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Call for Participation

The Program Committee for The Web and Beyond 2012 is now accepting proposals related to this year’s theme “Momentum”. Formats include presentations, posters, demos/prototypes, workshops and side events. We aim for several workshops on September 25 and for submissions to fill three parallel tracks on our conference day on September 26, 2012 in Amsterdam.

Please note: the Call for Participation has closed, except for student submissions in the Posters and Product Demos or Interactive Prototypes categories. Submission in those categories by students are accepted until Wednesday, June 20, 23:59:59, GMT+1.

Theme: Momentum

These days, more than ever, organizations should be obsessed with their customers. If you work with User Experience practitioners (or are one yourself), you already knew that. But thanks to organizations like Forrester and Harvard Business Review, your manager now knows it, and her manager heard about it too. So, what is the next step? How do we make sure that this mass of believers in User-Centered Design gets up-to-speed on what is required, to gain the momentum that we, and more importantly our customers, deserve?

This year’s edition of The Web and Beyond, the biennial business-oriented conference by Chi Nederland, will hand you practical advice on how to get your organization obsessed with customers. Experienced presenters will help you become more professional, accountable and reliable, while staying creative and innovative. Case studies will highlight successful designs by showing that user value equals business value. Fellow practitioners will share their research findings, design processes, favourite tools, and evaluation methods, to help you grow the practice of user experience in your organization. Join us in Amsterdam in September and make an impact!

Sub-themes

Sub-themes and associated questions that we like to see discussed at the conference include (but are not limited to):

  • Customer focus: How can we learn about our customers’ needs and behaviors? Keywords: user research; social media monitoring; remote research
  • UX in your organization: How do you get UX at the heart of your business? Keywords: growing a team; managing a UX team; organizational UX maturity
  • Business value: What does UX add to the value of your product? Keywords: measuring (the ROI of) UX; evangelizing UX; UX success stories
  • Creating a strategy: How do you create a successful product or service strategy? Keywords: business models; concept development; UX start-ups
  • Trends in UX: What are the developments we need to stay on top of? Keywords: mobile, tablets, TV; interaction paradigms like touch, gestures, NUI; app-ification
  • Lean UX: What are the best methods to tackle a UX challenge? Keywords: agile processes; co-creation workshops; prototyping

We are interested in submissions that explain the ideas and theories around these subjects but even more in the associated solutions, as well as their impact on business, (interaction) design, education, our society and on us as individuals.

Formats

The following formats will be considered:

  • Presentations are stories delivered by individuals or small groups and last 10, 20 or 45 minutes. Note: submissions must indicate proposed length (10/20/45 minutes).
  • Posters highlight a specific topic in a visual manner and will be placed in public spaces where the presenter can explain them during breaks. Note: submissions can be a sketch or a written description.
  • Product demos or interactive prototypes demonstrate tangible and interactive (beta) versions of relevant tools and their application.
  • Workshops will be half-day or full-day, interactive, hands-on sessions where an expert works with participants on exchanging knowledge and ideas and practicing what’s being preached. Note: submissions must include descriptions of the proposed exercises.
  • Side events can be anything ranging from serious to fun activities during the event (but most likely during the breaks). If you have a good idea, propose it!

Submissions should indicate the preferred format. Please note that the Program Committee may ask you to change the format.

How to submit

Proposals must include:

  • The title and a brief, 2-paragraph description (or a sketch for posters)
  • The preferred format
  • An indication of the relevant subtheme(s)
  • A bio of the presenter(s)
  • Preference for the presentation language: Dutch, English or No Preference
  • Optional: Any materials that will help reviewers judge your presentation
  • You may submit more than one proposal. Your description does not have to be the final description that we publish on the website; we will ask you for that after acceptance.

Submissions must be sent by email (text-only, or with MS-Word/Adobe PDF attachment) to the Program Committee at program@thewebandbeyond.nl Please note that the deadline for submitting a proposal is Sunday, May 20, 2012, 23:59:59 GMT+01:00.

Reviews and Notifications

A team of reviewers will review and prioritize submissions based on the acceptance criteria (match with theme, relevance to attendees, originality, quality). The Program Committee will make the final decisions based on these reviews and notify submitters of acceptance or rejection. Notifications will be sent early June 2012.

Publication

Where possible, presented materials (abstracts, slides, handouts, etc.) will be published or linked-to on the conference website after the event. Presenters are expected to provide these materials before, during, or shortly after the conference. We plan to record some sessions and share the results online.