Do you have a view on this endeavour to consolidate the international user group community?
Mail me at chair@hpug.org.uk and let me know.
John Owen
HPUG Chair
PS: Please remember to click here to take a look at forthcoming HPUG Events.
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