Learning and Development

**If you cannot see your strategy, how do you know it is clear?** Even in creative teams, strategy is discussed, refined, and documented, yet often stays abstract. Ideas live in conversations, slides, and documents, but teams walk away with different understandings. What sounds aligned in theory often falls apart in practice. We process images much faster than text, yet most organizations still rely on bullet points to communicate strategy. The challenge is no longer developing better strategies. It is making them visible so people can actually align around them. In this interactive keynote, **Michelle Geerlings**, Country Director of Switzerland at Flatland, introduces visual thinking as a practical way to cut through complexity and build shared understanding. With a background in Strategic Design from TU Delft and experience across Sweden, Japan, and Kenya, she works at the intersection of design, facilitation, and strategy. Through co-creation and visual facilitation, she helps teams turn abstract ideas into clear, shared visuals. Join us on **June 3** as she shares practical examples of how sketches and simple frameworks help teams align faster and turn ideas into action. **💡 What will you learn?** * Why visual thinking is a skill anyone can learn, and how it changes the way you think * How co-creation builds ownership and engagement across teams * What really matters in visual thinking: structure, hierarchy, metaphor, and systems thinking over aesthetics * Why working visually leads to faster alignment than traditional documents *More about Flatland* [www.flatland.nl](http://www.flatland.nl) *Connect with Michelle* [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellegeerlings/) —— **📍 Where?** [Kulturhaus Helferei](https://maps.app.goo.gl/AJuPTcLTmihXxHyn9), near the Grossmünster in Niederdorf. \> Kirchgasse 13\, 8001 Zürich (Tram-Station Helmhaus) **📅 When?** Wednesday, June 3, 7:00 PM / 19:00 Uhr **⏰ What’s the schedule?** 6:45 PM → Doors open 7:00 PM → Keynote + Q&A 7:45 PM → Networking 🔗 **Discord** Get event reminders and connect with other members on Discord: ➡️ [discord.gg/PAyRBDhKkk](https://discord.gg/PAyRBDhKkk) —— **Who’s Visual Fields?** Visual Fields is a network of designers and creatives built for people to connect, support, and share with fellow experts. We have upcoming events in Zürich, Basel, and Luzern. [Check out upcoming events](https://www.visualfields.ch/) —— **Event policies** We have zero tolerance for discrimination or harassment. Be mindful not to make assumptions about gender, sexual orientation, or identity. Always ask for consent - for physical contact and work critique - and treat everyone and the space with respect. [All policies](https://www.joyed.com/experiences/ep) **Fine print (the friendly kind)** By joining, you agree that photos or videos taken at the event may be used by Visual Fields for promotional and communication purposes. See you there! 😇

Let's get together for the next TechTalkThursday to learn new things and share experiences! 17:45 Door opening 18:00 **Intro** – Thomas Hug, CEO & Founder of Nine 18:05 **The Shift From "Hack In" to "Log In": How Overprivileged Non-Human Identities Became the Modern Attack Path** – Jan Brons & Marc Willaredt (Co-Founder & Cyber Security Expert at Kleeo GmbH) 18:30 **How To Navigate Complex Systems Using a Non-Software Toolkit** – Florian Sommerfeldt (Quality Expert at House of Test Switzerland) 19:00 **Zero to SELECT: Providing Databases in 10 Seconds** – Daniel Wilhelm & Marco Streich (Senior Engineer Managed Services at Nine) 19:30 Snacks & Drinks Have we aroused your interest? Then please register! We look forward to meeting you! You can also watch this event's livestream on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgsaBKivvXk

Two very different, complementary topics for our June evening. One on the small, everyday habits that make teams actually collaborate. The other on how a platform and a cultural movement transformed IT in the public sector. Here's what's planned for the evening: 17:30 - 18:00 - Arrival and first drinks 18:00 - 18:45 - Micro Habits for better Teamwork by Dr. Denniz Dönmez 18:45 - 19:30 - From DevOps to Digital Sovereignty: How a Movement Became a Platform by Syrian Hadad 19:30 - 20:30 - Networking, Open Space & More drinks\* **Micro Habits for better Teamwork** Great teamwork is like solving a puzzle, and not like playing poker, it's not about playing against each other, but rather achieving real collaboration. Micro Habits are psychological hacks that create big results in teams. Micro Habits for Better Teamwork span seven behavioral domains, such as taking responsibility, creating psychological safety, and testing our assumptions. Each provides concrete, small, actionable behaviors that lead to major improvements in collaboration. This talk presents practical, everyday tools based on real-world experience that can be applied immediately to make teamwork easier and more effective, without lengthy coaching programs or complex team-development processes. With Micro Habits, teams unlock their full potential step by step. **Dr. Denniz Dönmez** Scientific agilist and co-creator of Micro Habits for better Teamwork. 15 years experience leading teams and consulting market leaders with a background and PhD in agile methods. **From DevOps to Digital Sovereignty: How a Movement Became a Platform** IT in the public sector is anything but simple: long-established landscapes, strict regulatory requirements, complex processes, and often more than 500 business applications that must be operated reliably. For a long time, this meant ordering individual servers, databases, DNS entries, firewall rules, and storage, then assembling everything manually. Every application was unique. Pets instead of cattle. This talk tells the story of how the DevOps idea took hold in exactly this environment — first as a cultural movement, and later as a concrete operating and architectural model. Step by step, individual infrastructure evolved into a platform, manual work into automation, and isolated solutions into standardization. The result: the Aargau Cloud Platform and a dedicated platform engineering team. In an environment shaped by legacy systems, federal structures, and long lifecycle expectations, platform thinking becomes the foundation for digital sovereignty: maintaining control, reducing dependencies, and still staying innovative — without simply handing everything over to others. **Syrian Hadad** Syrian Hadad is a CTO and long-standing technology and platform leader in the public sector. Among other achievements, he built the Aargau Cloud Platform and helped establish DevOps, cloud, and architecture topics strategically within the organization. Together with the IT organization of the Canton of Aargau, he won the 2023 Digital Economy Award (Digital Excellence) for the consistent transformation toward platforms, cloud-native technologies, and modern governance. Many thanks to our **sponsors**: * Catering Sponsor: **DevOpsDays Zürich** https://www.devopsdays.ch/ * Location Sponsor: **Digicomp** https://www.digicomp.ch/ \* contact us min. 3 days prior to the event if you prefer a vegan option.

***We are re-starting with physical meetings and group meditation.*** Arrive 10 minutes early for a short introduction before we start with the meditation session.

As it is sometimes difficult in Switzerland to practice high german, in 2010 we decided to organize a conversation group that is free to everyone who wants to practice german and socialize. WhatsApp group for easier contact: https://chat.whatsapp.com/KmMkpiQxs291vTPv2RBNm4

⚠️ [>>Ticket needed (click here)<< ](https://link.social-circle.ch/y5z5) or **[tickets.social-circle.ch](https://tickets.social-circle.ch/)** 🎉 **Pub Quiz Night** 🎉 Join us for a night full of **mind-bending questions**, **unexpected twists**, and **more laughs than right answers** (probably). Whether you're a trivia wizard or just really good at pretending you know stuff, this night’s for you! Join our whatsapp group for updates on this event: [https://link.social-circle.ch/p2q8](https://link.social-circle.ch/p2q8) 📍 **Location:** BOHO 💰 **Price:** 15.- (includes tasty snacks + a prize for the winning team 🍾) 👥 **How Teams Work:** 🔹 Got a crew? Awesome, bring your squad and show us what you've got! 🔹 Looking to mingle with singles? We’ve got you! → Think 2 girls + 2 guys = the perfect cocktail of brainpower and awkward icebreakers 🔹 Not single? No problem! We’ll still team you up with some brilliant minds and maybe a few terrible guessers for balance 🏆 **What’s in it for you?** Glory, bragging rights, and the sweet, sweet taste of Prosecco-fueled victory. 💬 **Come for the trivia, stay for the chaos.** Spots are limited, so grab your seat before your smarter friend does! 🎟️ ​P.S. Pictures might be taken during the event, if you do not want it please let the organizer know. Tickets are non-refundable. **Want more events like this? Join our WhatsApp community:** [https://link.social-circle.ch/DxeS](https://link.social-circle.ch/DxeS)

Shooting only in Auto or Program mode is a thing of the past. We will learn when it makes sense to use Manual (M), Shutter Priority (TV), or Aperture Priority (AV) modes to create artistic compositions under a wide variety of conditions. This workshop is designed for beginners as well as photographers who want to dive deeper into their camera settings, lenses, and the many features their gear has to offer. **Part 1: Getting Started (2h)** * **Full Control:** Mastering Manual (M) mode. * **The Essentials:** Understanding Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO, and how they shape your image. * **Semi-Auto Modes:** When and why to use AV or TV modes. * **Focus:** An insight into various autofocus options. **Part 2: Lenses & Perspective (2h)** Unlike prime lenses, telephoto lenses offer more flexibility without having to move—but they also come with specific challenges. We will explore the pros and cons of different lenses and learn which glass is best suited for which purpose. **Part 3: Practical Application (2h)** Putting theory into practice outdoors, followed by a final Q&A session. **Course Hours:** The course runs from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM. **Registration:** Please register by **May 24, 2026**, via email at [admin@michaelcalabro.com.](http://admin@michaelcalabro.com./) The course requires a minimum number of participants to take place. Confirmation will be sent as soon as the minimum number is reached. **Participants:** Min. 4 / Max. 8 [www.michaelcalabro.com](http://www.michaelcalabro.com/)

Zurich Campus Open House & Info Session 📅 Thursday, June 4th ⏰ 17:30 - 19:30 📍 Zurich Campus (Förrlibuckstrasse 150) We are currently filling the final available seats for our upcoming Summer tech cohorts. Before enrollment officially closes, join us for an exclusive, casual evening at our Zurich campus. Discover how AI is reshaping the tech industry, explore our programs, and claim up to 20% off your tuition. Whether you are interested in our Web Development (starting June) or Data Science (starting July/August) programs, this event is your chance to explore our academy and discover the path that best fits your ambitions. Event Schedule: * 17:30 \- 18:00 \| Welcome & Campus Tour: Drop in\, grab a drink\, and see the face\-to\-face\, immersive environment that sets us apart from remote bootcamps\. * 18:00 \- 18:30 \| The AI Tech Advantage \(Info\-Session\): Join a compelling discussion on the current tech job market\. Discover how the role of a software engineer is shifting and how AI is empowering individuals to build complex web apps and launch startups easier than ever before\. * 18:30 \- 19:30 \| Q&A and Mentorship: Get 1\-on\-1 time with our lead instructors and admissions team\. Ask specific questions about curriculums\, tech stacks\, and career outcomes\. Unlock Exclusive Tuition Grants: By attending this event in person, you unlock special event-only pricing: * June Web Development: Claim an exclusive 20% total tuition reduction (our 15% launch offer + a 5% event bonus) for the final remaining seats. * Summer Data Science: Secure a 10% tuition reduction for our upcoming July (Part-time) or August (Full-time) cohorts. Drinks and light snacks will be provided 🍺Drop in anytime between 17:30 and 19:30.

Sundays, 2pm-3pm. Trial class: CHF 20 Drop-in: CHF 35 Book here: www.balancewithale.com/zurich/handstand "I'll never be able to handstand". You kick at the wall but see no progress. Your wrists hurt. You don't know how to improve... It doesn't have to be this way. Progress doesn't come from trying harder — it comes from practicing smarter. Handstands are a skill, and when you train them as such, they begin to click in a way that feels almost magical. This class builds the foundations (strength, alignment and technique) that make handstands feel achievable and fun. Through clear progressions and personalized drills, you'll discover how capable your body truly is, and how handstands start to feel within reach when you train with intention and support. Because drills are tailored to you, the class welcomes all levels — from "I've never kicked up before" to confident freestanding balancers who want to develop greater control.

Coders Monthly is a regular gathering of programmers in Zurich interested in honing their craft. It takes place in Zuerich at Cafe Bar Pluesch (https://cafe-pluesch.ch) on the first Thursday of every month. For the members list, some pics and more, see the Coders Only (https://codersonly.org/events/coders-monthly) site. Hope to see you there! PS: Please join our Discord https://discord.gg/jWUZsKQvrz for any last minute announcements.

**Registration:** Register on the Elevate Tech website to attend: https://www.elevate-tech.ch/event-details-registration/women-in-ai-from-ideation-to-driving-responsible-impact-hosted-by-six **Time and Location:** 04\. Juni 2026\, 17:30 – 21:00 SIX Convention Point, Pfingstweidstrasse 110, 8005 Zürich, Switzerland **About the event:** Join us for an inspiring evening of innovation and empowerment! The event is themed around how to turn AI ideas into real, sustainable, and governed value. It aims to guide the audience through the lifecycle of an AI solution, from the moment an idea emerges to ensuring it remains valuable, reliable, and well-governed in production. Discover how **AI is transforming industries**, as leading women in the field share their expertise and insights. Listen to engaging talks on scaling machine learning and AI-powered data access in an event that will showcase the **women driving change** in the world of AI and data science. In addition to the main event, we will host **speed-mentoring sessions** featuring senior leaders from SIX and UBS, as well as the event speakers. If you'd like to participate in these sessions, please get a mentoring session ticket as well as your event ticket. This event is a collaboration between Elevate Tech and SIX. **Agenda:** * 16:00 – 17:00 Mentoring Sessions with SIX and UBS Senior Leaders * 17:30 Opening (Julinda Gllavata) * 17:35 Welcome to SIX & Introduction to Elevate Tech * 17:40 **Jenny Chang,** Head Innovation Hub, SIX Financial Information. *From Idea to Value: Building the Right AI Solution* * 18:00 **Julinda Gllavata,** UBS: *AI in Production: Monitoring and Sustaining Value* * 18:20 **Dr. Rehana Harasgama**, Attorney-at-Law, Partner at Kellerhals Carrard. *The Architecture of Trust: Governance Frameworks for Responsible AI.* * 18:40 Q&A for everyone * 19:00 Networking Apéro Don’t miss the chance to connect and network! Registration for this event is free, with an optional donation to Elevate Tech. Register on the Elevate Tech website to attend: https://www.elevate-tech.ch/event-details-registration/women-in-ai-from-ideation-to-driving-responsible-impact-hosted-by-six Follow us on LinkedIn to receive event information early! https://www.linkedin.com/company/elevate-tech-ch

Have you ever experienced how our inner world can feel as mysterious and unreachable as that magical place, **[Basilica Cistern in Istanbul](https://bodylearning.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=76466e6553022bb3bf437eb0e&id=9a4c98d3a6&e=a2ac40a555)**? Our emotions are a bit like this place: complex, deep, and mysterious. Discover how to move easier in this kind of place by joining the workshop on the **Sunday 7th of June,** from 14h30 to 16h30. At my practice. During this two hours, we will explore the complexity of emotions by focusing **how to befriend fear.** Please, contact me to book your slot, places are limited. **Max 5 participants. Cost: fr. 100.-**

Welcome to the **Task-Buddies** event of the **Zürich Productivity Circle**, where we bring together like-minded individuals to work on personal goals and share the experience of growth in a supportive community. Maybe you are building a business or side hustle, studying for a course, learning a new (programming) language, figuring the tax system out, writing code, prose, or poetry, researching new stocks for your portfolio, tackling your German homework, or upskilling for your job. In all of these cases and more, this is the perfect space for you. In fact, productivity does not end there. Even if you just want to read a psychology book to resolve a personal struggle, sketch a mountain, listen to podcasts, organize your week, respond to unanswered emails and messages, enjoy a novel, or just reflect and meditate, you are very welcome here. For any task that adds positively to your life and can be done sitting down with others (exception: anything noisy/disruptive/disrespectful), you will fit into the events. We will meet at a work-friendly café in Zürich and follow the agenda below. **Agenda:** * **Introductions and food (20-30 mins):** Start with a round of introductions to get to know each other and share what we'll be working on, buy our food and drinks. * **Productive Work Session (1-2 hours)** Dive into your individual tasks in a focussed, distraction-free environment. * **Collective Break and Socializing (\~15 mins):** Take a planned break to stretch, chat, get more coffee, and share insights about your projects. * **Continued Work Session (1-2 hours):** Get back to your tasks with renewed focus and motivation. * **Wrap-Up and Reflections (15+ mins):** Conclude with a reflection on what we accomplished, share productivity tips or questions, discuss plans for future meetups, stay back for more chit chat if you like. **What to Bring:** * Your project or task materials (laptop, charger, books, sketchpad, pen, etc.) * Respectful and kind demeanour * A positive attitude and a willingness to share and learn **Note:** Please ensure that your tasks are suitable for a quiet, communal setting. We aim to maintain a respectful and conducive environment for everyone. **Venue Courtesy:** Out of courtesy for the venue, please order something drinks for yourself. This helps support the café and ensures we can continue to use their space for our meetups.

**The Behavior Gap: Where Products Win or Lose** Teams today have more data than ever, and yet many still struggle to understand why customers adopt, engage with, or abandon their products. Teams sprint, ship faster, and chase more signals… all while metrics stall and confidence drops. The missing piece isn’t more data. It’s often the behavioral insight between the metrics, explaining why the numbers move in the first place. Dashboards can tell you what customers did, but understanding why they did it (and how to influence what they do next) requires a deeper blend of insights. This session is about closing that gap. Drawing from real-world experience designing and scaling products as [ZoCo Design](https://zocodesign.com/)’s CEO, [Lacey](https://www.linkedin.com/in/laceypicazo/) will share how to cut through the noise and identify the insights that actually change behavior—moving people, and moving metrics. You’ll learn: * Why understanding customer behavior is a quant and qual challenge * How to spot the signals that actually predict behavior change * Where AI accelerates insight, and where it creates distraction * How to get meaningfully closer to customers, without adding more tools This talk reframes how to evaluate performance and identify what levers actually improve it, helping your team to make smarter bets with greater confidence. Every meaningful outcome is driven by behavior change. And when you know how to design for behavior, you stop guessing, and start building things that work. **About Our Speaker** [Lacey Picazo](https://www.linkedin.com/in/laceypicazo/) is the Founder and CEO of ZoCo, a healthcare product studio that turns complex, high-stakes ideas into products that drive real-world adoption. She partners with healthcare organizations to uncover critical care delivery insights, focus product strategy through behavior design, and build solutions that patients and providers actually use. Thanks to our 2026 sponsors: [Clarivoy](https://www.clarivoy.com), [What Box Consulting Group](https://www.whatboxconsultinggroup.com), [Conductrics](https://www.conductrics.com), and [Piwik PRO](https://piwik.pro) More info at [cbusdaw.com](https://cbusdaw.com)

QA or the Highway is a one-day, affordable, regional, professional conference featuring real-world experience and thought leadership in the QA and testing industry. This is a ticketed event please register here: https://www.qaorthehwy.com/ Featured Keynote Speakers: **Matthew-Hope Eland** **(Wizard at Leading EDJE)** \- An AI Specialist and Wizard at Leading EDJE who is known to teach software engineering\, AI\, and data science concepts in the most ridiculous ways possible\. Matt has used machine learning to settle debates over whether Die Hard is a Christmas movie\, reinforcement learning to drive the behavior of digital squirrels\, data analytics to suggest improvements to his favorite TV show\, and AI agents to play board games and create an AI agent with the personality of a dog\. Matt is the author of "Data Science in \.NET with Polyglot Notebooks" and "Refactoring with C\#" as well as several LinkedIn Learning courses\. Matt helps organize the Central Ohio \.NET Developer Group\, runs several blogs and a YouTube channel\, has a Master’s of Science in Data Analytics\, and is a current Microsoft MVP in AI and \.NET\. **Tatyana Arbouzova** **(CEO at Innovate QA)** \- Tatyana Arbouzova is an engineering and business leader with a strong background in Quality Engineering across multiple industries\, including Big Tech\, Healthcare\, and Entertainment\. She has held leadership roles at world\-class companies such as Microsoft\, VMware\, Disney\, and The Pokémon Company International\, where she focused on building quality\-driven cultures and scaling teams to deliver high\-impact products\. With decades of experience\, Tatyana has helped organizations transform their quality practices so teams can deliver software efficiently\, confidently\, and with measurable business outcomes\. Today\, Tatyana advises software companies on adopting AI to optimize quality practices and improve how software is delivered at scale\. She is also a passionate community builder and the founder of Innovate QA\, a thriving Seattle\-based community and conference for quality professionals\.

Come join CORGSCON the Columbus, Ohio retro gaming expo at the Bricker Building – Ohio Expo Center June 6th-7th Saturday: 11am-6pm Saturday After Party: 6PM – 10PM Sunday: 11am-4pm PLEASE NOTE: RSVP for this event does NOT give you access to the event. Please buy tickets for the event on the website here or onsite at the event: [https://www.corgscon.com/tickets/](https://www.corgscon.com/tickets/) We'll have COGG game developers there showcasing their games alongside the [GDEX game expo](https://www.thegdex.com/) also happening later this year. Find out more here: [https://www.corgscon.com/](https://www.corgscon.com/)

## 🤝 Host Information A co-hosted event by ProductTank Columbus & Women in Product Columbus 💡 About the Workshop AI adoption is stalling across organizations — not because of a lack of motivation or tools, but because it's fundamentally a behavior design challenge. This hands-on workshop applies proven Behavior Design models and methods to help you move from a vague organizational wish to boost AI adoption to 3-5 concrete, testable interventions you can act on starting tomorrow. Whether you're a product manager, on a product team, or just someone trying to get AI to actually stick at work, you'll leave with a clear picture of what's worth focusing on, what to ignore, and how to drive real, sustained adoption — no guesswork required. 🛠️ What to Bring Laptop: Fully charged and ready to go. AI Assistant: Have your favorite AI assistant pulled up. (Dom will be using Claude, but feel free to use whichever assistant you prefer!) 🍕 Logistics & Perks Food & Drink: Pizza and drinks provided! Parking: Plenty of free spaces available on-site. ###

**Important time note:** Please plan on arriving between 5:30 and 6:00 as the elevators lock after 6 and you'll need to message us and we'll need to come get you. The building address is 4450 Bridge Park The entrance is 6620 Mooney St, Suite 400 You will need to scan your ID at the door to get a visitor badge. **Abstract** *Customize the IDE: Building Extensions for Visual Studio Code* Visual Studio Code is one of the most widely used development environments today, and much of its flexibility comes from its extension ecosystem. Extensions allow developers to customize the editor with new features, integrations, and workflow improvements tailored to their needs. In this session, we’ll cover what extensions are and the different types available, including full extensions written in TypeScript or JavaScript, along with lighter-weight extensions such as color themes, language packs, language support, code snippets, and keymaps. We’ll also look at practical reasons a developer might create an extension, from automating repetitive tasks to adding custom tooling. The session includes a hands-on walkthrough of creating a new extension, testing it locally, and understanding the basic project structure. We’ll close with a brief overview of how extensions are packaged and published to the Visual Studio Marketplace and other distribution options. **YouTube Link** TBD

We are bringing Microsoft Build sessions to Columbus Ohio! The Central Ohio Azure Meetup and Central Ohio .NET Developer's Group (CONDG) are coming together to bring some of the labs and breakouts from Microsoft Build to your backyard. In this free, 1 day event, you are going to Build stuff with us! And yes, there will be free food. So please RSVP for a head count!

Topic to be announced. **THANK YOU** *Franklin University* for hosting our meetup! To learn more about *Franklin University*, please visit their website: https://www.franklin.edu/ **DIRECTIONS** Franklin University Fisher Hall 300 E. Main St, Columbus, OH 43215 Map: https://maps.app.goo.gl/jxjBA2hUmS5qrvhq8 Parking is FREE! Please park in Lot C in front of Fisher Hall. See attached map. NOTE: Map the address only. When mapping with Google Maps it may use the Fisher Hall at OSU, which is NOT correct. **Want to sponsor the pizza and/or bar tab?** Please contact me if you would like to sponsor this meetup's pizza and/or bar tab: angelo@mandato.com