Case Study: RainFocus achieves a rapid 46-day shift to a scalable virtual event with IBM Cloud

RainFocus quickly pivots to a virtual format on the IBM Cloud

RainFocus, using IBM Cloud and IBM Cloud for Kubernetes Service, faced a sudden challenge when IBM’s annual Think event had to move from a planned in-person conference to a virtual format in just 46 days because of COVID-19. The team needed a scalable event marketing platform that could handle a highly unpredictable surge in registrations, support digital content and networking, and integrate with IBM’s internal systems for a major global event.

IBM and RainFocus reconfigured the platform for virtual delivery with hybrid cloud infrastructure, object storage, content delivery, and load balancing, plus testing and overflow controls to manage demand. The result was a flawless online event that scaled from 40,000 expected attendees to more than 122,000 registrations, making IBM Think 2020 one of the largest online conferences to date and creating a reusable template for IBM’s 600+ annual events.

RainFocus

JR Sherman

Chief Executive Officer