Technology talent marketplace OfferZen has announced a stellar line-up of speakers for its upcoming MERGE conferences in Cape Town and Johannesburg, including MinOps CEO and founder Jeremy Edberg who is also the former Architect for Netflix and Reddit, as well as former GitHub and current Apollo Senior Software Engineer Ashi Krishnan.
OfferZen’s MERGE conferences promise key learnings from international and local leaders about how to win at building great software and thriving teams, as well as the latest data and insights into what’s happening in the South African tech market.
“Attendees will hear from key players in the tech industry. We’ll cover what’s going on in the tech ecosystem, look at local and international successes, and hear how they’re doing it first hand. The audience can expect a mixture of insights, strategic wisdom, and real-life accounts from some of the top people in the tech industry. It’s also an opportunity to network and connect with others from the local software developer community,” says Philip Joubert, Co-founder of OfferZen.
The only tech conference in South Africa for the entire tech team – from software developers and data scientists to product managers and designers – MERGE presents three key tracks:
- Tech Team Playbooks – Speakers will discuss the processes, best practices and smart hacks that helped them and their teams succeed.
- Potential of Tech – Heroes in the tech space will present real-life projects, deep-dive into their full insights and share their most useful learnings.
- Tech Market Insights – Experts in the local and global tech industry will provide data and insights on the current state of tech – including market realities, navigating business ventures, and how they are working to build a thriving tech ecosystems.
According to Joubert, MERGE is all about celebrating the role that South Africa plays in the global tech ecosystem and levelling up our local tech community. “We are really excited to have the backing from companies such as Investec Private Banking, Luno, Multichoice, Quicket, RapidDeploy, and Zappi who have joined us in investing in the tech community,” says Joubert.
Joubert goes on to say that developers know how crucial it is to stay relevant in tech. “That’s why we’re focussing on bringing high calibre people into a room; engaging in in-depth panel discussions and creating a space that allows for connection, benchmarking and forecasting.”
Local speakers announced to date include Ridhwana Khan, the Co-founder of KasiMaths; R-Labs Founder Marlon Parker; SalesLoft’s Systems Engineer Adrian Moisey; Dean Broadley, Full-Time Human at The School of Do and Daniel Smith, Marketplace Engagement and Project Coordinator at Abalobi.
Tickets for MERGE, which takes place in Cape Town on 14 November and Johannesburg on 3 December, cost R1,500, with early bird discounts and bulk packages available. A general access ticket provides access to the full-day conference, all presentations and panel discussions, and an epic goodie bag filled with never-before-seen swag.
