Convergence 2015 Notebook: Future of SMB presence; Courting marketers; Eye on the competition; Fruit kebab sponsorships

2015 is a year of transition for Convergence as Microsoft opens up the event's scope and leaves the door open to even more changes in the future. While the event will still offer hundreds of Dynamics ERP and CRM sessions, it will also feature speakers from other parts of Microsoft

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Let's examine some of the developments and trends worth watching next week in Atlanta at Convergence 2015. (What will you be watching for? Let us know in the comments!)

2015: The end of SMBs at Convergence?

2015 could be the last year for Convergence as a Microsoft event that focuses (relatively) equally on all the Dynamics ERP products. It's widely believed that Convergence is evolving into a broader Microsoft business event aimed at "decision makers" in the enterprise space.

Microsoft gave strong indications last month that they are enthusiastic about the SMB space and its role at Convergence in the future. By contrast, multiple sources tell us of Microsoft employees spreading the word to partners and other stakeholders privately that Dynamics NAV and GP (and presumably SL) will have a much smaller presence at Convergence starting in 2016. They say Microsoft intends to focus their FY2016 GP and NAV conference efforts (and budgets) toward other events like the GPUG and NAVUG Summits, NAV Directions, and GP reImagine.

If this change is in fact happening, some key event metrics of Convergence 2014 could help explain it. Dynamics GP and NAV ...