Energised and more alive than ever - a look into life after the MyData 2019 conference!

4 exciting things we want to share with you

It’s been one month since the MyData 2019 conference and the action is only accelerating We, the MyData Global staff, wanted to share what we’ve been up to the past month, and what we will be doing in the last quarter of 2019. You’ll even find a sneak peak to 2020 at the end!

1. #MyData2019, an event to remember

After a bit of time for reflection, it’s safe to say that the conference was a great success! During the three days in late September in Helsinki, MyData community came together again for presentations, speeches, discussions and celebration. MyData 2019 conference, with nine thematic tracks and the demo lounge, 230 speakers in over 40 sessions, was the biggest MyData event to date.

We are proud to have facilitated a meeting of an amazing group of 950 professionals coming from 46 different countries. Thanks to our 25 partners and 3 collaborators, MyData 2019 was able to deliver what some even called “the gold standard for conferences”. We are extremely happy for all the feedback and especially pleased to learn that nearly 90% of MyData 2019 visitors were either “happy” or “very happy” with the programme and arrangements. And if you’ll allow, some picks from the feedback: “An amazing event”,“You rule, thanks to the whole staff:)))” (note: the conference is created by the community, not by the staff only!). From the social programme, the Thursday sauna was again described as a fantastic experience, even if a little “strange” for some … 🙂

As a thank you to all presenters, attendees, and partners who visited Helsinki last month, and In recognition of the fact that big events like a three-day conference are not indifferent to our environment, MyData 2019 donated a symbolic 1 EUR / attendee for climate protection initiatives by My Climate.

We are grateful for all the feedback (welcome still here!) and will be taking your advice to heart when planning and running the four Regional Events in 2020 and the Global conference in Helsinki in 2021.

2. What’s brewing in Q4? Key actions to close 2019 on a high note

The last quarter of the year focuses on preparing for the new year. All staff members have set what we call Objectives and Key Results (OKRs, set both quarterly and annually) which guide our everyday actions to best fit and support the mission of MyData Global. They are divided into seven action areas. You can find a short summary of our goals for the remainder of the year. If you have further questions please don’t hesitate to ping us @staff-members on Slack and ask!

Thought leadership

Our thought leadership work this final quarter is focussed heavily on developing a strategy for the future and an action plan for the coming year. How do we advance the bleeding-edge thought leadership that has brought our community together while at the same time enabling newcomers to come to grips with the basics of MyData and the existing thinking and discussions?

Leadership & Culture

Needless to say the most important activity in Q4 for MyData Global is the coming Community Meeting and autumn general meeting held online and in Athens, Greece on November 13-15, 2019. At the autumn general meeting, a new Board of Directors and a new Steering Group will be elected for the term starting Jan 1st, 2020. All candidates are showcased here and on Slack.

The strategic thinking has evolved over time in the MyData organisation and community. During the the last quarter, the new strategy will be finalised and launched. The strategy will be released for wider participation before the Athens Community Meeting.

Community and Network

MyData is driven forward by its Community, and we need to make sure we know the motivations and expectations of individual and organisational community members. During Q4, we’re summarising dozens of member interviews and insights to feed into the strategy and action plans. And as we need to be able to showcase advances in MyData, it is important we can publish case studies and share those via webinars.

Event Cycle

We’re currently having debrief meetings with all the great partners and subcontractors, collecting the lessons learned feedback, analysing feedback and taking care of admin. In the upcoming weeks though, YOU can expect:

Conference report that summarises all great things that happened at and around the conference will be written.
The great presentations published on YouTube
For now, enjoy the slides decks at https://mydata2019.org/presentations/

Outreach & Communications

The aim of our communications and outreach is to amplify the impact of everything we do and thus support the fulfilment of MyData Global’s purpose. We do this by clearly communicating about our vision, mission and the great things we, the community, are doing. For the remainder of the year, much of the focus is on our communications will be to showcase the value created for and with the community during the year as well as the very exciting business of the community meeting in Athens.

Fundraising & Partnerships

For funding activities the work is never done. During the end of the year, the focus will be on making sure our organisational members and event partners are happy with us – and will collaborate in the future. At the same time, we are discovering and opening new funding opportunities, for example from the conference.

Tools & Admin

This action area is essential for keeping the wheels of the organisation turning (and the staff sane!) We have accrued some admin debt over the past months with most of our energies being tied up with the conference, so some back office tidying and long-overdue integrations like making the membership application and payment process simpler are in our Trello list for Q4!

3. 2020: MyData is coming to a continent near you!

Together with the team and the international community, we are dreaming big for 2020. As was announced at the conference in September, instead of one global conference held in Helsinki, 2020 will see four major MyData regional events on different continents! So get our your calendar and save the dates for …

MyData South America (Rio, 24 June)
MyData Asia (Tokyo, 29-30 June)
MyData Europe (Berlin, 17-18 September)
MyData Africa (Nairobi, mid-November)

The idea behind the concept of regional events is to embrace the diversity of MyData, to bring MyData awesomeness closer to different members of the community, to learn from the local implementations and landscapes, and to create the opportunity for strengthening old and developing new networks and partnerships.

In addition to the four major events, MyData local hubs are more active than ever! We’ve had new hubs join since the conference and many of the hubs organise regular meetups. So make sure to stay in touch with the hub near you! And what if you can’t find one near you? Why now start your own!

4. Next up: MyData Global Community Meeting and Autumn General Meeting in Athens in just two weeks!

The next and very exciting step for the organisation will be the MyData Global Community Meeting and Autumn General Meeting to be held in Athens, Greece, on 13-15 November 2019. Join us for brainstorming, discussing, and deciding about the direction of MyData Global organisation. Don’t miss out – come to strategize for the future with the MyData Global leadership team and community! For the meeting agenda and registration, visit the meeting page.