ACE Thames Valley: Back and Better Than Ever!

After a break, ACE Thames Valley is back, and we’re starting off with a short but power-packed virtual session to reconnect and set the stage for in-person events coming next year. Whether you’re a longtime Atlassian user or just dipping your toes into the world of Jira and Confluence, this session offers a chance to learn, share, and reignite your collaboration inspiration.

This session is designed to bring you up to speed on the most exciting developments in the Atlassian ecosystem. We’ll explore cutting-edge updates to tools like Jira, Confluence, and Rovo, alongside practical insights to help your team work smarter. From mastering the newest features in Confluence to implementing tools that streamline time off and maintain agility, you’ll leave equipped with strategies to enhance productivity and wellbeing in remote and hybrid work environments.

We’ll tackle big questions like how to balance taking time off without sacrificing team agility and examine how tools like the Out of Office Assistant for Jira, Slack, Outlook, and Google Calendar can make it seamless. Plus, we’ll share expert tips and tricks for organizing and optimizing Confluence spaces to maximize efficiency and keep your team aligned on shared goals.

This virtual session is just the beginning. Think of it as a reintroduction to the vibrant ACE Thames Valley community and a taste of what’s to come in 2025 when we bring back in-person events. It’s an opportunity to reconnect with peers, gain fresh insights, and get inspired to tackle your team’s challenges with confidence.

Join us as we celebrate the return of ACE Thames Valley and prepare for the exciting journey ahead. Let’s shape the future of teamwork together!

Agenda

6:00 PM: Introduction

Welcome to the return of ACE Thames Valley! In this opening session, we’ll set the stage for the day, introduce our new leadership, and share exciting plans for the group, including the future of in-person events. Let’s dive into what’s next for our community and how we can grow together.

6:10 PM: News

Step into the newsroom as we bring you Atlassian News, BBC-style! From updates on the latest tools to sneak peeks at upcoming events, this segment covers everything happening in the world of collaboration.

6:20 PM: How do you take time off without losing agility?

As remote and hybrid work environments stabilize, leaders face the challenge of balancing wellbeing and productivity. How can teams organize time off without compromising outcomes? Should agile teams have complete autonomy, or is a structured time-off policy necessary?

This talk explores ways to help teams be happier and less overwhelmed while maintaining productivity. We'll examine scenarios like a 4-day workweek, multifunctional teams, and specialized teams (e.g., support or QA), discussing which policies enable success and which hinder it.

We'll also dive into implementation, using tools like the Out of Office Assistant for Jira Cloud, Slack, Outlook, and Google Calendar to ensure breaks don’t disrupt workflows or create bottlenecks.

6:40 PM: Top Tips and Tricks for Mastering Atlassian Confluence

Discover how to maximize productivity and collaboration in Atlassian Confluence with expert tips and techniques. This session is tailored to users looking to enhance their workflows, improve organization, and fully leverage Confluence’s capabilities to achieve better results.

Learn practical strategies to optimize how your team works with Confluence. From creative ways to organize content to techniques for streamlining processes, you’ll gain actionable insights that make day-to-day tasks easier and more efficient, helping your team stay focused and productive.

Whether you're a long-time Confluence user or new to the platform, this session offers valuable takeaways to elevate your skills. By applying these techniques, you’ll empower your team to work smarter, stay organized, and deliver impactful results with ease.

7:00 PM: Closing

As we wrap up, join us for a look ahead at what’s to come for ACE Thames Valley. From upcoming events to exciting opportunities for collaboration, we’ll share how you can stay connected and involved. Thank you for being part of this special return - we can’t wait to see you again soon!

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Speakers

Björn Döhler - re:solution (CEO)

Experienced CEO with a demonstrated history of working in small and large companies. Sales, Marketing & Product Management professional with broad knowledge in several IT technologies and services with management & company transformation experience. Managing international projects and products within time and budget and always searching for the following field of tensions waiting to be…

James Bridge - Capable (Confluence Guru)

Hosted By

Bruce Cullen, Director of Advanced Products

I am Director of Products at SquaredUp, driving product strategy and go to market for our dashboarding products., a series of events for the Microsoft Monitoring community (scomathon.com), and am a founding member of Cookdown (connecting Microsoft monitoring tools to ServiceNow & alert tuning). In past lives I was a Senior Delivery Manager, running multiple projects in parallel and delivering software projects in teams of up to 500 engineers spanning the globe

Jack Graves, Community Leader

Jack Graves has been a key player in the Atlassian ecosystem for over 10 years, mastering every role you can imagine—customer, consultant, product manager, and developer, just to name a few. Whether it’s enhancing Jira and Confluence with powerful new features or leading the charge on creative projects, Jack’s passion for tech and collaboration shines through in everything he does.

But there’s more to Jack than just the tech. He’s the kind of guy who’s always up for a good conversation, whether you’re talking shop about workflows or swapping stories about your favorite travel destinations. And if you’re grabbing a beer after an event, you’ll likely find him sharing a laugh or two, always eager to connect with people on a personal level. From his fun music videos at Atlassian events to his globetrotting adventures, Jack brings a sense of fun and authenticity to both work and play.

If you’re ever in need of a brilliant solution, a creative idea, or just a good chat (and a beer), Jack’s your guy!

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Global Partner

Atlassian (http://atlassian.com)
Millions of users globally rely on Atlassian products every day for improving software development, project management, collaboration, and code quality.

Partners

Capable (https://www.gocapable.com)
Capable provides software applications specifically tailored for Atlassian products. Founded by seasoned experts in the Atlassian ecosystem, Capable is dedicated to simplifying complex tasks and empowering teams to achieve their best work. Leveraging their experience, the team at Capable specializes in creating solutions that enhance productivity and streamline project management and team collaboration processes.

SquaredUp (https://squaredup.com)
Welcome to a new way of reporting! SquaredUp replaces manual status collection and reporting with interactive, real-time dashboards for 360º project visibility.

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For over a decade, Atlassian customers have come together to network, share ideas, solve problems, and find new ways to use Atlassian products. Today, more than 15,000 people take part in Atlassian community events in more than 30 countries.

Complete your event RSVP here: https://ace.atlassian.com/events/details/atlassian-thames-valley-presents-ace-thames-valley-back-and-better-than-ever/.