Well, according to my limited knowledge, the Information Technology business is back. Some bean counter in a cubicle housed in deepest, darkest Silicon Valley might disagree, but hey...I don't go in for accounting. (Basically because I can't freakin' add or subtract, but that's really beside the point.) Rather, I go in for anecdotal evidence! Because we all know how objective I am.
Kathy the Cake Eater: Cub Reporter---providing half-assed analysis and subjective observations since 2003!
Tonight the husband and I attended a launch party for a new ISP here in the Cities. There was free food. There was free booze. I should find out tomorrow if I won one of three ipods they're giving away. And this was after the husband attended another meet and greet on Wednesday night, hosted by another IT company, at another restaurant with free food and free booze. No ipod door prizes, but they also didn't restrict the bar to beer only, either, like they did tonight.
I love IT gatherings. When I go to these things, I'm generally just tagging along, hence my social responsibilities are at an all-time-low. The husband is there to conduct business, to meet people, etc. He's got an agenda. I'm just there to people watch. And believe me, these gatherings do provide excellent people watching.
If you're interested in all of this, read on after the jump.
The attendees generally split up into two factions: the techies and the money people. The techies hit the bar first, then the food. They then stand around eating whilst shuffling their feet awkwardly, waiting for the booze to kick in. Once that happens, well, then they can finally let loose to the colleagues they know with all sorts of chat about how much Cisco's stuff is a pain in the ass because it doesn't work with anything. Most of their chat goes right over my head. But since I'm eavesdropping, it's not like it matters, right?
The money people are a different story: they've got places to go, people to meet, clients to fleece. This is just one of their many stops scheduled for the evening. They're just going to have a drink and go. And, Christ, what do you mean you don't have Vanilla Stoli? When they finally get an acceptable subsitute for whatever exotic liquor the bar hasn't stocked up on, they start searching the crowd, looking for only other people in the room who are wearing ties. Because those are the other money people. They chat about this law firm, or that venture capital firm, or that PR firm...you never know who, precisely, they're talking about unless you're employed by the firm of Dewey, Cheetham and Howe. In which case, you're probably also a money person, and you're hanging out with the ties. But they're very self-important. They know their worth, but more importantly, they want you to know it as well. Business cards printed on expensive cardstock are exchanged, like it was part of some mating ritual. And if you don't have a card, well, it's been nice talking to you. I see someone over there I need to chat with.
It's very interesting stuff for a people watcher like me. I just get a drink and hole up in a corner, watching everyone interact. While the people are interesting, the parties in themselves are fascinating as well. The details depend upon who's hosting the party. Tonight, you had a bunch of techies who had split off from another ISP hosting their launch party. They were well-funded so they had a pricey PR firm running the gig. You could tell they didn't want much to do with making sure people were signing up for the door prizes, or getting a wristband, guarding the door, or making sure there was enough smoked salmon on the food table. The PR people did that. But they showed up, they wore the t-shirts the PR people had designed for them, they did their best to mix and mingle and enjoy. But it wasn't really their gig if you get what I'm saying. It was someone else's.
Money men/vendor parties are entirely different story. They're not necessarily any more lavish, but they go the extra mile on the details. A couple of years ago the husband and I were in San Francisco for a convention, and a particular IT vendor blew the roof off their promotional budget with this gig. It was held at the W Hotel. Somewhere in that hotel is a roof terrace. The company hosting the party had rented out every hotel room leading out to that terrace, set up numerous tables, tented them over in case it rained (and because it was February) then held a whopper of a party.
It was a spectacular sight, with the San Francisco skyline providing the backdrop. It was a James Bond theme party---everything was from a Bond film. They had bikini clad girls who'd been painted gold wandering around, mixing with the guests. They had casino games set up in the rooms leading out to the terrace. They had Bond films playing on the TV's in every room, including on the flat screen that hung above the indoor pool. The table decorations matched the glamorous theme, as did the party favors. It was amazing. It was a firetrap, too. We heard during the course of the evening that they had originally been expecting four hundred people, not the twelve hundred that showed up. Someone had been a little free with the invitations, it seemed. They actually ran out of booze. And they had at least five bars set up.
You have to wonder, when you see something like that and then compare it to a gig like tonight's, which one is actually going to be the gig that drums up the most business. Because that's what these things are supposed to do: drum up business. Tonight's party was hosted by a small ISP. The one in San Fran was hosted by a huge, nationwide vendor. Of course the nationwide company made more money as a result of their party, but in terms of percentages, I'll bet you anything that the small ISP got the bigger bang for their buck.
Ah, anyway. The parties have started back up again. This means something in the world of IT. I'm not really sure what, but it has meaning. Sort of like some zen puzzle.
Now, I'm going to go and rest my feet. Because they're a bit puffy and they hurt. High heels...ah, how I love thee. But you make my feet hurt, you little bastards!
Posted by Kathy at March 4, 2005 12:21 AM