Tag: Professional Development

Speaking at #DataWeekender 6.5

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Super excited to share that I have been selected to speak at Data Weekender 6.5 on Saturday, November 4, 2023. I will be presenting my session, Can Microsoft Purview Answer All Your Data Governance Needs?

Data Weekender is a free virtual conference that was born out of the global pandemic and is still going strong. I am super excited to be involved with it again. It’s run by a great group of folks that are super passionate about data, just like I am. There are tons of great sessions by some wonderful speakers, you can check out the schedule here.

I hope you’ll come join us, there’s still time to register. I’d love to see you there.

..And The New Adventure Has Begun

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I am so happy to announce that I have joined the team at Fortified Data. I have just completed my first week (well, four days) and I feel like I have found my work home. Everyone is so genuine and happy. It’s a nice breath of fresh air.

Fortified’s core values align with mine and I look forward to working with clients to create solutions that will enable them to be successful on their data journey.

My onboarding consisted of unique challenges that promoted teamwork, paperwork (of course!), and some unique experiences, including getting stuck in an elevator (not part of the actual onboarding, but we worked as a team to get unstuck), discovering an awesome French bakery, and going the wrong way on a one-way street (again, not part of the actual onboarding, but we worked as a team to get turned around).

Can’t wait to see what other unique experiences come next.

Exciting New Adventures Ahead

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Some of you may know that I went to work for BlueGranite a little over four years ago. It was humbling to be part of such a talented team there, leadership included. BlueGranite was very client centric and truly valued working with clients to create the best solution.

Last year, BlueGranite was acquired by 3Cloud Solutions. We went from less than 80 people in a very flat structure to over 700 people and 7 layers of management overnight, this was a difficult transition for me for many reasons.

I thoroughly enjoyed being part of BlueGranite, but the company culture at 3Cloud is different. It’s not bad or good, it’s just not for me.

So, after almost a year I have decided to start a new adventure. Today is my last day with 3Cloud and I wish those at 3Cloud all the best.

Now, off to start my new adventure!

PS – more on my new adventure soon

Speaking for Future Data Driven Summit 2023

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I am excited to announce that I have been selected to speak for the Future Data Driven Summit 2023. This is a free online conference, on Wednesday, 27-September-2023, for data folks focusing on the Microsoft Data Stack.

I will be delivering my new Getting Started With Governance For Your Power BI Estate session. This is a new session, and super excited to be able to deliver this.

There is still time to register for this event. Did I mention it’s free? What are you waiting for, go register and I’ll see you on the 27th.

Speaking at Live! 360

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I am super excited to announce that I have been selected to speak at SQL Server Live! in Orlando in November. I have selected to present two sessions, which are completely new.

I will be presenting Power BI Data Wrangling – Choosing the Best Feature for the Job and Getting Started with Governance for Your Power BI Estate. Both are currently scheduled for Tuesday, 14-November-2023, though schedules are always subject to change, so be sure to double check the schedule as the event gets closer.

While this is super exciting, it’s also bittersweet. This will be the first time in over 15 years that I have not attended PASS Data Community Summit, because Live! 360 runs the same week. It was a tough decision for me, but due to my recent physical limitations, I decided to opt for Live! 360 because travel will be significantly easier (and honestly, the weather in Orlando in November is much better than Seattle in November).

Please stop by and say, “Hi” if you’re in Orlando, I’d love see you.

I’m Speaking at #SQLSatBrisbane

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I’ve always wanted to go to Australia, in fact we have a trip planned for Martin’s 60th birthday in a couple of years.  But with all that’s happened in this social distancing world, we’re not sure if it will even be possible by then.  So, when SQL Saturday Brisbane (986) decided to go virtual, I jumped at the opportunity to attend and possibly even present.  I submitted my sessions and crossed all my fingers and toes.  I am excited and honored to announce that I’ve been selected to speak at this event on May 30, 2020!

I will be delivering my Intro to Azure Data Catalog session.  I really like this session, so many people have no idea that it exists, let alone what it can do for you.  To be able to see the light go on in their eyes during this session is the absolute best.  Even though I won’t be able to see their faces, because it’s a virtual event, I am still super excited.

Join me “down under” for what will be a fantastic event with 28 different sessions being offered by some really great presenters.  There’s still time to register.

I’m Speaking at #SQLSatRVA

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I am super excited, and humbled, to have been selected to speak at the very first PASS virtual SQL Saturday, SQL Saturday Richmond, on Saturday, April 25, 2020.

I find it very fitting that my first virtual SQL Saturday will be for Richmond.  As some of you know from previous posts, Richmond holds a special place in my technical heart.  It is the first SQL Saturday I was ever accepted to speak at three years ago.  It was the first SQL Saturday to allow me to do a pre-con.  But most importantly, Richmond is where I got to drive a go kart for the very first time in my life.  All these firsts are thanks to Wayne Sheffield (B | T).  He’s the lead organizer for SQL Saturday Richmond.

I will be presenting my Intro to Azure Data Catalog session.  It was a huge hit with our local user group when I presented it back in January this year.  If you’re “jones-ing” for a SQL Saturday fix, then get registered and stop on by.  There are some great sessions being offered and I’d love to “see” you.

I’m Speaking at #DataPlatformDiscoveryDay

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We are living in some very interesting times and the technical conference community is facing some challenges like it never has before.  So many in-person events have been postponed or cancelled.  For those who are speakers, like myself, this have been very challenging.  I have worked from home for over eight years, so the new “norm” is just the same old same old for me.   But I used my speaking engagements as a way to connect with others in the tech community on a fairly regular basis.  Now that this has been put on hold for who knows how long, I’m having a tough time staying connected.

I am very fortunate that I work in an area that is still very much in high demand and still employed, unlike many others who have been furloughed or laid off.  With so many people unemployed now more than ever in the world, many of those folks are contemplating a career change.  Thankfully, I have a fellow Data Platform MVP in the US who has partnered with a colleague in Europe to bring a new kind of tech conference to those who are looking to break into the data platform arena.  Oh, and it’s virtual – and it’s free! So you don’t have to leave your home and if you are on a tight budget, you don’t have to spend a thing.

I am so honored to have been selected to speak at this first of it’s kind, beginner-virtual-free conference, Data Platform Discovery Day.  I will be presenting my What is Power BI session, so if you’ve ever wondered about Power BI and have some free time on your hands, then come join me on Wednesday, April 29, 2020.  There are lots of great introductory sessions out there, here’s the US sessions list and the European sessions list.  There’s still time to register for the US Sessions or register for the UK sessions.

I hope you are all doing well and staying home and staying safe.

Using Power BI To Track My Activities

~ sqlswimmer ~ 2 Comments

As a MS MVP one of the things you have to do is keep track of all the “things” you do for community, whether it be volunteering, organizing, speaking, etc.  It can be a bit daunting trying to keep track of all of it.  But hey, I’m a Data Platform MVP, how hard can it be to keep track of data?!  Queue music from one of my favorite Blake Edwards movie .. Pink Panther.

At first I was just keeping track of everything in a text file via Notepad.  That got very unmanageable very quickly with all the different kinds of things I was doing.  I migrated all my data to a spreadsheet, because we all know that Excel is the most popular database in the world, right?

I knew that I had been busy in 2018, but I had no idea until I used Power BI to look at my data.  Yes, I was significantly busier in 2018 than I ever had been and 2019 is shaping up to be just the same if not busier.

Take a look at what I created.  It was a fun project to work on and allowed me to explore some things in Power BI that I don’t work with on a regular basis.  Let me know what you think.

Speaking at SQL Saturday Atlanta (#652)

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I am so excited and honored to have been selected to speak at SQL Saturday Atlanta (#652) this year.  This is huge event where I’ve been a volunteer and attendee in the past, but this will be my first time as a speaker.

I will be presenting my session What is Power BI?  I’ve presented this session a couple of times in the past but will be updating it to contain information regarding the changes that go into effect June 1, 2017.

If you are close to Atlanta on July 15, 2017, please stop by and say “Hello”, I’d love to see you.

#SQLSatATL