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Appian World 2022 Day 3 Recap

Roland Alston, Appian
April 27, 2022

So, it's the third day of Appian World and just like that, the 2022 annual conference is in the books. We got the lowdown from low-code experts, customers, partners and a Nobel Prize laureate about democratizing technology, connecting IT and business, and building a better future. Stay tuned and grab the munchies as we roll the tape on the biggest takeaways from this year’s record-breaking hybrid event—which, incidentally, scored more partner sponsors and participation than ever before.

It’s hard to cover everything at Appian World, but that didn’t stop me from trying. Some of the tastiest sessions weren’t available via live stream, so I had to improvise. In delving through my notes, I found commentary on the cool new functionality of the “Appian Unified Platform for Change '' and how it empowers customers to discover, design, and automate even the most complex business processes.

I also spent time scrolling through the stellar gallery of online pics, videos, social posts and buzzworthy tweets promoting the Community Hub and this year’s Live Build Challenge where Appian developers showed off their app-building chops on the automation battlefield to win bragging rights and a $10k cash prize.

I binged on the “know-your-customer” convo at the: Achieving an Integrated Customer Journey from KYC and Beyond session, tapped into the green energy vibe at the revelatory sessions on Supply Chain Resiliency and the Journey to Net Zero Carbon, then got hyped on the Embracing Sustainability and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) for Strategic Advantage session.

Turns out this year’s agenda was stacked with pragmatic use-cases that showed us how low-code enables customers to connect IT and business and accelerate delivery of resilient business processes amid uncertainty and exponential change. So, I decided to checkout the hybrid customer panel moderated by Appian CMO Denise Broady which featured the CIO of LIUNA—an international labor union serving about 500K workers across the U.S. and Canada—who told us that Appian Portals empowered LIUNA’s union members by giving them the capability to automatically report on and improve worksite safety conditions, something workers weren’t able to do before Portals was deployed.

Next, I dialed up Broady’s fireside chat with the remarkable Sarah Thomas, the first full-time female official in NFL history, the first female official to work a Super Bowl game, and one of Sports Illustrated’s 100 Most Influential NFL Figures of All Time. Finally, I was hoping to get my ticket punched for what promised to be this year’s top Appian World moment—the closing keynote and fireside chat with Nobel Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai and Appian Founder and CEO Matt Calkins. But, alas, the session wasn’t live streamed which forced me to improvise on that part of this post.

That said, let’s skip the long-winded preamble and analysis and pull on the thread connecting the significance of Yousafzai’s story, her awe-inspiring focus on empowering women, the democratization of low-code development, and the rise of technology for the public good.

Perhaps Yousafzai said it best in a recent VentureBeat interview:

“Every year we want something new and we want updated versions of every technology…. We need to appreciate it and think about how we can use it (technology) for all good, for people’s good, and for those people that don’t have access to many of the rights that we have.”

What a great message to cap off yet another amazing Appian World!

(PS: As always, props to all the superheroes who worked behind the scenes to make this year’s event such a monumental success. You’re amazing!)