Martin White's personal picks
Martin White
Conference Chair,
Enterprise Search Europe
Managing Director,
Intranet Focus Ltd and
Visiting Professor, iSchool, University of Sheffield, UK
Enterprise Search Europe 2012 takes place in London in less than 5 weeks. Here, Conference Chair Martin White looks forward to the only conference in Europe to deliver collaborative and real-world enterprise search learning, and picks some of his personal highlights.
What, for you, are the highlights of this year's Enterprise Search Europe?
A major highlight for this 2012 conference is the participation of three exceptional keynote speakers: Paul Doscher, CEO, Lucid Imagination; Matt Eichner , General Manager, Enterprise Search, Google; and Stephen E Arnold, President, Arnold IT. Their combined insights promise to deliver a truly holistic overview of the current state of enterprise search - from the perspectives of technology development, search giant, and 'on the ground' implementation.
I'm also delighted to see such a wide range of sponsors; affirmation that the conference has already become a platform for resolving enterprise search problems and finding new solutions through our mix of excellent presentations, on site solutions providers, and attendee dialogue.
Which speakers/sessions are you looking forward to hearing?
I'm particularly looking forward to the Implementation Case Studies on Thursday 31 May, where our speakers can be relied upon to give candid accounts of the lessons they have learned in implementing enterprise search solutions within a range of environments. Our panel sessions, focusing on best practice and search success, also promise to provide plenty of lively debate between panellists and attendees.
What are the hot topics in enterprise search this year?
Trending topics in enterprise search currently include assessing benefits of open-source solutions, understanding the role of search-based applications, and improving search/user interfaces. Our programme covers these hot topics, not just within the conference sessions, but through the event's valuable networking opportunities for speakers, sponsors, and delegates.
What will delegates take home from Enterprise Search Europe?
My ambition is for everyone to leave this year's Enterprise Search Europe with a clearer view of their company's future search technology roadmap. We selected our speakers for their skills and experienced vision, and from a wide range of business environments, so that attendees can quickly use or adapt their experiences to improve user search satisfaction within their own organisation. Of course, as with all good networking events, I also hope that attendees will leave with a wallet full of useful business cards from the people they meet at the conference!