Category Archives: MVP

The VeeamVanguard and Microsoft MVP Community is about more than the vendor programs

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Introduction

I have been a Microsoft MVP and a Veeam Vanguard for quite some time now, which suggests that I share experiences, insights, knowledge, and feedback with the global IT community at large.

Community activities are as diverse as their members and their personalities. But in most cases, these activities involve adding something to the community they are part of. It is, or should not be, about what’s in it for me, even when that community will rise to help you should the need arise, but about us all. We all trip and fall at certain moments in our lives, both personally and professionally, meaning we all need help at times.

Helping those who need some assistance

One of the things I do is help where and when I can to ensure that the senior citizens I know or am aware of have their connectivity needs met as well as possible. That is particularly important for them if they rely on personal care and alarm systems, as well as some basic home automation, which makes living at home not only easier but also possible.

I don’t do such things through a non-profit organization; it’s simply a matter of rising to the occasion when the need and opportunity present themselves. Recently, a little “project” presented itself that required some network gear to complete.

Anyway, there was a need for excellent connectivity and a decent backup of any critical system(s). So, I offer my skills and time. I have some spare lab parts, but not all the items I need. This project required some wireless access points that can be easily and correctly configured and managed. So, what does one do? Ask for help from companies that might have surplus gear after hardware refreshes. I have used Aruba (IAP versions) and UniFi in the past. Any kit that works without expensive, high-end controller requirements and continues to function without requiring support contracts does the job. In some instances, flashing proprietary hardware with OpenWrt helps leverage hardware that does not work or cannot be maintained without a subscription.

For this project, I acquired some donated TP-Link Omada gear that was perfect for the job at hand.

What also came in handy is the community edition or free software from Veeam, which is available without subscriptions or costs, provided it is not installed by consultants or for profit. Hence, I give some schooling and training to ensure that the most tech-savvy person can take care of it. I help, explain, and offer advice on some aspects, but they ultimately get the job done.

I also needed a gateway/router/firewall. While in this case, I might consider installing a TP-Link gateway if I ever get my hands on one, but for now, an older model proprietary firewall I recovered and flashed with OPNsense Community Edition fills that role.

Preaching

We live in a polarized world, where division hinders progress. Social media bombards us with a tsunami of bad news that can keep you doomscrolling 24/7 if you fall into that trap. Instead, apply your skills to do something that improves the lives of people who need some assistance. It doesn’t have to be big in terms of size or money. It does not have to make the news or require Herculean effort.

All it takes is some effort and some time on your part, but it can also be fun to do. Did I do this alone? The people themselves got involved; the business I asked to donate hardware delivered the gear. The cabling came from dumpster diving. The firewall is an “obsolete” proprietary firewall appliance flashed with OPNsense community edition. Is the setup perfect? Nope, but it is excellent and does a fantastic job, way better than ever before!

You also have some skills, time, or materials to help out people. Just do it.

I was re-awarded as a Microsoft MVP – Cloud and Datacenter Management 2023-2024

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I was re-awarded as a Microsoft MVP – Cloud and Datacenter Management 2023-2024

While I was on vacation I received an e-mail that I was re-awarded as a Microsoft MVP – Cloud and Datacenter Management 2023-2024. Needless to say that this put a big smile on my face, despite my vacation coming to an end. Yes it is and remains an honor to be awarded and recognized as a global expert in the community by Microsoft. We all like a compliment and some confirmation that what we do is valuable. As always, it is also a humbling experience, as you meet quite a lot of very talented people which can make that old imposter syndrome flare up.

I was re-awarded as a Microsoft MVP - Cloud and Datacenter Management 2023-2024

For those not in the know, MVP in this case stands for Most Valuable Professional, not Player 😊.

I was re-awarded as a Microsoft MVP - Cloud and Datacenter Management 2023-2024

This is my 12th Microsoft MVP award and it represents a long journey through technology in the Microsoft ecosystem. In tech things seems to change fast and tend not to last long. But it is the learning you do along the way that last through time. Nothing I have learned has ever become completely obsolete and the experience and inights, even from learning VBA and Visual Basic in the early days still help me today as I talk to developers whose Azure infrastructure I help optimize and secure.

I am grateful for the recognition and support of both the community and Microsoft. Especially to the people who originally saw my potential and supported my first-ever nomination as well as those that support me today. The award itself is not the goal, it is a by-product of being active in the global community. Engaging in and with the community helps us all learn, progress, and succeed in our jobs by sharing experiences, knowledge, and insights.

It is all about community

Without any doubt, no matter how good and smart you are or how hard you work, we need others to grow and flourish. You do not contribute to the community in isolation. Sure, IT pros do a lot of technology work individually while testing and learning in the lab, troubleshooting, and delivering projects. Sharing and learning in the community happens with and thanks to others. People who give us opportunities, support, and help us. That means fellow technologists, employers, colleagues, vendors, and our audience asking questions that make us learn even more as well.

Aditionally, let’s not forget about the people who are not in the spotlight. We get a lot of support from those providing locations, material, and logistic support. Many “smaller” businesses are often very generous in this regard. We are all “kids” getting raised in and by a village and in one form or another we all stand on the shoulder of giants. That’s why we all owe at least a little gratitude to all the people and organizations that help us progress. So to all those who do, thank you!

Some tips for businesses that employ MVPs

In the end, here is to another year of community activity where we all share, learn, and grow together. You can always start today. There is no age limit or right time. I was a long time lurker before I became publicly active voicing my opinions and sharing information. You can be an introvert or extrovert, young or old, and anything in between. All you need is the willingness to share and learn. Furthermore, you don’t need 50,000 followers on social media or whatever, you just need to make a difference.

Finally, I can only advise employers to support their community-minded employees. These are the people that learn, grow, adapt, and change with the needs and technology. Also, the incidental cost of travel, registration fees, and hotel nights are nothing compared to the return on investment. So let them attend some conferences and the MVP Summit

Well, to be honest, not supporting this would be penny-wise and pound-foolish. In the end that would mean you have no idea of the value of both developing and retaining talent. An MVP on staff will very easily safe you at least 30-40 days consulting per year. Think about that. Without any doubt, even at a medium rate of 125.00- $/hour means a serious ROI. Now add the cost of replacing such talent … it is a no brainer! You need to invest in on-board talent development anyhow and these are profiles that love to learn and share. That is a near to perfect as it gets people.

I received the Microsoft MVP Award 2020

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I received the Microsoft MVP Award 2020

Yesterday I received the email informing me that I received the Microsoft MVP Award 2020. July 1st is that time of the year that as a Microsoft MVP you find out if you are renewed for the new fiscal year. I was. That was cause for a celebration. But I had to wait a bit to shout out my happiness as I was in a Teams meeting on Veeam Backup for Azure.

I received the Microsoft MVP Award 2020

I enjoy being a Microsoft MVP

I am thrilled to be awarded as an MVP again. To this day I remain in the Cloud & Datacenter category which is a very good fit for me. As I do indeed work across both worlds. That’s where I help fill the gap to ensure digital transformations go smooth & you don’t lose out wherever you run your solutions. There are many creative solutions to be designed in hybrid scenarios and at the edge. Places where you can investigate, research, and find opportunities to build those creative solutions.

People who follow me know I don’t just copy/paste “best practices.” I research what works best and come up with ways to leverage technologies. I apply out of the box thinking to deliver excellent value for money efficiently and effectively. Then, I share my experiences and what I learn by writing, blogging, and speaking. That includes my successes and failures, as we learn from both.

What do I do?

I like to work end to end. The full-stack. No silos. There is no hiding behind another team or blocking another team. You could describe me as a multi-pronged T. Various prongs go deeper based on need or interest. But there are many and the T is wide so we can act and work without needing to much help to get something going. For one, this also enables me to give feedback with enough real-world knowledge to be valuable. Secondly, it keeps me honest. I do not just do design, I deploy it and support it. It has to work. I dislike support or consulting with tunnel vision or that design only for maximum profit instead of for the need at hand. My approach leaves money for better solutions and saves money in the long run. What I learn and see I take back to Microsoft in feedback, in discussion and interactions with the program managers. That is valuable for me as well as I learn a lot from them as well. In the end, it leads to better products and experiences for all of the community and customers.

I received the Microsoft MVP Award 2020

I enjoy being a Microsoft MVP for the opportunities it gives me to learn and share with like-minded people from all over the globe. While it takes a village to raise a child, the child needs to get out of the village into the world to evolve and keep learning. Today that is easier then ever before thanks to technology which eliminates many boundaries.

2020 is a bit of a special year

Talking about the globe at the time of writing. In a time of Corona and COVID-19 running amok in the world, it is our technology that makes this still possible while we do not travel en limit ourselves for the better good of all. I am proud to say that our technologies were in place to go in lockdown immediately without having to scramble for solutions. telecommuting is something we did already routinely and technologies could scale up and out, both on-premises and in the cloud, both in the areas where they excel.

That, combined with living in a country where we have universal healthcare and social benefits (taxes for the better good of all) helped ease the blow we all received. We all have shortcomings. But as a nation, businesses, and people we were ready, willing, and able to do what needed to be done.

All this means that this year and next year we do not have an in-person MVP Summit.

I received the Microsoft MVP Award 2020
A reminder of great times in Redmond & Bellevue

That saddens me. The face to face discussions from breakfast till literally in the hotel hallways before we go to sleep are priceless. Those chats with our peers and Microsoft employees are very insightful rewarding and educational. That experience and intensity are hard to recreate in a virtual event. We are all eager to get past lockdown, social distancing, and travel restrictions. We can only achieve this by self-discipline and acting responsibly at our own personal and local level. That and relentless efforts to find a vaccine, which, hopefully, will grant us back some of the privileges we enjoy.

Good intentions for 2020-2021

While I am very happy to receive the Microsoft MVP Award 2020 I want to make sure all recipients feel appreciated and are able to be themselves in our community. I plan to pay extra care into making sure that diversity, inclusiveness, and equity are always on the radar. My extra effort in order to keep the community a welcome and safe place for all.

A small gift

As a special give on the 1st of July, Microsoft made Azure Firewall Manager generally available. I have been working with this in preview the last couple of months. Today I am very pleased I can start using it in production!

Microsoft MVP Award 2018-2019

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I received the Microsoft MVP Award 2018-2019

While on vacation I received some excellent news. I received the Microsoft MVP Award 2018-2019. I’m an Microsoft Most Valuable Professional in the Cloud & Datacenter expertise for another year!

Dear Didier Van Hoye,
We’re once again pleased to present you with the 2018-2019 Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) award in recognition of your exceptional technical community leadership. We appreciate your outstanding contributions in the following technical communities during the past year:

  • Cloud and Datacenter Management

Image result for microsoft mvp award

It’s a moment of appreciation of our work in the global community. I feel both proud an humble to be part of this select group of experts chosen to be recognized by Microsoft and be awarded the Microsoft MVP Award 2018-2019. Basically it puts a smile on my face.

What does this mean?

I have another year to look forward to as a Microsoft MVP. I’ll be sharing, teaching, discussing, designing and implementing the best possible solutions. I blog, write articles, engage in webinars and speak at conferences. I also help out fellow IT professionals and MVPs when and where possible. The community exist because we contribute, not just take. But I do know I can ask for help when I need it. A big thank you to all Microsoft employees I engage with. Your patience and willingness to listen to us, even when it might be “constructive feedback” and not always praise, helps us all. I appreciate the opportunity. One very nice success this year of such collaboration was to get ReFS support extended to many more use cases.

Every year I try to make it too some of the best and most interesting conferences to learn, exchange experiences, discuss and share knowledge as both a presenter and attendee. That take a bite out of my personal time budget and sometimes even my financial budget. Both of those have limits. But that is the investment I make in myself and the community. You cannot solely depend on your employer or job for your professional advancement. They have different agendas that don’t always align.  To broaden you horizon, prevent tunnel vision and (deadly) echo chambers you need to step out of your workplace cocoon. Luckily I’m blessed with the opportunity to attend & speak at conferences where travel and expenses get paid by the organizers.  That helps a lot.

Thank you for reading, for attending my sessions, for listening to the webinars I join as a subject matter expert. You help me be a better me. Being an MVP allows me to interact with very smart people around the globe. It lets me contribute to and learn from very interesting challenges and  projects. That exposure helps me grow as I help others. It allows me to provide even more well founded feedback to Microsoft. This mutual beneficial relationship is the core of community and what being a MVP is all about.