Just start the thing: Building community with Michael Dyrynda

Michael Dyrynda is the director and organiser of Laracon AU, the Australian conference bringing together developers, product builders and members of the wider Laravel community.Michael joins Gavin to unpack how Laracon AU grew from an idea into a major annual gathering for developers across Australia and the broader Asia-Pacific region. They explore why in-person connection remains valuable, especially for people working remotely, and how conferences can create friendships, mentorship opportunities, new careers and even new businesses.Michael also shares the behind-the-scenes work involved in producing Laracon AU, including responding to difficult feedback, supporting speakers, leading volunteers and learning to delegate. He explains why community builders should start small, stay consistent and resist waiting for the perfect moment.The conversation also covers how AI is changing software development, why experienced developers will remain important and why human creativity will continue to be fuelled by human connection.LinksLaracon AULaracon AU alternative websiteLaravelGitHubClaudeMeetupLaracon AU on LinkedInLaracon AU on XMichael Dyrynda on LinkedInMichael Dyrynda on XThe topics coveredIn this episode, we cover:What the Laravel framework is and why it has developed such a strong global communityWhy Michael created an Australian Laracon event for the Asia-Pacific regionGrowing Laracon AU from its first Sydney event into a major annual conferenceWhy people still travel to conferences when technical information is available onlineCombating isolation and creating human connection for remote software developersDesigning networking opportunities before, during and after a conferenceThe small behind-the-scenes details that make attendees feel welcomeUsing feedback to improve an event, including feedback that is difficult to hearCreating a more thoughtful and community-led speaker selection processSupporting speakers and building connection before they arrive at the eventMaintaining community engagement between major annual eventsThe challenges of ticket sales, marketing and unpredictable buying behaviourRecruiting, communicating with and leading event volunteersDelegating responsibilities to avoid community-builder burnoutMeasuring event success through feedback, repeat attendance and community storiesHow Laracon AU helped create opportunities for SixSides co-founder MitchHow community events can launch careers, products and businessesThe future of software development and developer communities in the age of AIWhy human creativity will continue to rely on human connectionMichael’s advice to start small, find a sustainable cadence and simply beginChapter markers00:00 Welcome to Changemakers01:17 What community means to Michael03:05 Understanding Laravel and Michael’s journey05:54 Why Australia needed Laracon AU09:37 Why developers still meet in person15:04 Designing belonging and meaningful connection18:39 Feedback, speakers and improving the experience23:27 Maintaining momentum and selling the event30:07 Volunteers, delegation and measuring success37:43 Community impact, AI and advice for new organisersAbout SixSidesSixSides is a community-led events platform founded by Gavin Tye and Mitchell Davis to help organisations build stronger, more engaged communities. It brings together memberships, events, communication, directories, content, networking and engagement into a single platform, making it easier for community managers to create meaningful connections and measure their impact.The idea for SixSides began after Mitch built Event Kit, an event app for Laracon AU. The enthusiastic response from the Laravel community showed there was a genuine opportunity to build tools that help communities thrive. That initial spark evolved into SixSides, which now powers communities across associations, professional networks, chambers of commerce, not-for-profits and membership organisations.LinksSixSides - https://sixsides.coGavin Tye (LinkedIn) - https://www.linkedin.com/in/gavintye/Mitch (LinkedIn) - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mitchdav/Chat with the Team: https://call.sixsides.co/call