This year marked my 13th InterSystems Global Summit, with my first one dating back to 2001. Held in National Harbor, Washington, D.C., this year's venue provided a perfect setting for connection and enjoyment. Each Summit brings new friends, experiences, and a renewed excitement about technological advancements in our industry. However, this year felt truly exceptional. Whether it was the post-pandemic resurgence or the buzz around AI, Data Fabrics, and FHIR, the energy was palpable. This Summit was brimming with positivity and may have been the best year yet.
Whether you missed the Summit or were there but simply couldn’t be everywhere at once, I’m here to share the best LEAD North memories from the event. Let’s dive in!
1 - THE SWAG
We’re always proud of our vendor booth, but this year we went next-level with our swag thanks to the creativity of our Director of Operations, Christa Chandler. Our stuffed goats were a favorite and quickly became a hit. In the spirit of the Olympic season, these goats humorously nodded to the acronym - Greatest of All Time - and were a playful way to celebrate excellence. We've received so many sweet photos of goats in their new homes; please keep sharing them with us! Additionally, we introduced a fun new swag item: custom ribbons to add to attendee badges. With witty sayings like “Party Animal” and “FHIR’ed Up” these ribbons added a personal and conversational touch to everyone's conference badges.
2 - WOMEN'S MEETUP
For the third consecutive year, InterSystems hosted a women's meetup on Sunday afternoon, and it was a privilege for me to participate as a panelist to discuss “How to Retain Women in Tech,” a topic that is both close to my heart and central to the mission of LEAD North. Jenny Ames of InterSystems moderated the panel, which also included insightful contributions from Jena Dangerfield of the BlueCross BlueShield Association and Becky Durant from J2 Interactive. Key highlights from our discussion included how to hire more women by expanding the candidate pool, ensuring that leave and flex schedule policies support parents and strategies for making women feel valued and heard in the workplace. Following the panel, participants were invited to review various flip charts with pointed questions about the topic and add their own commentary. It was encouraging to see a diverse turnout, including men who felt they gained valuable perspective from the event. I will be going deeper into the topic of retaining women in tech in a future blog post so stay tuned!
3 - BLUE SC SHOWCASE
The session “Leveraging Interoperability to Empower a Human-Centric Data Strategy” was a standout, featuring Autumne Smith, Manager of Information Governance and Data Integration at BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina. She highlighted her team's significant achievements of the past year, showcasing the successful implementation of HealthShare in partnership with InterSystems, LEAD North, and Ready Computing. We are thrilled to be working with such a dynamic team and helping this organization reach pivotal milestones.
4 - DEMOS & DRINKS
Each year, InterSystems' hosts a Monday night event that showcases the creativity and innovation of the developer community, and this year's "Demos & Drinks" was especially vibrant. Our own Rebecca Johnson presented LEAD North's new Generative AI-powered HL7 v2 message generator. This tool impressively creates (and sends, if desired) batches of test messages tailored to specific use cases on demand. The demo attracted a significant crowd and sparked widespread interest, ultimately earning the most votes for the "Most Likely to Use" product. We are incredibly proud of the recognition and of Rebecca for leading the build on this product. We are working on getting this into the hands of more users soon.
5 - FHIR TRANSFORMATION
On Tuesday afternoon, I had the opportunity to show off some of the work that LEAD North has focused on over the past couple of years. Our demonstration centered on the FHIR Transformation Service, a cloud-enabled, software-as-a-service InterSystems product that seamlessly transforms HL7 v2 and CCDA documents into FHIR. What sets this product apart is its adaptability; it can be customized to meet specific needs as data source anomalies are encountered. The demo featured an intuitive user interface for configuring custom settings and a robust test harness, enabling real-time validation of customizations. If you're seeking a FHIR transformation solution, consider subscribing via the AWS marketplace or reach out to InterSystems or LEAD North with any questions you may have.
6 - MUSEUMS & MONUMENTS
The "grand finale" event on Tuesday night at the Summit is always a highlight, and this year was no different. We had the pleasure of spending the evening at the stunning Smithsonian American History Museum. Featuring a Hamilton performance and a mini-concert by "Integrity Check," the night had something for everyone. Following our museum visit, some of us embraced our adventurous spirit by picking up scooters and zipping over to the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial, a highly recommended way to travel, even after dark!
7 - IMPACT AWARDS
There's no question that InterSystems customers are consistently leading the way in industry advancements, and the Impact Awards provide a thrilling platform for recognizing these pioneering achievements. From CVS Health to BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, LEAD North is honored to contribute, even in a small way, to the overarching objectives of these esteemed organizations. In the spirit of genuine partnership, we are always delighted to see accolades awarded where they are truly deserved. Congratulations to all the winners!
8 - FREE CERTIFICATIONS
LEAD North is a company that embraces educational opportunities (check out our Training page!) and are always excited at the possibility of racking up more certifications. InterSystems offers one free certification attempt to Summit attendees, so we took the opportunity to add to our growing list of certified staff. This year at the Summit, Rebecca Johnson achieved her certification as an IRIS Core Solutions Developer. Congratulations Rebecca!
9 - EMPOWERED COLLABORATION
LEAD North’s CTO, Chi Nguyen-Rettig, made significant contributions to the panel titled “Uncovering and Accelerating Customer Value through Collaboration.” Chi's insightful comments about the essential human component of software implementation resonated deeply. Chi highlighted that effective collaboration goes beyond mere interaction; it actively leverages the unique strengths of each team member, even those that are newer to the technology. The panel also featured Jenny Ames, Art Dirik, and Jim Breen of InterSystems, who expertly demonstrated how successful customer outcomes hinge on a coordinated effort and shared ownership across all organizational areas.
10 - FRAMILY
The Global Summit, although just a few days each year, feels like running a marathon at sprint speed. It's a whirlwind of activities and connections - familiar and new faces. No other event during the year offers as many opportunities to engage with the InterSystems community and, after all these years, many in the community feel like family. With each passing year, the connections grow deeper, making the event that much more meaningful, fueling my enthusiasm for future partnerships and collaborations.
The experiences at this year's Global Summit were not only memorable but also indicative of the vibrant future that lies ahead in our industry. If you missed out this time, ensure you're part of next June's excitement in Orlando. Join us next time to create new memories.
Share your favorite memories below!
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