The Gnomedex Philosophy

Nine years ago, we designed an event that would overturn the unwritten rules of the conference world – organizing a single-track schedule, treating every attendee like a VIP, charging substantially less and providing substantially more. In 2001, we were testing a theory – but by 2006, we were selling out half of our passes before announcing a single participant or sponsor. But Gnomedex isn’t just about filling seats – it’s about unlocking the attendee’s spirit.

We are heavily involved in every aspect of event planning and execution. From vision to logistics, our team has consistently produced a world-class conference which influencers have come to hold in great respect. Indeed, the blogosphere speaks highly of few other professional gatherings.

Gnomedex (to us) is a living organism. With the right partnerships planted, we see our events continuing to unfold. We have already set the stage for this “television show” of sorts – an ongoing series of video and audio discussions which serve to bolster our brand and value. Gnomedex.com is also undergoing a transformation to help further enable this social experience.

While technology brings us together, technology at Gnomedex is ancillary to its role in our daily lives. Software, hardware – it all boils down to experiences, personal and shared. We have deliberately opted not to funnel Gnomedex into a single “technology” silo. This has afforded us the freedom of lateral maneuverability – enabling us to appeal to a wide variety of enthusiasts who use technology for personal and/or professional pursuits. Politics, commerce, art, academia, philanthropy, science, communication – all areas touched by tech, and all relevant to the Gnomedex audience.

We have supported personal media revolutions (blogging, podcasting, etc.), and those communities have supported us in turn. Our conference has positioned itself as a zeitgeist for thought leaders and followers alike, and continues to play a role in relevant online and offline discourse.

It’s the heart of Gnomedex – the conference ethos – which ensures our continued growth and success. It's our amazing attendees and sponsors that keep us moving forward, year after year.

A Few Unsolicited Testimonials

"Gnomdex [sic] was refreshing because it was a flat conference. In fact, let’s just call it a discussion. It was the right size, was open, frank and honest in its intention and never avoided confrontation for the sake of control. I got more out of it than the other two conferences combined. [O'Reilly's Etech and Web 2.0 conferences]" ~ Ethan Kaplan

"Chris puts on an awesome event, even more so when you consider this was an independent conference not run for the benefit of a large company like O'Reilly, Microsoft or Sun. The speakers were great (even John Edwards) and the whole thing was very well organised. Pirillo's found the sweetspot between the more traditional "sit down and listen to my 45 minute presentation" conference and the BarCamp-esq "Unconference" format. Don't get me wrong, both formats are great, but Gnomedex seemed to combine the best of both." ~ Ben Metcalfe

"I returned home from the Seattle portion of Gnomedex6 yesterday afternoon, my head swimming with ideas and images. The spirit of Gnomedex lives on in blogs, Flickr (2500+ photos), Technorati, podcasts, vlogs, recordings, mindmaps and more. Gnomedex is part unconference and part a gathering of the geek elite who feel compelled to use technology to make the world a better place. Participants are toying with ideas and critiques in the blogosphere as they absorb the full impact of an event-laden two and a half days. All of our blog URLs are on the web so we can keep up with one another." ~ Jay Cross

"The most enjoyable conference for me was Gnomedex, in Seattle. It was a lot of fun and I think host Chris Pirillo was a major reason why! The man is a human ball of energy and this rubbed off on the conference as a whole. The content was eclectic and fun, as were the party venues and the 'little things' - like the free food/drink, a place for us World Cup fans to hang out and watch the quarter finals, the cool quasi-Maori themed Gnomedex tee-shirts, and more." ~ Richard MacManus

"For a variety of reasons, I haven't paid to attend a conference for about four years, except for one: Gnomedex 6, which ended yesterday. Why? Because Gnomedex is fun. It wasn't the sessions. It was the hallway discussions and the parties. Chris Pirillo does an amazing job as hosts. They just have a knack for it, and over the years, all sorts of interesting people have learned that this is a good place to be. It's not like, "Ooh, all the A-list people will be there. Maybe I can rub the right shoulders." Gnomedex is more democratic than other events. Everyone is equal and they treat others equally. I don't really understand it, and Chris probably doesn't either. It's natrual for them. It's all about the brand: As I noted in that long post last week, the way to make money blogging is rarely the blog, itself. It's about building a brand that can be extended into all sorts of revenue-generating opportunities. The master of blogospheric "brand building" is Chris Pirillo and his Lockergnome brand. That giant face on the front page of the today's Seattle Post-Intelligencer is not Alfred E. Neuman wearing glasses, it's the Lockergnome logo." ~ Doug Kaye

"I generally hate conferences and do my best to avoid them. However I find myself thoroughly enjoying Gnomedex 6 (which Amy refers to as the "conference for short nerds" (Chris - she might be talking about you)) for the second year in a row. Chris Pirillo puts on a high energy and very entertaining conference. It's in what's now becoming "classical unconference" format - rather than lots of presentations with commercial bents, people get up for 30 minutes and lead "conversations" of the audience of 400 or so people." ~ Brad Feld

"Every year I come back from Gnomedex with a sense of perspective. A better understanding of where I am on the technology continuum (for lack of a better term)... Attending Gnomedex is like cresting a hill and --for just a few minutes-- I can see some of the smart kids way off on the horizon, running toward the future. I won't catch them, but it's nice to get a glimpse every now and then." ~ Steve Mays