BarCamp - How to Run Your Own/Creating a team

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Small barcamps can be arranged by one person but its clear that barcamps can be quite stresful when the burden is on one person. So its a good idea to share the load (lovely burden).

  • I tend to change the team every time I do a barcamp, it spreads the knowledge further a field and adds a fresh perspective on the barcamp
  • Its a great idea to keep the team small (I would suggest no more than 4 people), these people have the responsibility of the whole barcamp on their shoulders.
  • Other people, can help but being one of the organizers requires time and dedication
  • Its a good idea to have one person who is directly responsible for the venue on the team. So for example at barcamplondon3 held at google, we had a lady from Google on the team meaning we got the direct answers to questions.
  • Its a good idea to assign roles,
    • Someone in charge of the food
    • Someone in charge of the drinks
    • Someone in charge of connectivity such as wifi
    • Someone taking care of sponsorship
    • Someone planning the event and taking care of the venue
  • Some cities such as London have setup committees to further organise barcamps. There are advantages and disadvantages to this approach. The problem with having a committee is that it can become quite cliquey and you get the same old faces running the event. In the case of the London BarCamp, this has been something of a necessity as getting venues and sponsorship in London is not necessarily very easy compared to other cities.