For newer professionals, industry events and conferences are a way to broaden your professional network, hone new skills, learn more about your industry, and gain valuable experience. As in-person events begin to return post-pandemic, computing professionals might be exposed to both technical and industry conferences in the early stages of their careers. There are pros and cons to attending each, and deciding which events to attend might depend on your goals.
Industry conferences are often large, generic events that gather thousands of professionals. They’re often full of networking events, workshops, and product highlights. Industry conferences are frequently well-known and occur a few times a year. On the other hand, technical conferences focus more on sharing the latest discoveries and breakthroughs in research, and they cater to specialized areas of computing.
While both kinds of conferences allow you to be active in your industry, it’s essential for computing professionals to understand the importance of technical conferences. For better networking exposure, exchanging of ideas, and opportunities to present, technical conferences hold significant value for early-stage professionals.
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Technical Conferences Offer More Than Networking Exposure
Technical conferences are more than just networking opportunities. Instead of walking around at cocktail hours or brunches, technical conferences allow networking that leads to true technological advancement. For example, attendees might be looking for research partners, co-authors, or mentors for projects. Technical conferences are unparalleled for the kind of relationships they help you grow your career.
Technical Conferences Are More Focused
At industry conferences, practitioners at all stages of their careers attend. You’ll be exposed to various topics, but they will still be focused on specific computing disciplines. Technical conferences focus on researchers and their findings, and submissions are often peer-reviewed. Also, many technical conferences offer adjacent communities, which are invaluable in support of research, authorship, and essential conversations about today’s most relevant topics impacting research and industry.
Technical Conferences Are a Resume Differentiator
Technical conferences come with a higher level of credibility and are something you could put on your resume if chosen to present or speak. Professionals could easily add well-known technical conferences to their resumes for an extra boost of credibility and a unique differentiator. You also have the opportunity to present a paper or research. Also, a technical conference offers long-term benefits to your career.
IEEE Computer Society Technical Conferences
The IEEE Computer Society sponsors more than 189+ international conferences each year. Learn more about the IEEE Computer Society’s technical conferences and start planning which ones you’ll attend. See the full lineup here.
