Boston WordPress

Agenda

• 6:30: Networking & Pizza

• 7:00: Presentations

Presentation 1: Renaissance Builders: Why Community Is Part of the Work in WordPress
WordPress tends to attract a specific kind of builder—namely, the person who values ownership, curiosity, and long-term craft over convenience. Many are multi-disciplinary by nature, and comfortable adapting as tools, roles, and technologies evolve.

This talk explores how that builder mindset overlaps with what I think of as the modern “renaissance soul,” and why that kind of builder has historically thrived through shared knowledge and community rather than isolation. The idea of the lone genius, while romantic, is largely a modern myth.

In many ways, WordPress meetups function as modern workshops—places where builders learn, adapt, and stay resilient together. The goal of this talk is to help attendees feel seen, re-frame community as part of the work (not an optional extra), and leave feeling more connected and encouraged to support one another in a fast-changing, increasingly digital world.

Speaker Bio: Mandy Jones
Mandy Jones is an interdisciplinary creative, brand & content strategist, and musician with deep roots in the WordPress ecosystem. She runs Pilota Creative, where she helps brands, agencies, and founders clarify their messaging and bring it to life through intentional storytelling, video, audio, web experiences, and content systems.She’s also the host of New Renaissance Tribe, a podcast and writing project exploring renaissance thinking, creativity, multi-passionate identity, and the art of building a meaningful, inspired life.

Presentation 2: Boston WordPress Help Desk

Whether you need help with a specific WordPress issue, want to contribute your knowledge to help others, or just want to listen & learn, this WordPress Help Desk is for you! Bring your laptop and WordPress challenges. Though the two-hour time limit means we may not solve every issue, we will try!

Come prepared with your website loaded, WordPress admin access ready, sites backed up, and a staging environment when possible. Since volunteers helping may not be experts, there's risk of breaking your site - please don't bring client or business sites that could impact revenue or reputation.

BostonWP is proudly sponsored by:

Agenda

• 6:30: Networking & Pizza

• 7:00: Presentations

Presentation 1: TBA

Presentation 2: Building client SaaS and mobile apps on WordPress with AI - Corey Maass

Speaker Bio
A highly experienced full-stack web developer with a specialization in advanced WordPress functionality, having built for the web since 1997. He collaborates with a diverse range of agencies and businesses, from small to large, on projects of varying scales. Beyond traditional website development, Corey also develops full SaaS applications and professional-grade WordPress plugins, consistently applying a "start-up mentality" to quickly solve problems and facilitate rapid idea testing. His impressive client roster includes prominent names like Focus Features, West Elm, Seattle magazine, OptinMonster, and Post Status, reflecting his capability to deliver high-impact solutions for diverse industries. Corey's innovative projects include SaaS apps like MexicanTrain.Online and productivity tools like Timerdoro, alongside premium WordPress plugins such as OMGIMG and KanbanWP. He is also a respected speaker, sharing his expertise on topics ranging from rapid web app development to leveraging WordPress for business at numerous WordCamps, including WordCamp US.

Presentation 2: Life in the CLI Lane: A Brief Introduction to WP-CLI Packages - Saul Baizman
WP-CLI is an essential command-line tool for any WordPress administrator. Its robust command set enables users to perform a variety of tasks without ever stepping foot in the Dashboard. But WP-CLI has another trick up its sleeve: through packages, users can extend WP-CLI and thereby magnify its power.

In this talk we’ll live-code a useful new WP-CLI command and bundle it into a package. While assembling the package, we’ll explore WP-CLI’s time-saving internal API, the automatic generation of command documentation, package administration, and distribution.

(Note: this talk is aimed at intermediate and advanced WordPress developers.)

Speaker Bio
Saul Baizman is an interactive designer and creative coder based in Somerville, Massachusetts, USA. His company Baizman Design designs and builds websites for educational, non-profit, and arts organizations.
BostonWP is proudly sponsored by:

hosting.com - https://hosting.com/

Bluehost - https://bluehost.com

Microsoft New England Research and Development team (NERD) - https://www.microsoftnewengland.com/

Agenda

• 6:30: Networking & Pizza

• 7:00: Presentations

Presentation 1: The design systems between us - Ethan Marcotte
In the early days, design systems promised us more consistent interfaces, more collaborative teams, and improved velocity. While they’ve delivered on some of those fronts, they’ve introduced new challenges too. Let’s talk through what’s working well—and what could be working better—as we take a closer look at the systems between us and our work.

Agenda

• 6:30: Networking & Pizza

• 7:00: Presentations

Presentation 1: TBA

Presentation 2: TBA

BostonWP is proudly sponsored by:

hosting.com - https://hosting.com/

Bluehost - https://bluehost.com

Microsoft New England Research and Development team (NERD) - https://www.microsoftnewengland.com/