Developer conference hopes to boost KC’s tech profile
June 22, 2015 | Abby Tillman
A group of local tech talent is banding together to bring global exposure to Kansas City’s tech scene.
Set to kick off Wednesday, the two-day Kansas City Developer Conference hopes to engage techies with all aspects of software development. In addition to connecting developers, the seventh-annual conference aspires for a bigger mission: to put KC on the map.
“As we bring in speakers and sponsors from around the nation and the world, their interactions with our attendees makes them understand that KC is a tech community that really knows what it’s doing,” KCDC Founder Lee Brandt said.
Brandt further explained that Kansas City developers’ desire to learn and advance themselves impresses non-KC-based attendees. That interaction also promotes a positive feel of the pool of tech talent available in Kansas City.
This year’s conference will feature 1,300 attendees, 150 educational sessions and 120 speakers, including international leaders in software development. Sessions will cover all aspects of software development, including design, project management, development operations, JavaScript and more.
“We try to be a true software development conference,” Brandt said. “So anything that’s involved in that process around software development, we want to have content around that at the event. … We try to have something for everybody”
KCDC co-organizer Jonathan Mills said that the conference aims to be comprehensive in its approach and provide valuable professional development.
“We have a lot of speakers who speak at big events,” Mills said. “Instead of sending someone to a $3,000 conference, you can come see the same quality of speaker and the same session for $300 at KCDC. … We have top quality speakers from all over the world flying in — 2 or 3 are from London.”
The conference will run June 24 to June 26 at the Kansas City Convention Center. For more information on tickets, click here.

2015 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
KCMO provides welcoming spot for NY-based high-tech kennel startup, DogSpot
Kansas City stands out among 30 different DogSpot partner cities for cutting through bureaucracy to help startups grow, said Chelsea Brownridge. DogSpot — a service that delivers internet-connected, air-conditioned, standalone dog kennels for pet owners to “park” their dogs while, for example, shopping or running errands — teamed with the City of Kansas City, Missouri,…
Three fathers bring Whizz Bang potty-training game to market through Make48, Handy Camel
The Whizz Bang gamifies potty training and saves the bathroom floors of all parents, said Amy Gray. The device, which hooks on the underside of a toilet seat lid, emits a LED light target at the bottom the bowl. Once hit, the device plays musical praise, said Gray, the head of sales for Handy Camel,…
Reconciliation Services hopes to heal trauma in the heart of stigmatized Troost corridor
Commanded by Scripture, David Altschul journeyed into parts unknown, said his successor, Father Justin Mathews. In the mid-1980s, a philanthropic pull tugged at the heart of Altschul — a white, insurance salesman from Johnson County — and eventually led him into the distressed, history-rich neighborhoods that lined Troost Avenue on the east side of…
Thelma’s Kitchen cooks up pay-what-you-can cafe concept to preserve community
Twenty people once filled the kitchen of Thelma Gardner’s apartment in search of their next meal. Their hunger for food fueled her hunger for humanity, recounted Father Justin Mathews as he sat sipping coffee in the newly opened Thelma’s Kitchen. The pay-what-you-can restaurant — located inside of the Reconciliation Services building at 3101 Troost Ave.…

