At CoffeeBlk, BDPA Memphis turned a casual morning conversation into something more revealing: a real-time look at how Memphis builders navigate feedback, unfinished work, and career growth in a tech culture increasingly shaped by performance.

May 19 | In-Person

May 19 — 5:30PM (In‑Person)

This is a rare room for anyone shaping data decisions. Clear models and trusted numbers are the difference between momentum and misfires, and this session shows how Memphis teams get there.

May 19 — 11:30AM (In‑Person)

The people who see the threats first will be in this room. If you touch security, this briefing connects Memphis directly to federal insight you rarely get this close to.

May 20 — 6:00PM (In‑Person)

This is where the week’s work turns into real talk. Brian walks through the choices, missteps, and momentum behind building MaxIMS. Giving Memphis a grounded look at what product creation actually feels like.

May 21 — 5:30PM (In‑Person)

No pitch deck required. Just show up and try things. This CTF gives beginners a friendly way into software, one challenge at a time, so Memphis newcomers can find their footing fast.

May 21 — 6:00PM (Hybrid)

Bring what you’re building. This workshop is where Memphis’s makers compare notes, share breakthroughs, and keep the city’s creative tech energy alive one project at a time.

May 19 — 5:30PM (In‑Person)

A room built for clarity. Dr. Terry Ross walks founders through the judgment calls that shape teams, culture, and trust. If you’re steering a growing Memphis company, this session sharpens the people‑side of every hard decision. Hosted at Epicenter Memphis.

May 20 — 3:30PM (In‑Person)

This workshop puts Memphis operators, freight leaders, and innovators in one room to surface the real bottlenecks slowing the region’s logistics economy. Founders leave with validated problems, industry contacts, and a clearer path to building solutions Memphis actually needs.

June 5 | In-Person

Memphis Microsoft Community Day brings technologists, makers, and leaders together for a full day of learning, connection, and hands‑on growth. With sessions led by Microsoft experts, MVPs, and community builders, you’ll explore AI, automation, cloud, and collaboration tools while strengthening skills that move Memphis’s tech ecosystem forward.

October 3 | In-Person

BSides Memphis is a community-driven cybersecurity conference organized by local volunteers and part of the global Security BSides event series. The event brings together security professionals, students, researchers, and technology enthusiasts to share knowledge, research, and real-world security experiences. With technical talks, community discussions, and opportunities to connect with others in the field, BSides Memphis aims to strengthen and grow the region’s cybersecurity community.

Breaking into tech used to mean proving you could learn the tools. Increasingly, it means figuring out how to stay visible, credible, and human in environments where everyone is starting to sound the same.

That tension quietly shaped a recent BDPA Memphis gathering at CoffeeBlk in Memphis’ University District. There were no slides, no keynote energy, and no pressure to perform expertise. Senior developers, early-career technologists, educators, and builders sat in conversation long enough for something more useful to emerge: experienced people admitting they are still figuring parts of this out too.

The first conversation centered on a problem almost everyone recognized immediately. As AI-generated writing and optimization culture reshape LinkedIn, professional identity itself is starting to feel flattened. Every profile sounds polished. Every post sounds strategically confident. And for people still trying to break into tech, authenticity can start to feel less like an advantage and more like a liability.

What made the discussion matter wasn’t that anyone solved the problem. It was the honesty in how the room approached it. The senior professionals there didn’t dismiss the concern or fall back on generic networking advice. They acknowledged that the pathways many of them used to gain experience, mentorship, and visibility now genuinely look narrower. Instead of rushing toward motivation-speech optimism, the room sat with a harder question: if traditional entry points are eroding, what responsibility does the community have to build new ones?

That same spirit showed up later when Tremaine McKinly demoed a group decision-making app inspired by something deceptively ordinary: trying to get friends to agree on what to do together. He connected the project to BVO, the immersive art and technology experience cofounded by a BDPA Memphis member, grounding the app in a real Memphis use case instead of abstract startup language.

But the memorable part wasn’t the demo itself. It was the feedback culture around it.

Bryce Sharp didn’t offer automatic praise or performative encouragement. He expanded the problem space, challenged assumptions, and helped sharpen what the app was actually solving. Then the rest of the room joined in, building onto the idea instead of tearing it down. Watching experienced technologists critique a project with seriousness and care became its own kind of lesson for younger builders in the room. The exchange modeled something increasingly rare in tech spaces: feedback as investment, not dominance.

That pattern carried through the entire morning. Bryce openly passed around unfinished levels of Fishtography for people to break and critique in real time. Naim Hakeem spoke about managing multiple creative projects not as a distraction, but as a way to sustain momentum and protect long-term energy. None of it felt overly polished. That was the point.

What emerged at CoffeeBlk was a quieter framework for career development in Memphis tech: growth happens faster in rooms where people can show unfinished work, ask unpolished questions, and think out loud without feeling punished for it.

In a tech culture increasingly optimized for performance, where are you still leaving room to be unfinished?

The Memphis Python User Group is looking for speakers starting in May 2026. The group meets virtually on the 3rd Monday of the month at 6:00 PM US Central time. Speakers of all experience and skill levels are welcome. You don't need to have an hour long presentation. A 10 or 15 minute (many people are surprised how limiting that ends up being) talk about a project or an interesting feature you discovered can spark a discussion.

First-time speakers are very much welcomed and encouraged to submit. BSides Memphis is a community-driven cybersecurity conference organized by local volunteers and part of the global Security BSides event series. Event will be hosted on October 3, 2026 at the Epicenter Memphis downtown location.

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