This article originally appeared in the Sept. 2011 issue of INTERNET TELEPHONY

It’s September. For many – including my now middle-school aged (yikes!) daughter and high school math teacher husband – that means it’s back-to-school time. A lot of folks, especially this year after a swelteringly hot summer across the country (you know something is up when the Phoenix area is not a standout on the July national weather reports), also look forward to September for its promise of more moderate temperatures.

But for us at TMC, September is all about ITEXPO (News - Alert). And we hope it will be for you too.

ITEXPO West is set for Sept. 13-15 at The Austin Convention Center, in case it’s not already on your radar. If it’s not on your calendar, there’s still time to make plans to join us. We’ll make it worth your while.

The event will feature keynote speakers including John Antanaitis (News - Alert), vice president of marketing at Polycom; Mike McCarthy, vice president of coud computing services at IBM; and Mark Straton, senior vice president of global solutions marketing at Siemens (News - Alert) Enterprise Communications Inc.

But that’s just a small sampling of the speakers who will be sharing their perspectives at ITEXPO and the multitude of co-located events. ITEXPO is proud to be co-located with the 4G Wireless Evolution (4GWE) Conference, CVx, the Cloud Communications Expo, DevCon5, the MSP Alliance’s (News - Alert) MSP World, the Regulatory 2.0 Workshop, SIP Tutorial 2.0, StartupCamp4, the SocialCRM Expo, the Super WiFi Summit, and the VIPeering Conference.

In addition to all this education, ITEXPO West again will feature a robust and bustling exhibit floor, allowing attendees to see the latest and greatest in communications technology.

I’m excited to have the opportunity once again to meet and catch up with many of the leading lights in our industry. It will also be great to finally visit Austin.

I’ve never been to Austin, but it’s been on my bucket list for a few years now, so I’m really looking forward it. Of course, Austin is not only the home of the incredible ITEXPO West 2011, it’s also known for its lively business, food and music scene.

If you’re an entrepreneurial type, you might be interested to learn that the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce is leading an effort to create Austin Live, a downtown district and workspace for startups. So you could find out more about that while you’re in town.

The Travel Channel recently aired an Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations show in which he visits some of the awesome food trucks in Austin. I’ll be looking for those. If you want a great bite to eat, you might want to check them out too. Odd Duck Farm to Trailer sounds particularly savory.

Also, our event immediately precedes the Austin City Limits Music Festival, so if you want to come for ITEXPO and stay for the weekend you can (if you can still get tickets) catch headliner Stevie Wonder and a bevy of other great acts, including some of my favorites like Alison Kraus & Union Station, The Del McCoury Band, and Old Crow Medicine Show.

To get yourself into an Austin state of mind, you also might want to check out music from local bluegrass band The Bad Livers or Old 97s (not from Austin, but a great band that I heard first made its mark at Austin’s famed South by Southwest festival).

See you in Austin!