Meet the KendoReact Team in Person: Amsterdam, Paris, Salt Lake City

Behind every person, there’s a story, and we want to know yours! That’s why the KendoReact team is going traveling this year to meet with the React community. You can see which events we’ll be attending at the end of this article, but before that, let me share some of our stories with you, to kick off the conversation.

You may have seen Carl’s unmistakably Nordic beard at previous events, on Twitter, or on the Telerik Blogs as he’s been with KendoReact since its inception. Don’t ask him where he’s from unless you’ve got a coffee in your hand and a place to sit comfortably. On the other hand, being the KendoReact Product Manager, Carl has a lot to say about the team, how we build our roadmap and all about staying fit while balancing a heap of work responsibilities.

If you’ve looked for more information about React hooks, Eric’s name has probably showed up in your google search results as he did a popular series of articles diving into their intricacies. Beyond hooks, there’s a lot more to know about this React developer who came to Progress from Tesla, landing his first Developer Advocate role (at which he’s a natural!) and is miraculously always present at calls with the Sofia, Bulgaria team despite the 10-hour difference (he's based in California).

Then I also encourage you to ask Kiril about rebuilding of the previous version of our KendoReact website with Gatsby and what this architecture change did to the build time in production. Hint: he managed to decrease both the development and production build times 10x and made the site blazing fast. Yes, he has stories to tell.

And definitely turn to Stefan if you have a question about how a KendoReact component works – he’s our master solution-finder. He is also the one person on the team whom you can ask about all and any of the KendoReact UI components and get a pro tip. Since he’s one of the most active team members when it comes to answering support tickets, you may even have exchanged emails with him already!

Then there’s also me, Nora. Ask me about my favorite joke about functions if you want to lighten up – I laugh every time I tell it. I also have a lot of funny developer stories. Other than that, I’ve been working as a marketing person in IT for more years than you can tell and have a passion for communication, so ask me anything. Don’t worry, there’ll be no marketing talk if you approach me as I find it hard to be anything but straightforward (just ask the team).

There’s nothing that can substitute for in-person communication when it comes to building relationships or learning what someone is all about. That’s why the KendoReact team, represented by these fine folks just introduced, is going places this summer!

Come meet us at our booths at the following conferences:

• React Amsterdam on April 10-12 in (duh) Amsterdam. We’ll be right by the coffee spot, Booth 1, and will be wearing React blue! Carl, who rarely misses a workout, will probably go for a run between the Dutch bikers while we’re there. Ping him if you’d like to boost your sense of well-being with a runner’s high. Also, we'll be having some cool gifts from you, from a raffle for Bose headphones, to T-shirts and more KendoReact sweetness.

• React Europe on May 21-24 in Paris. Every time I think of Paris, I think of Alison Gopnik’s hilarious comparison, “What's it like to be a baby? Being in love in Paris for the first time after you've had 3 double espressos." I hope I get some new associations as it will be my first time ever in Paris!
• React Loop on June 21 in Chicago. While we won’t be exhibiting there, make sure you attend Eric’s talk, as he is one of the speakers at Chicago’s first React conference.
• React Rally on Aug 22-23 in Salt Lake City, UT. There are still a few months to go, but mark your calendar if you’re planning to be there and come meet the KendoReact team!

Looking forward to meeting you in person! If you want to suggest other React events for us to visit, drop us a line and we’ll check them out.