This is a post I have had stewing in my brain for a long time. YITIS (Yukon Information Technology and Industry Society) is the local technology group that companies in the Yukon join to get access to the local brain trust of IT intelligence in the Yukon. For the last few years it has been, in reality, a 100$ a year fee to get access to the Yukon Government's ICT project list and some social mixers. The relevance meter was pretty much pinned to the floor if A) you had a job or B) did not even know YITIS existed - it's hard to find.
This has started to change with the introduction of a new board and some new ideas. YITIS should not just be a place that companies enroll in to get access to Government projects but is *the* link to technology events in the Yukon. YITIS should be provide links to relevant information for starting a new technology based business in the Yukon. YITIS should provide easy access to all technology events that occur in the Yukon. It should sponsor technology events in the Yukon. It should do all of this in a very vocal manner.
When I first arrived in the Yukon - way back in 05, happy 3rd anniversary to me - I proposed a meet-up (at a now defunct coffee shop) to talk about technology. We had good attendance for a newly arrived outsider but I then lost my drive to keep organizing. I plan to start doing this again but under a YITIS banner.
We need to keep the smart people of the Yukon talking to each other and we need to provide easy ways of finding who those smart people are for new arrivals. YITIS can fill that role.
Comments
I was a member of YITIS for two non-consecutive years. The second of those was a washout as the YITIS site couldn't even list my e-mail address correctly (only one @ required, guys) and never got around to adding me to the mailing list for events even after I reminded them a couple of times.
Even when it was working, I didn't fit in well with the "YTG coffee klatch," since all of my clients were private companies.
I have high hopes now that Geoff has taken the reins. I think he'll lend it a much different focus.
Evan,
Thanks for posting your thoughts on YITIS and how we can improve the organization for members and the Yukon IT community at large.
We've got some really great events on the horizon - networking opportunities, b2b lunches, training sessions and a Microsoft Canada product workshop - that I hope will make paying for a yearly membership worthwhile. I particularly like your idea about distributing information on how to start a new technology business in the Yukon.
We've just started to turn up the volume on what YITIS does and what value it offers. I signed on as President over two years ago and it has taken the board a while to get to where we are. Some of this was about changing attitudes, some of it was about clarifying what we wanted to achieve. As a volunteer organization, everything takes major time and personal commitment.
I now believe YITIS has a lot of positive momentum. I, for one, am looking forward to what the future holds, both from my role as President and the owner of a Yukon IT business.
Geof Harries
Subvert Marketing Inc.