Obtiva Conducts Agile Exposure Workshop Leading up to Startup Weekend Chicago

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Nov 09, 2010, 12:37 ET

CHICAGO, Nov. 9, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- You may have heard the term "Agile" increasingly batted around in technology and business circles. Now software development and training firm Obtiva will conduct an intensive training session on Agile business practices as part of Startup Weekend Chicago November 12-14, 2010.

Obtiva's Agile Exposure Workshop takes place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, November 12 in the hours leading up to Startup Weekend and introduces participants to Agile principles and practices. The training takes place at the Illinois Technology Association, 200 S. Wacker, 15th floor, and is open to attendees of Startup Weekend Chicago as well as the general public.

Katherine Nelson-Reid, director of finance, marketing and business operations at Obtiva, said, "This training, specifically designed to complement the Startup Weekend experience, will educate attendees on tried and true Agile practices that help teams work effectively toward a common goal. When entrepreneurs need help in getting that great idea on paper and in front of an audience, Agile principles will help them transform vision into reality."

An Agile approach values traits like responsiveness, speed, collaboration, continuous learning, change, and iterative and incremental project practices.

Course instructors are Chad Pry, Noel Rappin, Chris Powers and Joe Banks, all of whom are experienced developers, consultants and trainers at Obtiva.

Startup Weekend events are held worldwide and attract a dynamic group of individuals from developers and entrepreneurs to business managers, marketers, designers and others for a 54-hour event that builds communities, companies and projects.

Startup Weekend Chicago begins Friday at 5 p.m. as attendees gather and begin discussion about what kind of concepts would be good to develop. At 7 p.m., attendees pitch their product ideas to the group. Then, teams break out; typically, about nine teams form during the weekend, creating nine different products or companies. By 9 p.m. teams have begun to solidify their concept and create an elevator pitch, and at 10 p.m., each group breaks off to conduct in-depth discussions and begin to prototype their application.

Saturday morning, work begins in earnest on strategizing, coding and development, and continues through 7 p.m. Sunday, when each company presents its concept to a panel of judges and a winner is selected.

Judges are Katherine Nelson-Reid, director of business operations at Obtiva; Fred Hoch, president of the Illinois Technology Association; Ed Domain, founder of Flyover Geeks; and Ira Weiss, faculty director at University of Chicago Booth School of Business and co-manager of Hyde Park Angels.

During the weekend, Obtiva mentors will work with teams one on one from a technical standpoint, helping them put their websites or mobile applications into production.

"Training is one way Obtiva works to promote a stronger and more robust technology community, locally, nationally and globally," Nelson-Reid said. "Obtiva's core values place emphasis on knowledge sharing and cultivating the next generation of software craftsmen, and our training exemplifies this."

Individuals completing the Agile Exposure Workshop receive a 10 percent discount on any future Obtiva training.

Follow Startup Weekend Chicago on Twitter @SWChicago and hashtag #swchi.

About Obtiva

Obtiva ignites ideas to bring web and mobile applications to life. A full service Agile software consultancy specializing in Ruby on Rails, Obtiva's technical mastery shines through in its work. Obtiva's studio team of developers, project managers and mobile technology experts provide full-service web application development, from product vision to user experience design to development and deployment. Obtiva's co-development services will bring specialized skill sets to your existing team, while infusing it with creativity and energy. Training programs deliver cutting-edge topics, led by senior consultants with real-world experience, in private sessions at your location or in public classes. For more information call 630.588.8622 or visit www.obtiva.com.

SOURCE Obtiva