Big Data and Enterprise Mobility lead the list of topics to be discussed as more than 1,000 IT practitioners descend on Anaheim this week for the SHARE in Anaheim conference. The event, which begins Sunday, August 5 and continues through Friday, August 10, 2012 at the Anaheim Marriott Hotel, brings together IT leaders from IBM, ISVs, and individual user organizations to discuss today’s hottest industry macro-trends, focusing on real-world solutions from the practitioner’s point of view.

No SHARE member is a stranger to large amounts of data. Companies have relied on the mainframe – SHARE’s core technology specialty – to process data for years. With the amount of data the digital world generates expected to grow at a 44 percent rate over the coming decade, however, the intensity of managing what has now been more appropriately coined “Big Data” has heated up. IT professionals across the globe are preparing to address this increasingly complex environment. At SHARE in Anaheim, they can do just that.

"SHARE has always evolved its program to align with industry needs,” says Janet Sun, SHARE President. “We know Big Data is an issue on everyone's mind from a business perspective and increasingly by IT as well. The Big Data spotlight allows us to go deep in an area that we know is important to our members - and important to their businesses on a broader scope."

A two-day spotlight on Big Data issues was developed based on a focus group SHARE hosted at its spring meeting in Atlanta. "We interviewed our members to understand specific areas of concern and interest so we could develop a program that would truly meet their needs. Our hope is that attendees return to their organizations better-equipped to solve the problems and leverage the opportunities presented by Big Data,” says Sun.

This approach to concentrated spotlights on timely industry issues is part of SHARE's future strategy – with Enterprise Mobility being the focus for SHARE in San Francisco happening in February of 2013. A mobility focus group is scheduled for Wednesday of this week for attendees to weigh in on what they would like to see in the San Francisco spotlight. Both topics were also recently covered on SHARE’s blog, the SHARE President’s corner.

SHARE’s user-led, user-focused technical session program is at the core of SHARE’s events, held bi-annually since 1955. In addition to concentrated spotlights, SHARE aligns its user-focused content to industry hot topics, functional areas of interest and SHARE volunteer-led projects. Attendees can choose among the 500+ sessions to explore a wide range of issues or delve deeply into a single topic. With hundreds of technical specialists and like-minded peers in one place, networking is also a major component of the week.

Notes Sun, “SHARE’s independent perspective and network of real-world IT professionals make SHARE the ideal place to tap into the knowledge and experiences of others.” As the technology industry’s first-ever user group, SHARE continues to deliver practical value that drives business results.

About SHARE

SHARE is an independent, volunteer-run association providing IBM customers with user-focused education, professional networking and a forum to influence the information technology industry. Since 1955, SHARE has enabled IT professionals to achieve business results through a combination of credible, relevant programs and peer opportunities.