Asim Hussain’s Speaker Rider
[email protected] / asim.dev / linkedin.com/in/jawache
I’m delighted you want to invite me to speak at your event. I love talking with people about the intersection of sustainability and software engineering, what it is, why it is necessary, how an organization or individual can start down this path, and where it ends.
You can find more information about me in my bio below.
I am asked to speak a lot, but my time is limited these days, so to help streamline the decision-making process, I’ve created this rider.
Inside it, you will find all you need regarding:
- My bio and headshots.
- My costs and expenses.
- How I like to present and my on-stage requirements.
- The information I need from you.
Biography
Asim is a developer, author, and speaker with over 24 years of experience working for organizations such as the European Space Agency, Google, Microsoft, and Intel. He’s also the co-founder and Executive Director of the Green Software Foundation, a global industry consortium with a mission to create a trusted ecosystem of people, standards, tooling, and best practices for building green software.
You can find my headshot picture here: https://go.asim.dev/kit/headshot
I’m a very experienced speaker; you can find some of my past talks here: https://asim.dev/talks/.
Although I’d recommend just searching on YouTube to find the latest. I love speaking; I’ve spoken at over 100 events over the years, from keynotes to thousands to more intimate private affairs.
What topics do I talk about?
I’m fortunate to have been able to focus on just one question for many years now, “How can we build software so it has zero harmful environmental effects?“. That’s how I’d describe green software more broadly. To be clear, you can write software that makes the world more sustainable, for example, software that helps you farm with less waste; that’s not my topic. I focus on how software causes negative environmental impacts and how software developers and the software industry should build software so it has no harmful environmental effects.
I helped define the field of green software. I’ve seen the field grow, know its history, drive its current direction, and have an excellent insight into its future.
I’m a great speaker and get asked to speak a lot. I really do enjoy crafting a great talk and presenting it on stage. I also love answering questions at the end of my talk or in a panel discussion. Sharing my opinions is one of the ways I help shape the direction the field moves in.
Every year, I decide what message I want to get across that year, and I craft one or more talks that help get that message across. I’m always happy to give an introductory talk on green software, but right now, I’m more interested in giving talks about measuring software, which is where the frontier of the green software space currently is.
I don’t give talks like “Top 10 ways to reduce the emissions of your cloud application.” Some people give great talks like that. I talk about the bigger picture and focus on more complex problems.
I don’t give talks to scare folks into paying attention to sustainability. One of my values is to never motivate through fear.
What I’m like as a person?
I’m an introvert; I know that might sound strange since I’m actually a speaker, communicator, and great in groups. Being an introvert doesn’t mean you’re bad at those things; it means those activities drain you, and you need time alone to recharge.
When I have the energy, I love socializing, so please invite me to any social gatherings; networking is a large part of why I attend conferences. Please don’t be upset if I leave early or need to recharge with some alone time.
Speaker Fee
My time is precious; it’s the most valuable thing I own. I have a limited amount of it, and it’s very important that my time is used well. To help prioritize my time, I have a speaker fee, which varies depending on whether it’s in person or remote, for-profit or non-profit, public or internal/private. The fee below is a guide. I may choose to lower or waive it, but that’s a decision up to me, how busy I am at that time, and how much I have a message I need to get out to your audience.
Panels or keynotes are a maximum of 1 hour long (including Q&A). The fees below assume I can travel in and out on the same day or within 24 hours.
If your event is a commercial, public event (recordings will be made public), these are my standard fees:
- In-Person Public Keynote $5000 + T&E
- In-Person Panel $3000 + T&E
- Remote Public Keynote $2000
- Remote Public Panel $1200
If your event is internal or private to your organization (recordings will be kept private), my standard fee is $10,000 for in-person (+ T&E) and $5000 for remote.
The above is my default for all larger commercial or private/corporate conferences; I’m happy to discuss a reduced or waived fee for smaller, non-profit, non-commercial conferences. Please send me details of your proposal as well as expected audience size and makeup for my talk and general event details, such as ticket costs and any sponsorship package.
Travel & Expenses
Train
If a train is part of the journey to your event, I expect the train tickets to be covered; I prefer you book them for me after discussing options.
From an environmental and lifestyle perspective, I used to love to take the Eurostar to speak at venues in Western Europe. However, the station closest to me, “Ebbsfleet,” was shut down during COVID-19 and has not reopened. Taking the Eurostar is too complex, so unless Ebbsfleet reopens (which it might), it’s unlikely to be an option for me.
Planes
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I expect flights to be covered, my preference is that you book the flights but check the details with me first - esp. the seats, I’m a big tall guy with long legs.
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Gatwick Airport UK is my base airport and covers large parts of Europe. I can also travel from Heathrow Airport, a much larger airport covering more long-haul flights.
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If a direct flight is available from my local airport, Gatwick, I prefer that option.
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If a direct flight is not available from Gatwick at a time that works, it might make sense for me to dive to Heathrow (the largest UK airport) happy to discuss options.
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I don’t fly economy for long-haul flights (>4hrs)
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I do expect taxis and/or parking to be covered to/from the airport (at my home location and the location of the event)
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It costs me about GBP 20 for a taxi to Gatwick airport from my home.
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It costs me about GBP 100 to park for a short trip at Heathrow airport.
Taxis
- If required, I expect Taxis to be covered to/from the airports/train stations.
- But also, I expect Taxis to be covered while I am at the conference location; I often use Uber when outside of the UK and will provide details on any final invoice.
- I will add these costs to my final invoice.
Accommodation
- If I need to stay overnight, accommodation should be provided near the conference location. I suggest you book the hotel and cover any costs directly with them.
Stage Requirements
- For any group of more than 25 people, I need a microphone. I prefer a lavalier, lapel, or headset over a handheld mic.
- I’ll only present from my laptop: a 14-inch 2023 MacBook Pro. My laptop supports both HDMI and Thunderbolt/USB-C outputs.
- I use Keynote or Google Sheets for my presentations and bring my own remote. My slide aspect ratio is 16:9. Please let me know if the projector requires a different one.
- I’ll let you and your technical team know well in advance if my presentation includes any audio. Before my talk, I will test the connection and volume at the technical check.
- I’m happy to take questions from the audience after my talk; it’s my favorite part.
Making contact
Email is preferred and most reliable. You can email me at [email protected] - This email goes to my assistant (who ensures you receive a reply) and me.
For best results, please include the following details if you can:
- The name of the event
- Any online link to the event
- The date of the event
- The time of the event
- The location of the event and nearest airport or if it can be done remotely
- What do you want me to speak about
- Number of attendees (roughly)
- What type of audience is it, e.g., Senior management, etc
- Ticket price
Thank you for considering me as part of your lineup. I’m honored to be thought of. If you have any questions or concerns about the rider, please do let me know via email.