Stephen Baker
Stephen Baker is the author of Final Jeopardy: Man vs. Machine and the Quest to Know Everything - a captivating journey from the IBM lab to the podium. The story features brilliant Ph.D.s, Hollywood moguls, knowledge-obsessed Jeopardy masters and a very special collection of silicon and circuitry named Watson.
Stephen was BusinessWeek's senior technology writer for a decade, based first in Paris and later New York. He has also written for the Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, and the Wall Street Journal. More information can be found on Stephen’s blog: http://www.finaljeopardy.net.
Tjay Belt
Tjay Belt is an outdoorsman who enjoys riding dirtbikes, waterskiing/boating, playing racquetball and spending time with his family. When he can't be out playing, Tjay loves to tinker with databases. Tjay has been an IT professional for over a decade. Currently serving as a Senior Database Engineer with Cybersource in the Infrastructure Engineering group, TJay has progressed through several roles in his database career including developer, data guy, database developer, database analystand DBA. Prior to Cybersource, he worked at several software companies, working at internal customer sites in the United States and abroad. He has always gravitated to the database side of each job and excelled. TJay studied Computer Science at Brigham Young University and is a member and active volunteer of PASS.
Denny Cherry
Denny Cherry is the owner and principal consultant for Denny Cherry & Associates Consulting and has over a decade of experience working with platforms such as Microsoft SQL Server, Hyper-V, vSphere and Enterprise Storage solutions. Denny’s areas of technical expertise include system architecture, performance tuning, security, replication and troubleshooting. Denny currently holds several of the Microsoft Certifications related to SQL Server for versions 2000 through 2008 including the Microsoft Certified Master as well as being a Microsoft MVP for several years. Denny has written several books and dozens of technical articles on SQL Server management and how SQL Server integrates with various other technologies.
Michael Crump
Michael Crump is an MCPD that has been involved with computers in one way or another for as long as he can remember, but started professionally in 2002. After spending years working as a systems administrator/tech support analyst, Michael branched out and started developing internal utilities that automated repetitive tasks and freed up full-time employees. From there, he was offered a job working at McKesson corporation and has been working with some form of .NET and VB/C# since 2003.
He has worked at Fortune 500 companies where he gained experience in embedded systems design and software development to systems administration and database programming, and everything in between.
His primary focus right now is developing healthcare software solutions using Microsoft .NET technologies. He prefers building infrastructure components, reusable shared libraries and helping companies define, develop and automate process standards and guidelines.
Llewellyn Falco
Llewellyn is a Senior Agile Consultant for DevelopMentor. He routinely finds himself working with companies undergoing transformations in which they need to improve their employees’ ability to deal with messy, orphaned, and otherwise ugly code. As a seasoned software developer, Llewellyn specializes in Agile development and has been an Agile Coach for the past 2 years. Focusing on Java and C# he is the creator of the open source testing tool ApprovalTests which simplifies the testing of complex GUIs, Databases, and objects. When he’s not working with clients, Llewellyn continues to develop ApprovalTests and regularly speaks at around the world. Llewellyn is the author of DevelopMentor’s “Test Driven Development for C# Programmers” course. Llewellyn also volunteers with teachingkidsprogramming.org where he creates and teaches courseware to introduce children to programming. He also volunteers on the SmartCare EMR Project in Lusaka Zambia. Blog address llewellynfalco.blogspot.com.
Donald Farmer
Donald Farmer is the QlikView Product Advocate, working with customers and partners to establish QlikView as the leading solution for Business Discovery. Donald has over twenty years experience in analytics and data management. In that time he has worked as a consultant, in startups and as a leader of Microsoft’s BI product teams. He is a speaker at countless international events on business intelligence, data integration and data management, blogger, and author of several books.
Rick Garibay
With nearly 12 years experience delivering solutions on the Microsoft platform in various industry sectors, Rick is a developer, architect, speaker and author on distributed .NET technologies and is a Solutions Architect at Neudesic. Rick focuses on helping his clients streamline business processes while enhancing the productivity of it's developers by combining modern, iterative software engineering methodologies with the capabilities of the Microsoft Platform to help close the value gap. Rick specializes in cloud technologies such as Microsoft .NET, Windows Communication Foundation and Windows Azure to deliver business value and drive revenue while reducing operational costs. Rick is an active speaker, writer and passionate community advocate in the national .NET community. Rick is the President and Co-Founder of the Phoenix Connected Systems User Group. Recent presentations include the 2009 Microsoft SOA and Business Process Conference in Redmond, WA, and his numerous articles on .NET technology can be found in-print and online in publications such as CODE Magazine, DevX and his personal blog at http://rickgaribay.net. Rick is a proud Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) an has been awarded the MVP designation for Connected Systems for three years in a row.
Ben Hoelting
Ben Hoelting: Senior Software Developer, Intelligent Software Solutions, Inc. and C# MVP. He graduated from Colorado State University in 1997 with a BS in Computer Information Systems and a Minor in Computer Science. Ben joined the IT industry in 1996 as an intern and has worked with .NET since its inception back in 2002. Worked for Colorado Technology Consultants, Inc. from 2005 – 2010. He left the consulting world to go do some work for the Department of Defense. Currently he works for Intelligent Software Solutions, Inc. in Colorado Springs. His most recent projects include a Silverlight line of business application that uses the ADO.NET Entity Framework to access the backend data store. He also is working on an office automation solution that extends PowerPoint. Ben is a Microsoft Certified Professional Developer (MCPD) for Web and Windows .NET 4.0. His blog is at http://www.benhblog.com and his twitter stream is at http://twitter.com/benhnet. Finally, Ben is very involved in the local .NET community and is the leader of the South Colorado .NET User Group.
Eric Johnson
Eric is the co-founder of Consortio Services, and the primary Database Technologies Consultant.
His background in Information Technology (IT) is diverse, ranging from operating systems and hardware to specialized applications and development. He has even done his fair share of work on networks. Since IT is really just a way to support business processes, he has also acquired his MBA. All in all, he has 10 years of experience with IT, a great amount of which has been working with Microsoft SQL Server. Eric has managed and designed databases of all shapes and sizes.
He has delivered numerous SQL Server training classes and webcasts as well as presentations at national technology conferences. Most recently, he presented at TechMentor on SQL Server 2005 Replication, Reporting Services, and Integration Services. In addition, he is active in the local SQL Server Community, serving as the President of the Colorado Springs SQL Server Users Group.
Josh Jones
Josh Jones is co-owner and Database\Operating Systems Consultant with Consortio Services in Colorado Springs, CO. There he provides training, administration, analysis, and design support for customers utilizing SQL Server 2000 and 2005.
In his 8 years as an IT professional, he has worked in multiple areas of Information Technology including Windows desktop support, Windows 2000 and 2003 server infrastructure design and support (AD, DNS, MS Exchange), telephony switch support, and network support.
Josh has presented at various PASS sponsored events about SQL Server topics such as 64-bit SQL Server Implementation, Reporting Services Administration, and Performance Tuning. He's also a regular speaker for the SQL Server Worldwise Users Group Virtual Conference (www.vconferenceonline.com) on SQL Server topics.
Josh has been published in Redmond Magazine, Redmond Developer News, and Visual Studio magazine. He is the co-author of a data modeling book ("Developers Guide to Data Modeling for SQL Server") with Eric Johnson, now available from Addison-Wesley.
Adam Jorgensen
Adam Jorgensen is the President of Pragmatic Works Consulting, a Director for the Professional Association of SQL Server (PASS), SQL Server MVP, and a well-known speaker, author, and executive mentor. His focus is on helping companies realize their full potential by using their data in ways they may not have previously imagined. Adam has contributed to five previous books on SQL Server, analytics, and SharePoint.
Kathi Kellenberger
Kathi Kellenberger is a Data Platform Technology Specialist with Microsoft in St. Louis.
Before joining Microsoft, she was a SQL Server MVP and database administrator for Bryan Cave LLP, a law firm headquartered in St. Louis, MO.
She is the author of "Beginning T-SQL 2008" (Apress 2009), co-author of "Professional SQL Server 2005 Integration Services" (Wrox 2006) and contributor to "SQL Server MVP Deep Dives" (Manning 2009).
Kathi enjoys speaking and writing about SQL Server and teaches the occasional SQL Server class. When she is not busy working with SQL Server, you might find her singing at the local karaoke bar or climbing the stairs in tall buildings.
Kevin Kline
Kevin Kline is a renowned database expert and software industry veteran. A long-time Microsoft SQL Server MVP and noted leader in the IT industry, Kevin is a founder and former president of PASS and the author of popular IT books like SQL in a Nutshell. Kevin is a top-rated speaker at industry trade shows worldwide. He tweets at #kekline and blogs at http://KevinEKline.com.
Lynn Langit
Lynn Langit spent 4 years at Microsoft as a Developer Evangelist. Last October, she left Microsoft to rejoin the consulting and training world. Lynn has been working with SQL Server since 6.5 and she has published several books on SQL Server BI. She has also written technical courseware for on SQL Server, Hadoop. MongoDB and Google App Engine. Her latest course is Essential SQL Server 2012 for Developers. Lynn is also working in the world of NoSQL, exploring both Hadoop and MongoDB. Lynn's blog can be found on her site. She is also the co-founder of non-profit Teaching Kids Programming which is part of the MONA Foundation.
Thomas LaRock
Thomas LaRock is a seasoned IT professional with over a decade of technical and management experience. Currently serving as a Senior DBA for Confio Software, Thomas has progressed through several roles in his career including programmer, analyst, and DBA. Thomas holds a MS degree in Mathematics from Washington State University and is a member of the Usability Professional’s Association. Thomas currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Professional Association for SQL Server (PASS), and is also a SQL Server MVP. Thomas can also be found blogging at http://thomaslarock.com and is the author of DBA Survivor: Become a Rock Star DBA (http://dbasurvivor.com).
Sean McDonough
Sean is the Chief SharePoint Evangelist for Idera, a Microsoft managed partner and creator of tools for SharePoint, SQL Server, and PowerShell. As a consultant, Sean has worked with a number of Fortune 500 companies to architect, implement, troubleshoot, tune, and customize their SharePoint environments. Sean is an MCPD, an MCTS, and the co-author of both the “SharePoint 2007 Disaster Recovery Guide” (http://tinyurl.com/SPDRGuide2007) and the “SharePoint 2010 Disaster Recovery Guide” (http://tinyurl.com/SPDRGuide2010). He can easily be reached through his blog (http://SharePointInterface.com) or Twitter (@spmcdonough).
Ben Miller
Ben Miller has been in the IT Industry for over 20 years. He has been working with SQL Server since 4.2 and has been certified in SQL since 6.5. He has spent 7 years with Microsoft in both SQL Server Support and as an MVP Lead for many of the years. He has been around the country and has spoken at many User Groups as well as local Code Camps and loves to share his knowledge of computers and mostly SQL Server with whomever will benefit from it. Ben was just awarded SQL Server MVP on January 1, 2011. He can be found around the internet as DBADuck.
Aaron Nelson
Aaron is a terrible kayaker despite his love for the sport; which is probably why he sticks to databases most of the time.
Aaron Nelson ( blog | twitter ) is a Senior SQL Server Architect with over 10 years of experience in Architecture, Business Intelligence, Development, and Performance Tuning of SQL Server. He was recently awarded a Microsoft MVP for SQL Server. He has experience managing enterprise wide data needs in both transactional and data warehouse environments. Aaron holds certifications for MCITP: Business Intelligence Developer, Database Administrator, Database Developer; as well as MCTS: Windows Server Virtualization, Configuration (meaning Hyper-V).
Aaron helps run the PowerShell Virtual Chapters of PASS, and volunteers for the local PASS Chapter AtlantaMDF. He also co-runs the Atlanta PowerShell User Group, and helps organize SQL Saturday events in Atlanta.
Wendy Pastrick
Wendy is an active member of the PASS organization and involved in the Women In Technology Chapter, as well as an organizer for SQL Saturday in Chicago. She has been a DBA for 10 years, primarily working with development teams and support of the application lifecycle. Working with SQL versions 7.0 to 2005, she has gained experience with migrations and upgrades, which included support for transactional replication setup and monitoring.
Bill Pearson
Bill created Island Technologies Inc. in 1997, and has developed a large and diverse customer base over the years since. Bill's background as a CPA, Internal Auditor and Management Accountant enable him to provide value to clients as a liaison between Accounting / Finance and Information Services. Bill has implemented enterprise business intelligence systems over the years for many Fortune 500 companies, and focuses his practice upon the integrated Microsoft business intelligence solution.
Bill is a Microsoft SQL Server MVP.
Tom Roush
Tom is a master storyteller, known to translate Geek into plain English in a single bound. His wry sense of humor, life experiences and vivid descriptions are skillfully combined with his expertise as a database administrator to have you understanding SQL in ways you never thought you would. Tom’s explanations of why to do something are insightful, why *not* to do something enlightening, and the stories behind them, both technical and non-technical, will leave you laughing to the point you forget you’re learning something. Tom’s been an IT professional for the last 16 years and works as a DBA at Avanade, in Seattle.
You can learn more about Tom by reading his blog (http://geeql.com) or following him on Twitter (@geeql).
Christopher Shaw
Chris started his database career while in the Marine Corps working with Lotus Ami Pro databases somewhere in 1993. From there he went on to companies such as Wells Fargo, Pulte Mortgage and Yellow Pages Inc., and later consulted with insurance companies including Anthem Blue Shield. Chris has enjoyed writing and speaking about SQL Server over the last 10 years at events such as SQL Connections, Pass and SSWUG Ultimate conferences where Chris was the Conference Chair. Chris received the Microsoft MVP award. He is the founding member of the Colorado Springs SQL Server User Group and is currently blogging on chrisshaw.wordpress.com, sswug.org and writing his book, How to Find Your Next DBA Job.
Jason Strate
Jason Strate, Digineer Inc, is a SQL Server consultant with over fifteen years of experience. He is a recipient of the Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) for SQL Server since July, 2009. His experience includes design and implementation of both OLTP and OLAP solutions as well as assessment and implementation of SQL Server environments for best practices, performance, and high availability solutions. Along with project work, Jason blogs at jasonstrate.com and has contributed in several books, including Expert Performance Indexing for SQL Server 2012.
Chris Sutton
Chris Sutton is a software developer and technical trainer in Eastern Iowa. He is organizing a .NET user group in Iowa City and he co-founded the Iowa Code Camp in 2008. Chris is a Microsoft MVP, a Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) and holds the MCPD:Enterprise certification. He has been consulting and speaking on web related topics since the beginning of 2005, has 10 years of professional software development experience and loves developing for the web. He also enjoys hiking and biking in the summer and snowshoeing in the winter.
Ben Taylor
This is probably a name that is familiar to you as Ben is a daily editor for the SSWUG newsletter. Ben is a Relational Database veteran starting in the early eighties on DEC Vax database systems such as Bloom and Harvest. He has specialized in SQL engines for more than two decades, with a primary focus on Microsoft SQL Server.
Ben has worked with small and large databases for both OLAP and OLTP working on systems for many industries such as Medical (Medical Claims and Eligibility Warehouse, HMO Provider Management, Enrollment), Financial (credit card processing, mortgage, stock portfolio management), Manufacturing (Assembly Line and Product Assemblies), Sales, Auto Auctions and more.
In addition to practical database designs and query tuning, Ben emphasizes the processes surrounding database development. “It’s not just about writing code; it’s about writing the right code at the right time and getting it to the right place.”
His sessions are highly practical in nature. There are few slides and the majority of the time is spent demonstrating techniques to help you be more effective right away. The sessions on testing are fundamental to a good database development techniques regardless of what software development lifecycle you use. His session on handling dates and times in your database is a favorite of many.
Buck Woody
Buck Woody is a SQL Server Senior Technical Specialist for Microsoft –A Microsoft SQL Server MVP since 2006, Buck has authored more than 400 SQL Server articles and five SQL Server books. (Twitter, Blog)
Stephen Wynkoop
Stephen is a Microsoft SQL Server MVP and the founder of SSWUG.ORG. He hosts and produces the SSWUG.ORG SelecTViews video program, which provides in-depth insights on the latest news and happenings in the IT field.
Stephen is the author of more than 12 books, which have been translated into seven languages around the world. He has spoken at numerous technology conferences and reports regularly on the happenings in the technology world through various outlets.
