Learn about NexusCon!
Hey friends,
A few weeks ago, there were two conferences in Denver for people who feel misunderstood. One was for people who believe aliens live amongst us. The other was NexusCon, for people who feel like aliens amongst the rest of the real estate and construction industries.
Jokes aside, by the time you read this, our team will be taking a much-needed week off. This newsletter is our attempt to provide a recap for those aliens who couldn’t make it to NexusCon 2024.
It feels impossible to summarize the first NexusCon in words, given the work, time, heart, and tears we put into it. So, as usual, let’s start by leaning on the community. As you’ve probably noticed, LinkedIn has been buzzing with amazing testimonials.
Take Steven Crowe’s post for example:
“This event has been the BEST conference I have ever attended and the reason is (...) the people involved. The mind share here is incredible and the owner-to-vendor conversations are so serious and fruitful that it makes me wonder what magic Nexus Labs have going on, but the realization is they’ve worked really hard!”
Or Drew DePriest’s:
“This was one of the best events I’ve attended in my two-decade professional career, full of vulnerability and candid sharing amongst 350 of our industry’s most dedicated. Not terribly surprising when you consider NexusCon represents an *event* born out of *community* and not the other way around. Cheers to everyone who leaned into a two-day safe space and left with more than you arrived. I know I certainly did. 🎉”
Speaking of community, let’s start this recap with who showed up in Denver to accelerate the transition to digital and decarbonized buildings. We carefully curated the attendee list so that it’s not too heavily weighted towards any type of attendee.
Building owners, their external buyer’s consultants, contractors/integrators, and technology vendors all play vital roles in our industry’s transformation. Each of their roles is needed to reach the rate of adoption we’re seeking: Buyers buy, consultants specify, contractors/integrators install and maintain, and vendors innovate on the hardware and software.
A proper gathering needed to bring them all to the table without being too heavily weighted towards any role.
Further reinvigorating my optimism was the intent and care the Nexus Labs team had invested in making sure new, diverse faces were part of the conversation, not just as attendees but in speaking and sharing roles bringing new perspectives and ideas that we desperately need to break free from the status quo. —Andrew Rodgers
Once the group showed up, what made NexusCon special was how they showed up. Our team set the vibe by preaching “community first”, welcoming newcomers with small group gatherings, and doing a group mindfulness exercise.
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Our intention was to make it model the collaboration needed to truly create change. And WOW did the group respond.
“I have plenty to say about hashtag#NexusCon (via Nexus Labs) from last week, but I thought I'd start with the bigger picture. Beyond all the great conversations with top-notch people, a sense of community and an adherence to WHY permeated the space.”—Lauren Long
The next highlight was the educational program. The community really embraced the way we laid out the agenda, validating our assumptions that there was a craving for BOTH foundational content and deep expert content. The Foundations and Practitioner rooms were packed.
Each room was also packed with quality case studies, delivered by actual building owners who were instructed to share the real story. Then, the audience engaged with the speakers and with each other (Video). The level of engaged discussion gave me the chills!
Whenever the educational program was paused, the expo was open. The event only featured 45 vendors—all verified by our team for real traction and legitimacy in at least one vertical. Those vendors had no fuss booths and each had a demo slot on the Demo Disco stage.
.jpeg)
While the educational sessions leaned into people and process, the best demos were a nod to Nexus Labs’ roots—nerding out on new technology features that push us forward.
Finally, I can’t leave out many people’s highlights of the conference: The Buyer/Vendor Symposiums.
“Today was different than any other day. In a room outside of Denver at the first ever #NexusCon a conversation was held. In true Nexus Labs fashion, James, Rosy, Brad, and Carly tried something different. 300+ people representing buyers and vendors spoke to each respective group on how we can both do better.” —Brian Vaughn
We held the first-of-its-kind, closed door sessions where buyers and sellers got to connect over commonalities, how they can get out of their own way, and how they can work together. It barely scratched the surface, so we’ll definitely be doing more of that in the future.
As for my favorite parts of the conference? I’m so proud of our team of 4. We’re small but clearly mighty, and our care for each other and level of teamwork has me in complete awe. I’m also proud of how much the community embraced the messages in my closing keynote. In short: We’re all on the same journey, but we haven’t had the transparency, vulnerability, or collaboration to internalize and operationalize that realization.
A big huge thank you to everyone who took a chance and attended a first year conference, especially when there are so many other conferences out there.
There will 100% be a NexusCon 2025. Sign up for the waitlist here to be the first to hear about it.
—James and the Nexus Labs team
P.S. Congrats to the first Nexie Award winners!
Hey friends,
A few weeks ago, there were two conferences in Denver for people who feel misunderstood. One was for people who believe aliens live amongst us. The other was NexusCon, for people who feel like aliens amongst the rest of the real estate and construction industries.
Jokes aside, by the time you read this, our team will be taking a much-needed week off. This newsletter is our attempt to provide a recap for those aliens who couldn’t make it to NexusCon 2024.
It feels impossible to summarize the first NexusCon in words, given the work, time, heart, and tears we put into it. So, as usual, let’s start by leaning on the community. As you’ve probably noticed, LinkedIn has been buzzing with amazing testimonials.
Take Steven Crowe’s post for example:
“This event has been the BEST conference I have ever attended and the reason is (...) the people involved. The mind share here is incredible and the owner-to-vendor conversations are so serious and fruitful that it makes me wonder what magic Nexus Labs have going on, but the realization is they’ve worked really hard!”
Or Drew DePriest’s:
“This was one of the best events I’ve attended in my two-decade professional career, full of vulnerability and candid sharing amongst 350 of our industry’s most dedicated. Not terribly surprising when you consider NexusCon represents an *event* born out of *community* and not the other way around. Cheers to everyone who leaned into a two-day safe space and left with more than you arrived. I know I certainly did. 🎉”
Speaking of community, let’s start this recap with who showed up in Denver to accelerate the transition to digital and decarbonized buildings. We carefully curated the attendee list so that it’s not too heavily weighted towards any type of attendee.
Building owners, their external buyer’s consultants, contractors/integrators, and technology vendors all play vital roles in our industry’s transformation. Each of their roles is needed to reach the rate of adoption we’re seeking: Buyers buy, consultants specify, contractors/integrators install and maintain, and vendors innovate on the hardware and software.
A proper gathering needed to bring them all to the table without being too heavily weighted towards any role.
Further reinvigorating my optimism was the intent and care the Nexus Labs team had invested in making sure new, diverse faces were part of the conversation, not just as attendees but in speaking and sharing roles bringing new perspectives and ideas that we desperately need to break free from the status quo. —Andrew Rodgers
Once the group showed up, what made NexusCon special was how they showed up. Our team set the vibe by preaching “community first”, welcoming newcomers with small group gatherings, and doing a group mindfulness exercise.
Our intention was to make it model the collaboration needed to truly create change. And WOW did the group respond.
“I have plenty to say about hashtag#NexusCon (via Nexus Labs) from last week, but I thought I'd start with the bigger picture. Beyond all the great conversations with top-notch people, a sense of community and an adherence to WHY permeated the space.”—Lauren Long
The next highlight was the educational program. The community really embraced the way we laid out the agenda, validating our assumptions that there was a craving for BOTH foundational content and deep expert content. The Foundations and Practitioner rooms were packed.
Each room was also packed with quality case studies, delivered by actual building owners who were instructed to share the real story. Then, the audience engaged with the speakers and with each other (Video). The level of engaged discussion gave me the chills!
Whenever the educational program was paused, the expo was open. The event only featured 45 vendors—all verified by our team for real traction and legitimacy in at least one vertical. Those vendors had no fuss booths and each had a demo slot on the Demo Disco stage.
While the educational sessions leaned into people and process, the best demos were a nod to Nexus Labs’ roots—nerding out on new technology features that push us forward.
Finally, I can’t leave out many people’s highlights of the conference: The Buyer/Vendor Symposiums.
“Today was different than any other day. In a room outside of Denver at the first ever #NexusCon a conversation was held. In true Nexus Labs fashion, James, Rosy, Brad, and Carly tried something different. 300+ people representing buyers and vendors spoke to each respective group on how we can both do better.” —Brian Vaughn
We held the first-of-its-kind, closed door sessions where buyers and sellers got to connect over commonalities, how they can get out of their own way, and how they can work together. It barely scratched the surface, so we’ll definitely be doing more of that in the future.
As for my favorite parts of the conference? I’m so proud of our team of 4. We’re small but clearly mighty, and our care for each other and level of teamwork has me in complete awe. I’m also proud of how much the community embraced the messages in my closing keynote. In short: We’re all on the same journey, but we haven’t had the transparency, vulnerability, or collaboration to internalize and operationalize that realization.
A big huge thank you to everyone who took a chance and attended a first year conference, especially when there are so many other conferences out there.
There will 100% be a NexusCon 2025. Sign up for the waitlist here to be the first to hear about it.
—James and the Nexus Labs team
P.S. Congrats to the first Nexie Award winners!
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