 Hey everybody, this is Christian Buckley doing another MVP Buzz Chat. I'm talking today with Diana. Hello. Hi, Christian. Well, thanks for inviting me to your podcast. Yeah, it's great to have you. And for folks that don't know, don't know who you are, who are you, where are you, and what do you do? This is Diana. I am a Colombian, Microsoft MVP living in the US, based out in the Seattle area. I've been for more than 13 years actually in the technology field. I'm a systems engineer. That's my background. And I've been mostly in the IT side and doing lots of consultancy and working with Microsoft partners for the most. And also a community leader. Of course, I am co-founder of the women's voice IT community in Latin America. And also a community leader for the Boston healthcare technology user group and the Boston power platform community out here in the US, you know, grow my network. I've been here in the US for a little bit more of two years, almost three years. It's a prize. And so yeah, I'm so glad for this opportunity and get to know more, you know, more people in the community as well. Well, this is great. And for folks too, we were just chatting before we started recording is that, you know, cloud and data center management MVP, like, what does that include? Like, what's your focus within that? I know, you know, when people hear about the MVP is like, whoa. And if, you know, by any mean, I'm not, you know, expert in everything and cloud and data center management is one of those that includes a lot because it is like, I would say like the hybrid category in the MVP hour. And so we, you know, most of the MPs in our area knows about the technologies and the infrastructure in general of Microsoft inside and hybrid the cloud, you know. So I really love how, you know, we are able to understand, you know, the architecture of a company or a project and understanding networks, security, identity, the solutions and they can connect, you know, all that environment. And so it's great to me to orchestrate and understand everything in general, you know, like knowing a little bit of everything for the solutions. Well, it sounds like to me, you know, of course, I've been in, you know, been for a long time, like the marketing guide that's in engineering organizations, which is kind of weird thing, but surrounded by like the traditional networking engineer, you know, the like network operations folks, you know, back in the day was a while back that would do all the desktop support. So before so much was automated and things, but they were, you know, building and supporting the builds that were on the laptops or the desktop units that we get as employees and making sure we're connected and when there's any problems, they would come and wire things and make sure that we're running. And a lot of those people that I worked with as the shift started to be made towards, you know, SaaS solutions, they started to do a lot of the networking and the data center side of those things because you still need to have people that have knowledge of all those systems and those processes and how to stay connected, how to work with those services, you know, within your organization. And that's the transition that they made. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, it's still a role in, I mean, if you think about where is the cloud, there is a huge massive data centers that of course, lots of things are automated, but there's still people like it's not, you know, that conversation that our jobs are going to disappear. Right. That was a huge concern for a lot of the people that were in those roles was like, what's going to happen to my job? They never really went, maybe there are, I'm sure there were people that, you know, lost their jobs and a lot of those companies realized they made mistakes and went and rebuilt those teams because they realized, hey, we need to have these people that still understand these things. Sure. But you know, I think it was at the same time a big step in technology because it really was, from my perspective, an opportunity to reimagine or to go forward with other roles. Like when it started happening, a, you know, data sciences start to appear in technology and AI and lots of machine learning and other like branches in the technology side, you know, like before was like Devs and IT, you know, and then a little bit of people that work with SQL and data like in the middle. No, it's a huge umbrella like for mobile for cloud solutions for AI. And now, you know, the metaverse and lots and lots of things that people can, you know, look for their technical careers. So it's really cool, you know, it was not a thing that make actually us, you know, an infrastructure disappear. Not it was really an evolution for technology. Well, there is so much that's going on. And I mean, the data around like the number of services of cloud services that the average company uses, it's an incredible, you know, number for some organizations, hundreds of different solutions. And there needs to be somebody there managing all of that and, and keeping that organized and understanding the differences, the nuances between those things. Well, so, so you've talked a little bit like you say you've been doing this this role for a while, like, what was your path to becoming an MVP? So what did you do anything different or did just just fall in the sky just happen? No, not, not happen, you know, and, okay, I'm gonna try to be to be short, but and so when I was, I was studying my my first bachelor, because I have to. And so I was, I was actually the youngest, I mean, probably student ever, because I finished my school when I was 15 years old. And I went right away to the university. Oh, me, me too. I was, I was okay. So being a woman, right? So I was just that little kid. And, you know, starting my career in technology were pretty much I had just like two, two other girls in my classroom. So it was a little bit awkward. Yeah, and not easy. I almost gave up in my career. But, you know, I persevered in learning and exploring technology in different ways. And so I remember I was liking for semester in my career. And just, we just had a conference in at the university and we were all invited to go to the auditorium. I'm like, yeah, let's go. And it was, it was a conference led by the Microsoft student partners and some folks from Microsoft Columbia, because if if you don't know, and you're listening to this, I'm from Columbia. Yes. And so I went to that conference. And I really like it, you know, was something about Visual Studio. And I am like, whoa, Microsoft, like, honestly, I didn't know what Microsoft was at that time. So I went back to my next class. And I Google Microsoft. And I, and I saw that at the offices in the subsidiary, they had like a conference and free events, like, you know, like, I'm like, whoa, I kind of want to go. Then I click and register. Next, next day, I finished my my classes. And, and I went to the Microsoft. And, you know, it wasn't kind of awkward because there was, you know, people in the room and just one woman. And then I went there to the big building, like for the first time in my life. And I was like, yeah, like, they're like, where are you going? And I'm like, well, I'm attending this conference. And then I went there. And I sat at the very back because all people was like, looked older to me. And I was like, whoa, I feel, I feel weird. But I sat there and I tend and I tried to understand because it was a little bit like, I mean, I'm sure a lot of new stuff and lots. Yeah. Yeah. And then someone approached me and say, you know, if I was looking like for my dad or something, I'm like, no. I'm like, no, I'm a student and I have fun about this even and I wanted to attend. And so that was my introduction with Microsoft. But I kept attending and I really liked it. And I started understanding and learning more about Microsoft. And then I started my internship. And I went to a company that, you know, they're a big communication company. They run like many team. And tell her, what is this? Like different call centers. Sorry, I was okay. So like a telecom call center support centers? Yeah, exactly. So I was there in the IT department, managing the servers already. And yeah. So that was the first step for me because I was starting to meeting people at Microsoft. And then like a year to years after, maybe they invite me, hey, you should, you know, become a technical influencer. And, you know, and then I was like, I was probably 19 years old if I'm right. And I, I got ready for the stage and I delivered my first conference in the Microsoft Columbia subsidiary. And well, that was the big first step. Then I became a student partner. I was in that program for like nine years. And I'm in, in the 2015, I'm, you know, someone told me about the Microsoft MVP program. And I knew a little bit about the program already. But I'm like, well, should I? Okay, let's do that. And I went through the process and, and then in that year, I was recognized. And I haven't checked, you know, two days, but there's not many women in the cloud and data centers and management expertise. I believe I'm still the only one in our category in all the Latin area. And, you know, still one of the youngest, but actually we're getting more youngest people from the student ambassadors. So that's pretty exciting. That is, I think, so I've known two that were, I think both were 18 when they received their MVP that had kind of a similar like a student. And one of them is the daughter of a good friend of mine. And both of them are so father daughter MVPs. Paul Kolmsy and his daughter Ashley out of Perth, Australia. And there was another young man that he was from Malaysia or Singapore, who was like 18 as well. But it's, but did something similar like both of them in like high school got involved with some aspects of tech and got into Microsoft kind of programs, you know, learning about stuff, all free, just started attending, got really passionate about it. So that's a, that's a great entrance into, you know, future to a career path. Yeah, exactly. I mean, I really love it because it really brings lots of opportunities and open big doors for all of us, especially, you know, I will say, you know, coming from South America and, and developed country. It really means a lot for, you know, all people to, you know, to have actually people that go, you know, come to the US and represent the country. And it's such an incredible success case for many, like, many times I was a sponsor for, you know, coming for some trips by my university, because it really means a lot for us. And, you know, a doing the community work and helping other students as well. And, you know, professionals to, to become Microsoft specialists and learning more about Microsoft technologies. And it's a, it's such a, it's such a great thing. As I say, you know, same thing, like there was not many people, like really fans of Microsoft. I'm not going to discuss this, but it was, it was, it was great for all of us to join in and now I can't remember, but the MVPs that we have actually in the Latin area has very unlike two times, almost three times. It's, it's, it's wonderful. Well, I know there's a lot of growth in that. I actually, you know, even within my company and I work, I've got a former Microsoft person that's part of my team. She's based out of Miami and, and so it covers a lot of Latam and we've onboarded, you know, partners and things. And I, so I have conversations. I've met MVPs down within Latam and I sadly, I've never been south of the US border that direct. I've been all over the world. I've gone left and right. I've never gone south and, and it's happening this year. So I'm going to start, start with Mexico and, and then we'll likely do Brazil this year as well. Do some events, doing some similar events at Microsoft facilities. We have over there the MVP conf usually by November, December. That would be great. Well, it's, you know, but it's the, these events that you talked about doing. And, and so I was involved with like the SharePoint Saturday events for years and years and one of the things that we'd always try to do is reach out to the local universities and community colleges and let people know, hey, this is free. You can get a bunch of swag. You can win some prizes. You can learn about all this cool technology and come in every year. We do this huge push and we get maybe four or five students that would show up. And, you know, with like, we, it's a, it's a, it's a Saturday. And so when, you know, when you're 18 to 20, you don't want to go sit and hear people lecture about technology for the whole day on a Saturday and especially if the weather's nice outside. But it's, it's, you know, kind of like your story. I mean, there have, we have people that are involved in our user group that kind of came through that path and got involved young. And it's, again, it can be very meaningful, very important to your career. Well, yeah, I think one of the, one of the coolest things that I've seen in the last years is actually working together the Microsoft MVP program with the Microsoft Student Learning Ambassadors. And, you know, I, when, when I started in the program, I was still a Microsoft Student Partner. And it's definitely a big, you know, a team to be able to connect with the people at universities that, you know, and to invite all the students and with the communities and Microsoft, of course. I think actually that's one of the coolest things working with the Student Ambassadors because, you know, does the, does the benefit, I will say, to be between a big company and, and your university, you know, to bring those opportunities. So, I mean, I'll say maybe next time, I, you know, I still have contacts down there in many universities and with the local leaders. So it will be great to, to bring way more students to the conferences. Well, that's always why it's, I'm sure you agree with this statement too, is that why anybody that's watching this or listening to this is like, if you, you know, to reach out and talk to Deanna, myself and anybody that has an MVP, we're all very social people. We want people to reach out and ask questions, say, how can I get more involved? How can I become an MVP? And, and so all of us, you know, mentor people, we help out, we provide information. And, and so if you see that badge on somebody's profile, it's pretty much guaranteed that they will be helpful and helping you find your path into technology. And so you just have to reach out. Yeah, exactly. You know, we're here for helping others to build their careers as well. Like at some point, we have done, you know, already. And, and also if you are passionate about technology, learning and sharing, especially. So this is a great opportunity to become a Microsoft MVP. Yeah, the time is great for that. There's a lot going on, a lot of really fun stuff. Well, Deanna, I really appreciate you taking the time to talk today and to get to know you and, and you're out in one of my favorite parts of the world. I, so I hope to, I still have, you know, sister who's in Monroe. I of course lived in Duvall out on the east side, you know, near closer. I was thinking I was 10 miles away from Microsoft campus and I miss it out there, though my wife, not as much. She, the rain depressed her. I loved the rain. I miss the rain. Yeah, I like seeing that this is the city of the clouds. Yeah, I love that. Really, you know, because the weather of course, but actually it's kind of fun and, you know, that we have Microsoft and Amazon and other companies here that of course are cloud. Yes. There's a lot. That's a lot that's happened there. Well, Deanna, for folks that want to connect with you and reach out to you, what are the best ways to reach you? I, I, I am a Carolina TV, Carolina TV in social media for the most and LinkedIn, Twitter, so you can find me there. And yeah, that's the best way, you know, in me anytime. Well, excellent. And we'll of course provide all the links within the blog post and add on the YouTube page as well. So, well, Deanna, it's been great talking to you and we'll hopefully see you next spring at the very latest in person at the, hopefully the next MVP summit. I know. Yeah. Looking forward to that. It will be so exciting. Thank you so much.