Convince Your Boss – IT Manager

“Dear [Insert Manager’s Name], 
 
I’m writing to request approval to attend PASS Summit West 2026 in Seattle, November 9-11.

I’ll be direct about why I think this is worth the investment at my level. The decisions I make about our data infrastructure, our team’s capability, and how we approach cloud and AI over the next two years will have a real cost. PASS Summit is where I can pressure-test my thinking against the broader community, understand where the market is heading, and come back with a sharper view of what we should be prioritizing and what we can safely deprioritize.

The Sessions I’m most interested in are leadership-track and strategic content covering:

• Data platform strategy and roadmap planning in a cloud-first environment
• How organizations are approaching AI integration with their data infrastructure (the real implementations, not the marketing)
• Workforce and capability trends in the data and database space, which directly informs how I think about hiring and development for my team
• One of the biggest perks? Free one-on-one time with some of the industry’s top experts at the Community Experts Clinic. That kind of consultation typically runs $250-$400 an hour outside of PASS Summit West. I could walk away on Thursday with our toughest problem already solved

I’d also note that PASS Summit is where many vendors and technology partners have substantive conversations. Time there is an efficient way to assess what’s on the horizon without being sold to in a vendor briefing.

The cost of not attending is harder to see but very real. When I’m making decisions about tooling, architecture, or team investment without current market knowledge, I’m operating on assumptions that may be six to twelve months out of date. That’s the kind of thing that shows up later as expensive course corrections.

91% of 2025 PASS Summit West attendees rated the event 4 or 5 stars. 99% gained actionable insights they applied immediately after the event.

Approximate costs:
Airfare: [insert $ here]
Transportation: [insert $ here]
Hotel (2 nights at ~$250): $500 [adjust as needed]
Dinner (3 days at $50): $150 [adjust as needed]
Conference Ticket: $1990 – $2325

I’ll bring back a strategic summary covering key takeaways relevant to our roadmap and any recommendations that come out of it.

Thanks for considering this.

[Your Name]”