Chinwag

It’s almost Christmas, and therefore a fantastic excuse for a festive themed Chinwag Shindig.

With Social Media Week London hoving into view in February, we thought it’d be great to bring together the community that we work with, across Chinwag.com, Chinwag Jobs, Digital Mission and, of course, Social Media Week.

Nothing too formal, just a friendly knees-up on 8th December, so put the date in your diaries now. We’ll be providing a merry drink or two, so you’ll just need to bring along some festive cheer.

Waspit has just spent the last week in New York for the Digital Mission with Chinwag and UK Trade and Investment (UKTI).

It was one of the busiest weeks I have had, running up and down town for meetings, participating in the Ad:Tech event with over 260 US companies, functions every night and 12 hour days!

It's almost time. Business cards are being discovered at the back of stationery cupboards, bags are being packed, presentations are being honed, dry-cleaning is being collected (actually, that reminds me...)

This weekend representatives of the 19 companies selected for this year's Digital Mission to New York will be heading across the pond for a packed week taking understand the US market, networking, briefings, meetings and more.

If you find yourself in New York next week - OK, so it's not likely you've dozed off on another flight and ended up there, you probably know already - the Digital Mission group will be out and about at various events. Why not swing by and say hello:

Chinwag is on the hunt for a new member of our events team. Interested or know someone who might be? Read on...

Event Dynamo Required (3 month contract) £25,000-£35,000 pro-rata

Chinwag is a community of people working in digital media and marketing, primarily in the UK, but increasingly across the world. Our small but busy team runs a whole heap of exciting events, websites and trade missions including Chinwag.com, Chinwag Jobs, Chinwag Live, the Digital Missions, Social Media Week London amongst others.

We're lucky enough to work with some of the most dynamic and exciting companies in digital media, from start-ups to FTSE 100 corporates and government departments. Our tag-line 'connecting digital people' encapsulates what we're about, and the aim of our work on the web, social media, email and our live events.

And that's where you come in...

We need someone special to help deliver a series of exciting events this Autumn. Initially, this will be a 3 month contract starting immediately, but if things go well, there's the opportunity for something more permanent.

The week before last we gathered with the good people of Bootlaw for possibly the last Summer BBQ of the year. Naturally, it poured with rain. In fact next time we organise a BBQ, I'm putting money on rain. To date, we have a 100% hit rate!

Along with over 100 Digital Mission alumni and Bootlawyers, we were joined by Newspepper's Anastasia Emmanuel quizzing the crowd on geo-location and whether they'd rather 'network' with Jack Dorsey or Mark Zuckerberg.

As anyone whose tried knows, getting grant funding from the government can be an arduous task with forms that sap your will to live.

Fortunately, the process for securing a slice of the £18m Collaboration Across Digital Industries fund recently announced by the Technology Strategy Board is much less painful.

I caught up with Alex Stanhope, who is leading this project to get the background on the TSB's work and the Digital Testbeds that led to this £18m competition.

Chinwag's street cred has just taken a dip, with the news that the lovely Juliet is leaving our ranks to concentrate on her totally wicked music blog/A&R project, itsfreestyle.com (see earlier street cred reference)

We're going to miss her lots, especially her exasperated look, when I try and make a convincing argument that The Thompson Twins were the hipsters of their time, or cite the artistic merits of Girls Aloud. 

This also means we're on the hunt for a new member of the Chinwag team. It's a part-time role, that requires that special blend of organisation, efficiency, unflappability, brain power and occasional banter.

Working with our little gang, this person will be a critical part of keeping our multitudinous projects including Chinwag.com, Chinwag Jobs, Digital Missions and lots more running smoothly.

A highlight of SXSW is the enormous opportunity for networking. And it's not just catching up with the Americans, with such a large British contingent making the trip to Austin, it's a great chance to catch-up with people from the UK, too.

Bill Thompson, Gareth Mitchell and the crew from BBC World Service's Digital Planet show were in town to record a special live session at SXSW interactive (listen here). Bill swung by the Digital Mission stand where I pounced on him with my flip and asked him about his first SXSW...

The third video installment from Digital Mission to SXSWi 2010 from Techfluff.tv's Hermione Way.

In a whirlwind trip around SXSWi, she speaks to the Digital Mission companies, visitors to the Digital Mission stand "Trust Agents" author, Chris Brogan and Tuttle Club's Lloyd Davis with a ukelele solo (yup, you read that right).

It's hard to describe South by South West interactive. Yes, it is a trade show. Yes, it's a conference. Yes, there's lots of business going on.

The laid-back atmosphere of Austin pervades the event, and despite the frenetic activity, networking and business going on, for the attendees it doesn't feel like a corporate environment.

Hermone Way from Techfluff.tv, took her film crew out and about at the Austin Convention Center, to try and capture what makes SXSW special.

A sleepy Austin, Texas, eased it's way into Sunday. At 2am the clocks switched to Day Light Savings time, cruelly robbing the South by South West attendees of a much needed hour's sleep. I say 'much needed', but there were people crowds up and working their way between the parties and meet ups into the early hours of the morning.

It's a big part of what South By is about: Finding people, meeting people, connecting with people. In the evenings, as well as the day, deals are planned, meetings arranged and contacts made. That's how it works here.

The first day of the Digital Mission to SXSWi 2010 day starts with the masterclass, an opportunity for the companies to wrap their heads around doing business in the USA, the legal issues, the cultural approach, the business landscape and insight into SXSW.

Techfluff's Hermione Way stopped by to film some of the attendees and Leah Mayo from UK Trade & Investment's office in Houston.