As part of our commitment to transparency within the cloud native community, we are providing an inside look into the work that goes on behind the scenes to bring the KubeCon + CloudNativeCon schedule to life. Note that every conference we put together has a post-event conference transparency report that includes a lot of the information we cover below. We are committed to improving the process after every conference and welcome any and all positive feedback from the community. The data below focuses on the upcoming event KubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America 2021, happening on October 11 – 15 in Los Angeles + online. You can register for the event today.
The schedule is curated by the KubeCon + CloudNativeCon Program Committee, a group of volunteers who are subject matter experts in the conference topics and tracks, led by the conference co-chairs.
KubeCon + CloudNativeCon conferences have become very competitive with a large number of submissions and the average acceptance rate in the low to mid-teens.
KubeCon + CloudNativeCon CFP Averages:
- Europe: 1,200 (15.7% Average acceptance rate)
- China: 800 (15% Average acceptance rate)
- North America: 1,200 (12.7% Average acceptance rate)
Our latest CFP is no exception with an acceptance rate of 14%. 976 submissions were received from 1482 proposed speakers at 436 companies. Of those, we were able to accept 139 talks with 204 total speakers. Here’s how the submission data breaks down for KubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America 2021.
204 Accepted Speakers – Breakdown by Company Type
- 58% from Vendors
- 33% from End Users
- 9% from Other*
139 Accepted Talks** – Breakdown by Company Type
- 73% from Vendors
- 27% from End Users
- 9% from Other*
976 Total Talk Submissions – Breakdown by Submitting Company Type
- 67% from Vendors
- 27% from End Users
- 6% from Other*
436 Companies Submitted Talks – Breakdown by Company Type
- 78% were Vendors
- 20% were End Users
- 2% were Other*
*Other: Individuals without a company affiliation, non-profits, and training organizations
**Does not include talk slots held for TAG +SIG + Projects, of which we have 70 for this event.
Previously, KubeCon + Cloud NativeCon Europe 2021 – Virtual had 624 submissions and an acceptance rate of 15%, resulting in 145 total speakers for the event.
To learn more about the program committee and co-chairs, read the blog here.
If your talk was not accepted, it doesn’t mean it wasn’t great! Program Committee members have to make difficult decisions, and there are any number of reasons it might not have made the cut. Many Committee members are more than willing to chat with you to provide feedback on your submission. You can also read more about how to get your talk accepted here, and we even have had outside community conferences established to recycle talk submissions!
Finally, we’re incredibly grateful to the entire global community that comes together to make KubeCon + CloudNativeCon a success every time.