Dear Reader,
In just a few weeks, San Francisco will host SAS Global Forum 2013. If you're like me, SAS Global Forum time feels a little like Christmas.

Okay, maybe we don't get Christmas cookies or a second visit from Santa, but we may get something even better: a chance to network with thousands of SAS users from around the world. For our users, it's a wonderful opportunity to learn from their peers. For an organization like SAS Education, well, let's just says it's as good as any present we ever got as kids. The conversations we have are always full of energy and help remind me of the critical role training plays in our users' success with SAS. Let me give you an example.

One afternoon last year, at the end of a long day staffing Education's booth on the Support and Demo Area floor, I was approached by a gentleman grinning from ear to ear. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" he said as he grabbed my hand for a handshake that would last the length of our conversation. It turns out the gentleman, a data management supervisor from a large U.S.-based bank, had recently taken our SAS Programming 3 course (which teaches advanced techniques and efficiencies). In his words, "It changed my life!"

After taking the course, he explained, he was able to write a SAS program that mapped out customer relationship through account affiliation for his company. The program returned results in just three hours and replaced a manual process that sometimes took his group as many as 720 man-hours to complete. "It's absolutely amazing what SAS can do!" he concluded, before giving me a hug.

At SAS Education we are committed to helping all our users achieve this level of success. This year's conference provides a number of great opportunities. For starters, we’re offering several classes for those who want to come early or stay late. You can choose from three pre-conference or six post-conference training classes. On Monday-Wednesday, April 29-May 1 we'll offer a number of free SAS^®9 hands-on workshops providing exposure to the SAS platform and SAS platform applications.

Perhaps most exciting, however, is the opportunity we’re offering around SAS Certification. On Saturday and Sunday, April 27-28 we’ll hold our annual Certification Testing Event, where users can test their knowledge and earn a globally recognized certification from SAS. In celebration of the 50,000th SAS Certification awarded (a milestone reached in December), SAS is offering every exam at SAS Global Forum for only $50.

And if you ever considered getting Base SAS certified, there’s no better time than the present. To further commemorate the 50,000 milestone, SAS is offering a complimentary seat in our Live Web Base Programming Certification review course to any user who registers to take the Base Programming for SAS^®9 exam at SAS Global Forum (April 27-28) or at a Pearson VUE testing center (during the week of April 26-May 3). The course provides an extensive review of the topics included on the SAS Base Programming Exam and covers material from the exam's five content areas. You’ll also get additional information about the exam, test-taking strategies, and exercises that will prepare you for the types of questions you’ll encounter on test day. Learn more.

If you do plan to attend SAS Global Forum in San Francisco in April, please stop by the Education booth and say hello. (Hugs are optional.)

Larry LaRusso
Editor, SAS Training Report