The CollabTalk Podcast

For this episode, I spoke with Nick amabile (@DAS42llc), the CEO of DAS42, a US data analytics consulting firm that helps companies make better decisions, faster, on what it takes to build a data-driven organization, and how we need to shift the cultural mindset around data. You can find more information on my guest on my blog at https://www.buckleyplanet.com/2021/11/collabtalk-podcast-episode-30.html

Episode 137 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Enterprise Mobility MVP Niels Kok (@NielsKok5), a technical consultant with a focus on Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Azure, based in Holland, Netherlands. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/OjfMttP6T6o

For this episode, I spoke with Dirk van Reenen (@DirkvanReenen), the Founder & CEO of BERGflow, a company focused on team building for service-based companies, on the cultural aspects of collaboration, and specifically, how to unlock collaboration and the collective genius within your work teams. You can find more information on my guest on my blog at https://www.buckleyplanet.com/2021/10/collabtalk-podcast-episode-29.html

Episode 136 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and fellow Office Apps & Services MVP Mike Weaver (@MADMike_365), an Office 365 Technologist specializing in mergers, acquisitions & divestitures for Quest based in London, UK. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/GuEu8SiD238

For this episode, I spoke with Joy Apple (@JoyOfSharePoint), a Modern Workplace Strategist and Microsoft MVP with PAIT Group, based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on what we've learned from our collective 'Work from Home (WFH)' experience, and what the future of WFH will bring. You can find more information on my guest on my blog at https://www.buckleyplanet.com/2021/10/collabtalk-podcast-episode-28.html

Episode 135 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Business Applications MVP May Alhajri (@MayAlhajri2), a Digital Analyst with Schlumberger based in Al Khobar, Eastern, Saudi Arabia. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/nGGKtQsx3cU

For this episode, I spoke with Shari Oswald (@shortcutshari), a Microsoft Certified Trainer, Microsoft Office Master, and Co-Founder of PowerUP Learning in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on the loss of productivity when multi-tasking or moving between workloads (from email to intranet to project management tools, etc). You can find more information on my guest on my blog at https://www.buckleyplanet.com/2021/10/collabtalk-podcast-episode-27.html

Episode 134 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Enterprise Mobility MVP Shabaz Darr (@ShabazDarr), a Senior Infrastructure Specialist at Netcompany based in the UK. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/Y5M3p8ecLeQ

Hosted by Microsoft MVP+RD Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), based in Lehi, Utah (Silicon Slopes). For this episode, I shared some personal stories from different points in time in my career on my experiences impacting change within the enterprise, and the lessons learned in finding and supporting "Digital Workplace Champions" to help make change "stick." You can find more information on my guests on my blog at https://www.buckleyplanet.com/2021/10/collabtalk-podcast-episode-26.html

Episode 133 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Enterprise Mobility MVP Ben Whitmore (@byteben), a Senior Cloud Consultant at CloudWay, based in King's Lynn, England. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/ezozz7DiR2o

Conversation between Microsoft MVP+RD Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet) and Jon Levesque (@JonJLevesque), Lead Product Evangelist at DocuSign, and the former Sr. Platform Evangelist for the Power Platform at Microsoft, based in Bellevue, Washington. For this episode, Jon and I discuss best practices for building community. The interview followed the September 2021 #CollabTalk TweetJam on the topic of "The Evolution of Community" and was captured as a post-tweetjam interview for my YouTube channel. You can find more information on my guests on my blog at https://www.buckleyplanet.com/2021/09/collabtalk-podcast-episode-25.html

Episode 132 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and fellow Office Apps & Services MVP Jay Leask (@jayleask), US Federal Director of Strategic Accounts & Solutions at AvePoint, based in Herndon, Virginia. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/tdtFZBXiY4o

Conversation between Microsoft MVP+RD Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet) and John White (@diverdown1964), co-founder and CTO of UnlimitedViz and tyGraph, and a dual Microsoft MVP in Data Platform and Office Apps & Services, based in Ontario, Canada. For this episode, John and I talk about Microsoft Viva: what it is, why Microsoft rebranded a handful of solutions into a "SKU" that focuses on Employee Experience (EXP), and the latest news on what is happening with Viva Insights, specifically. You can find more information on my guests on my blog at https://www.buckleyplanet.com/2021/09/collabtalk-podcast-episode-24.html

Episode 131 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Enterprise Mobility MVP Dujon Walsham (@dwalshamPRO), Founder & Chief Microsoft Technologist at ProtectOrg, Infrastructure Analyst for Notting Hill Genesis, and a System Center SME & official contributor at SCCM based in the UK You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/4J7eZCPkPDM

Conversation between Microsoft MVP+RD Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet) and Art Close, recently retired Director of Logistics Education at Western Guilford High School and Guilford County Schools in Greensboro, North Carolina, and an award-winning educator at the undergraduate and graduate level in operations management, mathematics, and strategic planning. For this episode, Art and I discuss the evolution of collaboration within the education sector -- both the technology and the ways in which students, teachers, and leadership engage. We also share some ideas on governance and the art of people management, with mentions of W. Edwards Deming, Eliyahu Goldratt, and Marcus Buckingham. You can find more information on my guests on my blog at https://www.buckleyplanet.com/2021/09/collabtalk-podcast-episode-23.html

Episode 130 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Developer Technologies MVP Mihaela Ghidersa (@MihaelaGhidersa), a software developer and passionate technologist based in Iaşi, Romania. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/qXJXx_4ldMM

Conversation between Microsoft MVP+RD Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Sean McDonough (@spmcdonough), a consultant with Bitstream Foundry in Cincinnati Ohio and an Office Apps & Services MVP, and Geoff Varosky (@gvaro), a Senior Architect for Insight, co-founder of the Boston Office 365 User Group, and the co-founder of The New Janky Workshop on YouTube. For this episode, Sean, Geoff and I discuss the role of the "citizen developer" in the hybrid workplace, the shut-down of SPSevents.org and what that means for the Microsoft community, and Windows 365 and the ongoing evolution of SaaS products and services. You can find more information on my guests on my blog at https://www.buckleyplanet.com/2021/09/collabtalk-podcast-episode-22.html

Episode 128 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Office Development MVP Sean McAvinue (@sean_mcavinue), a Modern Workplace Practice Lead at Dublin, Ireland-based Ergo Group (https://www.ergogroup.ie/). You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/ZEWoVZ8Cz2g

Episode 128 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Business Applications MVP Dilyana Radulova (@DilyaRadulova), a Customer Engagement Consultant with Incremental Group (https://incrementalgroup.co.uk/) based in Renfrew, Scotland. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/FEGTFWGl6To

Episode 127 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Developer Technologies MVP Dara Oladapo (@DaraOladapo), a Principal Technical Learning Specialist and consultant with QA Ltd. (https://www.qa.com/) based in London, England. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/3oWHnm6EiEY

Episode 126 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Office Apps & Services MVP Shafina Hassam (@atShafina), Manager - Modern Workplace at BDO Canada (https://www.bdo.ca/). You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/3vaizwdufjU

Episode 125 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Business Applications MVP Dawid Ziolkowski (@365CornerDavid), an Office 365 and Power Platform Consultant with B3 Consulting Poland (https://www.b3.se/pl). You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/qBhXe-QBvPc

Episode 124 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Microsoft Azure MVP Maik van der Gaag (@maikvandergaag), Chief Technology Officer for Netherlands-based 3fifty (https://www.3fifty.eu/). You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/OweHMVxKvPk

Episode 122 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Developer Technologies MVP Melissa Houghton (@meliss_houghton), a Lead Software Engineer at Azenix in Melbourne, Australia. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/MEI6-kDePgk

Episode 122 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Azure MVP Jonah Andersson (@cjkodare), a Software Engineer and Certified Azure Developer at Forefront Consulting in Sundsvall, Sweden. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/ga6rLUArQ8c

Episode 121 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Office Apps & Services MVP Eric Marsi (@ericmarsi), a Unified Communications Engineer at T2M Works based in Barberton, Ohio. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/yAKtLHIDC98

Episode 120 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Enterprise Mobility MVP, Mattias Melkersen (@mmelkersen), a Modern Workplace Consultant at Mindcore in Birkerød, Denmark. He is also an official contributor at SCCM, and Intune Modern Workplace (Official Group Page). You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/Q6XwjqrJ3Q4

Episode 119 of the #MVPbuzzChat​​​​ series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Office Apps & Services MVP Kevin McDonnell (@kevmcdonk), a Solution Architect focused on Microsoft 365 at CPS, based in Sevenoaks, England. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/y14kufBuopo

Conversation between Microsoft MVP+RD Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet) and Jay Leask (@jayleask), US Federal Director, Strategic Accounts & Solutions at AvePoint. For this episode, Jay and I discuss the ins and outs of Microsoft 365 in the Federal cloud, including differences between the government-focused clouds, the commercial cloud, and international M365 instances. You can watch this entire interview on the CollabTalk YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/axNreKks2bA

Episode 118 of the #MVPbuzzChat​​​​ series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Business Applications MVP Jese Navaranjan (@JeseNav2), a Senior Microsoft Power Platform Consultant at Avanade based in Watford, England. You can also find this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page athttps://youtu.be/kbARqf1re3U

Episode 117 of the #MVPbuzzChat​​​​ series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Developer Technologies MVP Poornima Nayar (@PoornimaNayar), an independent .Net Developer, 2x Umbraco MVP (open source CMS), and active speaker and community member based in Slough, England. In this episode, Poornima and I discuss her involvement in the community and how it helped her achieve her Microsoft MVP, the impact of the pandemic on her local community, and how she learned (continues to learn) how to balance work, community, and family while fighting off FOMO (fear of missing out). We even talked about our kids and helping them find their own paths forward (even if they decide to not follow our footsteps into technology). You can also watch this entire episode on the CollabTalk YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/PsMTs8xOqhQ

Episode 116 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Office Development MVP Don Kirkham (@DonKirkham), a Lead Systems Consultant for GM Financial,and the CEO and Chief Architect for Probitas Data Solutions, based in Arlington, Texas. With over 15 years working with SharePoint, Office 365 and Azure and more than 30 years of programming experience, Don's passion is coding for the complete Microsoft ecosystem of cloud technologies, from database design to the user interface, including Business Intelligence solutions. He also spent 20 years as a pilot in the Air Force, accumulating over 4500 hours in various aircraft, including the T-1A, E-3B/C, and T-38. In this episode, Don and I retrace some of the history of his development work in SharePoint and Microsoft 365, going back to MOSS 2007, and talk about some of the changes to tool development in the space. He discusses the importance of mentoring others within the community, and credits a fellow MVP (Eric Shupps) with getting him on the path toward earning his MVP award. We also explore his involvement in the Patterns and Practices (PnP) community, with Don recommending that people take a look at https://pnp.github.io/sharing-is-caring/ as a starting point, and conclude our chat by discussing the annual North American Collaboration Summit and our shared plans to attend in-person again this year. You can also watch this entire episode on the CollabTalk YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/guqi9CqErmM

Episode 115 of the #MVPbuzzChat interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Enterprise Mobility MVP Joymalya "Joy" Basu Roy (@jbasuroy369), a Senior Consultant and Architect focusing on Microsoft Intune and M365 Digital Workplace Services at Atos, and is based in Bangalore, India. Additionally, he is an official contributor to the Modern Endpoint Management group, which focuses on the SCCM + Intune Modern Workplace. In this episode, Joy and I talk about his experience working on Microsoft Intune and Microsoft Endpoint Manager, and the shift that has happened with these technologies and many IT Pro roles as organizations have moved toward the cloud. He points out that there continues to be opportunities for these traditional IT roles as long as people are willing to continue learning -- and providing guidance to their organizations on how to best use, and optimize for, this rapidly evolving technology. Joy worked for several years for Microsoft and Wipro as a Premier Support Engineer, and shares some great advice on how to navigate the support process. You can also watch this entire episode on the CollabTalk YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/UAR5hXup1pc

Episode 114 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), and Office Apps & Services MVP Daniel Anderson (@sharepointfocus), a Product Evangelist and Partner Manager heading up the APAC team for Valo Intranet, and a long-time SharePoint and Microsoft 365 consultant based in Melbourne, Australia. In this episode, Daniel and I talk about his long career in the SharePoint community, and the need to remember (and share!) the fundamentals of the technology because the community continues to rapidly grow -- and new people need to know the basics before jumping into advanced topics. We then segue into a conversation around the Microsoft 365 Maturity Model and the focus on employee experiences, including the new Microsoft Viva announcement (and its impact on companies like Valo). You can also watch this entire episode on the CollabTalk YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/Xsk_MrNryiI

Episode 113 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, andfellow Office Apps & Services MVP Emily Mancini (@EEmancini), an Architect and the 4th MVP from Sympraxis Consulting, a member of Microsoft's Patterns and Practices (PnP) team, and a certified UX Master from Nielsen Norman Group, based in St. Petersburg, Florida. In this episode, Emily and I talk about some of her activities within the PnP community, and the work that she and the Sympraxis team are doing around the Microsoft Maturity Model, which is based off of the great work done years ago by community member Sadie Van Buren on the SharePoint Maturity Model. Emily shares some of her experiences in supporting change management and governance initiatives, which helped prepare her for her current role. You can also watch this entire episode on the CollabTalk YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/iGVis8Cyo54

Episode 112 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and dual MVP's in Business Applications and Microsoft Azure and Microsoft Regional Director Tobias Fenster (@tobiasfenster), an Ulm, Germany-based information technology professional skilled in IT strategy, Software as a Service (SaaS), solution architecture, software development, and Docker. Tobias is also the Chief Technology Officer for Cosmo Consult. In this episode, Tobias and I discussed his activities with Business Central, Microsoft's cloud-based ERP solution for small and midsize organizations. While Business Central is his primary focus, he also writes and speaks on topics such as Docker containers, Azure DevOps, Visual Studio, Azure automation, and the broader Dynamics ERP space. We also talked a little bit about our shared experiences in the manufacturing sector, and the growth of Dynamics over the past few years as more companies are turning to Microsoft for flexible CRM and ERP solutions. You can also watch this entire episode on the CollabTalk YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/9XNqsZyHmnk

Episode 111 of the #MVPbuzzChat​ series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Business Applications MVP Oleksandr Olashya (@dancingwithcrm), a certified Dynamics 365 Architect and MCT with experience in CRM 2015 and Dynamics 365 for CE, and a CRM Architect with 3shape. In this episode, Oleksandr and I joked about the "need" for more dance-centric development interfaces, but then talked extensively about how much of his time is focused on building out PowerApps Portals. We talk talked about some of the changes to the space, and how with the latest API advances, Microsoft has really expanded the capabilities of these portals. Oleksandr points out that while more development skills are needed to master the PowerApps Portals, the tools are more powerful than ever -- albeit pushing the limits of being considered "low code" solutions. You can also watch this entire episode on the CollabTalk YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/z3AO0PZ5fgE

Episode 110 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Office Apps & Services MVP Johnny Lopez (@rockett_15), a Microsoft 365 expert and Managing Consultant for Catapult Systems who is based in Houston, Texas. Johnny spent over 10 years in the US Navy, which is where he cut his teeth on SharePoint by deploying SPS2003, and is the President for the Houston Office 365 Community and the co-leader in the Houston Power Platform User Group. In this episode, Johnny and I discuss his passion for technology, community, and family. We talk about his background and path into the MVP program, specifically talking about the importance of mentoring -- both in how it helped him along his journey, but also on its importance as he looks for ways to give back to the community. You can also watch this entire episode on the CollabTalk YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/_tOdlI3T_BM

Episode 109 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Business Applications MVP Mary Thompson, a Dynamics Angels Guru at Cooper Parry specializing in Business Central and the Power Platform, based in Columbia, South Carolina. Recorded in November 2020. In this episode, Mary and I discuss her experiencing working with partners as a functional consultant to help them get set up with the essentials of Dynamics 365 Business Central, and shares some of her experiences in helping organizations and coaching individuals on making the shift to the cloud. You can also watch this entire episode on the CollabTalk YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/gyy0UA1zuSo

Episode 108 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Microsoft Azure MVP Martyn Coupland (@mrcoups), a UK-based Senior Azure Consultant with Ensono, where he focuses on Microsoft Azure deployments and the adoption of DevOps. In this episode, Martyn and I discuss his path to becoming an MVP (he was awarded for the first time this week!) and his career within the IT and engineering operations world. Martyn credits much of his growth and success on his participation in the community, providing a great perspective for those who want to grow in their careers, and possibly strive to become a Microsoft MVP. He shares how his passion for problem-solving and solution-building was the key to his success within the DevOps space. You can also watch this entire interview on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/aTZoHXlx0sE

Episode 8 of this Microsoft employee-focused interview series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Chris Slemp (@cslemp), a former Microsoft MVP who is currently a Customer Success Manager on the Modern Workplace team for Microsoft UK, based in Scotland. Recorded in July 2020. In this episode, Chris and I talk about his history with social collaboration and community management within Microsoft, and how he fell into his dream job as a CSM, moving from Washington State to Scotland. You can watch the entire interview on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/89j5kVqpk_s

Episode 107 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Microsoft Regional Director and Cloud and Datacenter Management MVP Ahmed Nabil Mahmoud (@ITCalls_ANabil), a regional senior information security and risk manager for Standard Chartered Bank, MBA and PMP, and C|CISO advisory board member for EC-Council who is based out of UAE. Recorded in September 2020. In this episode, Ahmed and I discuss his "origin story" for the MVP and RD programs, beginning with his efforts to catalog all of his ideas and thoughts on technology through his blog, and how that expanded and opened up opportunities within information security and digital transformation. On the latter, Ahmed talks about how previously underserved communities are being transformed by technology, and how our collective community efforts play a large part in this growth and prosperity. You can find this entire episode and other MVP and RD interviews on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/3gnQ6hZF6mo

Episode 106 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Microsoft Regional Director and Office Apps & Services MVP Jennifer Mason (@jennifermason), an author and popular speaker, and the VP of Workforce Learning and Transformation at Planet Technologies. Recorded in August 2020. In this episode, Jennifer and I discuss some of the nuances between the MVP and RD programs, as well as the many different technical paths and certifications within the Microsoft ecosystem. Jennifer shares that she is "allergic to anything with syntax and semicolons" and instead focuses on out-of-the-box features that improve personal and organizational productivity and adoption, showing how they can impact and transform a business. We also talk about the shift in the expert community over the years from the heavily dev and IT Pro-focused content 7-10 years ago to more end user and power user-focused scenarios, showing the broader adoption and maturity of Microsoft's collaboration technology, especially in this era of remote working. You can also watch this episode and others on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/CUD_mOBYLW8

Episode 105 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Microsoft Regional Director Kate Carruthers (@kcarruthers), Chief Data & Insights Officer for the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, and an Adjunct Senior Lecturer in the School of Computer Science & Engineering. Additionally, Kate is a Certified Information Security Manager, and the co-host of the podcast Conversations with Annie & Kate. Recorded in August 2020. In this episode, Kate and I discuss her path in data science and cybersecurity, and the growing importance of data analysis and insights within the education sector. Specifically, we talk about how her university (the administration, faculty, and students) are increasingly leveraging these data capabilities -- and how they are using data to provide additional services and automation. You can also watch this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/2lHZ6HeElqQ

Episode 104 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Microsoft Regional Director and Developer Technologies MVP, Esteban Garcia (@estebanfgarcia), SVP of Azure and DevOps at Orlando, Florida-based New Signature, and Pluralsight author. Recorded in July 2020. In this episode, Esteban and I discuss the differences between a Regional Director and an MVP, and since joining the MVP ranks as an ALM MVP in 2012, how Microsoft has evolved in the DevOps space, from TFS to Visual Studio Online to Azure DevOps, and how the migration toward the cloud has pushed this change forward. Esteban also shares his thoughts on what Microsoft got right in their acquisition and integration of GitHub. You can also watch this episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/pSrDNhz9WNY

Episode 103 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Microsoft Regional Director and Data Platform MVP, Andrew Brust (@andrewbrust), founder and CEO of Blue Badge Insights, a Big Data and Analytics correspondent and blogger at ZDNet, and the Research Director for Big Data and Analytics for GigaOm, and is based in New York City. Recorded in July 2020. In this episode, Andrew and I discuss his path into consulting and analyst roles, and the evolution of "big data" into his current focus on data analysis, artificial intelligence, and data mining. Andrew also shares some insights into the future of machine learning and cognitive services, and how Microsoft is trying to make this technology more accessible for the masses. You can watch this entire episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/vZhTl3ZsS28

Episode 102 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Microsoft Regional Director, Oscar Garcia Colon (@almlatam), Chief Technology Officer for Allied Global BPO, Professor of Computer Science at Universidad del Istmo, as well as Professor of Strategic Management and lead for the Masters program for Project Management at Universidad Galileo, based in Guatemala. He is an active member of the PMI Chapter Guatemala, a Visual Studio ALM Ranger with Microsoft, and a Scrum Master for open source projects such as Glimpse, connector for Joomla, and Droopal for Applications insights, among others. Recorded in July 2020. In this episode, Oscar and I talk about his path into technology, including involvement with just about every product in the Microsoft Office family, and his long list of community activities -- including being president of the technology committee in the American Chamber of Commerce in Guatemala. It was great to hear Oscar's perspectives on the opportunities in technology in Central America, and how he is leveraging his role as a Regional director to help further expand these opportunities within the region. You can watch this entire video on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/FbkQvhpnOXI

Episode 101 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Microsoft Regional Director and Developer Technologies MVP, Gill Cleeren (@gillcleeren), a consultant, Xamarin MVP, Pluralsight author, and the CTO at Xpirit in Belgium. He is also the founder of Techorama, the biggest IT conference in Belgium, and runs Visug, the .NET user group in Belgium. In this episode, Gill and I walk through his path into technology, and discuss recommendations for those graduating or entering the workforce on where to focus -- while also recognizing that many of the "fresh faces" we see in the Microsoft ecosystem are older and/or more focused on the enterprise, albeit more experienced. We then talk about some ways that we in the community can reach out and encourage younger people to get involved with Microsoft technology, and with the community. You can also watch this entire episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/xf8DQ2w-0t0

Episode 100 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Microsoft Regional Director and Data Platform MVP, Reza Rad (@Rad_Reza), an author, trainer, speaker, and founder and consultant at Radacad, based in New Zealand. Recorded in July 2020. Reza is a 10-time business intelligence and data platform MVP, an active blogger, and a community organizer who helps organize the annual Difinity Conference, the largest Microsoft Data, AI, Power BI, Power Platform and Business Applications conference in New Zealand focusing on Data Platform, AI, Business Intelligence, Business Applications, Power Platform, and Analytics. In this episode, Reza and I talk about the evolution of the Data Platform category within the MVP program, and how Microsoft adjusts their focus areas from time to time as the technology evolves. We also have a great discussion on the data preparation and "clean up" that needs to happen before you can build your data visualizations, the learning curve, and the complexities and benefits of understanding your data. We also talk about how data science is one of the fastest growing job categories across almost every industry. You can watch this entire interview on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/0giRbAehA-8

Episode 99 of the #MVPbuzzChat series. Conversation between Microsoft Regional Director and MVP Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), Founder & CEO of CollabTalk LLC, and Microsoft Regional Director and dual-MVP in Azure and Developer Technologies, Rainer Stropek (@rstropek), co-founder and CEO of the company Software Architects, as well as an active coder, presenter, trainer, and author of numerous books and articles on C#, web and database development, and Microsoft Azure, and is based in Austria. Recorded in July 2020. In this episode, Rainer and I discuss his coding background and the start of his company, and how he was able to turn his passion into a growing business, creating SaaS IP and helping organization make the transition into the cloud. He also shares some of his current technology interests, including Rust (https://www.rust-lang.org/), and his work to build up the community around this new programming language, including https://rust-linz.at/. Rainer is also a very passionate about community and his participation in the .Net Foundation, and is a strong advocate for STEM learning through https://coderdojo.com/. You can also watch this entire episode on the CollabTalk YouTube page at https://youtu.be/SQ_1QJVIfWE