Constant Integration / Constant Deployment – A missional approach to DevOps
In this session, we are going to discuss CI/CD (continuous integration / continuous delivery) and its applicability to today’s technical and mission scene. During the session, we are going to walk through the creation and deployment of a Python script and then update that script and its schedule all using Github Actions (this may change to Gitlab CI). Assumptions – this is a 101 type session so specific knowledge should be minimal. A basic understanding of scripting and cron scheduling will be useful. Finally, we will take a look at the process of CI/CD and see how the principles are applicable to our lives.
JSON Web Tokens
What are they? What are they good for? We will also go over a JS/Python implementation
Cryptographic Programming, A Practical Introduction
This talk will focus on the terms and definitions necessary to understand and implement programs in javascript which use cryptography. The goals are to aid in understanding cryptographic constructions (i.e. something made with cryptographic algorithms) and to aid in understanding and solving the common pitfalls of implementing those constructions.
Practical examples will include password conversion and proper password storage in the modern age. Please note that many languages share the same pitfalls (and equivalent solutions) as javascript when it comes to implementation, so this should be of interest to a wider audience.
If time permits, common errors which lead to weak cryptographic constructions will be discussed.
End-to-End Demo: Fully Automated Employee On-boarding Process
In this demo, you will see an example of a fully automated process that streamlines the back-end processes for hiring and on-boarding employees within an organization. You will see how you can use SharePoint, Planner, and Teams with Power Automate and Power Apps to allow both the HR and IT team members to follow up on tasks throughout the on-boarding process. The process also includes the automatic provisioning of accounts in Azure AD, assigning group membership to user accounts, and surfacing an employee’s office location in Microsoft Search results.
Planning Your Organization’s Communications and Collaboration Strategy Using M365
Whether you are building your first corporate intranet in SharePoint Online (or rebuilding an old one), rolling out (or re-organizing) Teams, trying to implement Yammer communities, or anywhere in-between, it can be daunting to know what to do with so many tools available in Microsoft 365, and to know where to start. In this session, we will cover the questions that need to be asked, and decisions that need to be made, when implementing your overall communication and collaboration strategy. Questions we’ll ask include: “When do we use SharePoint, when do we use Teams, and when do we use Yammer?”, “How do we handle our organizational calendar as well as departmental calendars?”, “How do we facilitate cross-departmental communication?” and more. We’ll also talk about various strategies for making these decisions. At the end we will leave time for participants to share ideas with one another about how they have implemented their own solutions.
How to use Office 365 to communicate securely with company members in Creative Access context
In this session, attendees will learn about different ways for securely communicating with company members in Creative Access context, including sending and receiving emails, as well as using SharePoint, in a 100% online-based solution.
Decentralization and Solutions to Move Away From Big Tech
With big tech ever threatening people with dissenting thoughts and canceling accounts with no recourse, it’s time we start considering how to bring control back into our own hands. Learn about what’s out there to keep your data to yourself, federating with others, and ideas on hosting on-premises or striking a middle-of-the-road option by self hosting in the cloud.
Working through difficult tech discussions (it isn’t usually about the tech)
Many discussions between IT and other mission managers and leaders get derailed for reasons other than different opinions about the technology in question. Kevin has seen more than ten times when a breakdown in trust and communication between IT and management over different perspectives & priorities ends in project failures and even the replacement of some IT workers. Kevin will attempt to apply principles from Paul’s letters to the Romans and Corinthians directly to conversations among mission IT and ministry coworkers.
Ransomware Survival
This session comes from our survival of a ransomware attack at our church:
- How We Prepared for it
- Actions during the attack
- Changes we made
- Lessons Learned
Cybersecurity as Member Care
Caring for missionaries and trainees by equipping them with what they need not just on the field, but in the years leading up to their deployment. We will talk about how to set expectations for things like secure communication (or the lack thereof in many more sophisticated contexts), prepping new missionaries face the reality of technological limits in more sensitive fields, addressing the need for strategic debriefs, and tackling the importance of focusing on cybersecurity as grounds for encouraging and mobilizing people instead of functioning primarily as risk mitigation on our infrastructure.
Sessions listed are subject to change.