On November 16th, Appian hosted its fifth annual Appian Government hybrid event both virtually and at the Ronald Reagan International Trade Center. This year, however, the event felt a little different, as for many attendees it marked the first time back at an industry event since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
The energy in the room was palpable as the day kicked off with a warm welcome from Appian CEO and Founder, Matt Calkins. In his introduction, Matt discussed how Appian is focused on accelerating change and demonstrating the integration of process mining, workflow, and automation, providing a glimpse into the future and highlighting a shift in how Appian will go to market in 2022. The Appian platform is a first-of-its-kind capability in the low-code industry, and the addition of process mining completes this robust solution suite.
The Honorable James “Hondo” Geurts, former Secretary of the US Navy, then took the stage as the featured keynote speaker, and his message was clear: have the curiosity to explore, the humility to learn, and the boldness to act. He went into detail on why taking necessary risk, especially in a space such as government acquisition, is critical for growth and innovation. Growth and comfort do not coexist, and in light of the government’s tendency to overcomplicate, Hondo mentioned one of his mottos that has guided him in his illustrious career: never underestimate simplicity.
The partner and customer panels hosted a wide range of speakers, who facilitated discussions and told stories around hot topics in the industry such as digitalization, modernizing infrastructure, and optimizing both process and workflows in a short amount of time. These stories were inspiring but more importantly, they demonstrated and drove home the theme of the day: connected possibilities. It’s difficult to imagine the art of the possible, but it becomes more realistic when we have seen it done before. With Appian partners and use cases from across the industry, those in attendance walked away inspired and confident to act on their next modernization missions.
In addition to the planned theme of connected possibilities, an unintended theme arose as the day went on: innovation with speed and scale. In the aforementioned panels, we learned about how cryptocurrencies are being regulated at the state level by CSBS, how the Department of Transportation is managing pandemic responses, and how the US Navy continues to master disruptions to the supply chain in order to overcome both barriers to data access and siloed technology. And of course, speed and scale would not be possible without Appian partners such as Deloitte, Groundswell, KPMG, IBM, ICF, GDIT, and many more who work with clients to imaginatively draw up (literally, in some cases) solutions unique to their mission and targeted for impact.
In the various afternoon sessions, there were hands-on discussions on just what Appian and partners can really do for clients in the current environment. For instance, some sessions focused on how to squeeze the most value out of the Appian Low-Code Platform and included unveilings of new features, such as Dynamic Offline Mobile and RPA, and introductions to the upcoming process mining capabilities and Appian Portals. Other sessions focused on what the Appian Government Acquisition suite of solutions looks like currently (hint: it’s growing) and how to get started today. And still other sessions discussed the latest status of Appian compliance pertaining to security and cloud, as certifications and authorizations continue to roll in allowing for a safer, more reliable experience now and into 2022.
Thanks to all the Diamond and Platinum sponsors, as well as those who were able to attend in person and spend the day with Appian. The one-day Appian Government event, including all the sessions, is available for on-demand viewing at appiangovernment.com.
If you’d like to get started with Appian solutions for government today, please visit appian.com/government.
