Hi @TiffanyWI here with a closing report from Tech ED 2010! Here are my top three takeaways in no particular order and my assignment for the next 11 months…

Community:

In my role at New Horizons, I am entrenched in the Microsoft Partner Community. The Partner Community is very centric on collaboration and understanding the needs and wants of you, the IT Community. Microsoft Partners focus on how we can help you make informed decisions on technology, strategy and implementation. My week at Tech ED exposed me to YOUR community, and because of you I feel so energized.. My experience at TechED was completely eye opening to a community of IT Professionals that are driven to provide the best solutions… From the minute the week kicked off with the IT Grand Prix arrival on Friday, you could feel the vibe in the air. The “You are not in this alone!" vibe, this community is focused on growth and using the newest tools and resources.  How many times have I struggled with a dilemma and thought that I was the only one facing this? Now I know of resources like Springboard or I can join a User Group!  

The SharePoint community has always felt like homebase for me, and closing out the week I had the opportunity to have Joel Olsen present at the kickoff of the Greater New Orleans SharePoint User Group. His message rang loud and clear on what this technology community means to him and how he has grown professionally because of it! He referenced specific examples of professionals and companies that have utilized the community to make informed decisions for growth!

Thank you for welcoming me to be a part of OUR community..

Politics:

Working in technology for close to a decade, I was quite taken back when this political war hit me dead on by mid-week! The Microsoft technology community considers themselves either one of two things: You are either an IT Pro or a Developer! It was like being in a congressional session and having someone cross party lines… The community takes what it does very seriously and everyone else should too.. However since New Horizons specializes in training that crosses the party lines (for this reason) I NEVER think twice about talking to you as one group but at TechED 2010 that message was heard loud and clear for me!

I will also say this; it has been made clear to me why the SharePoint community has evolved into its own group (Ie. ItPro, Dev, SharePoint), and that is because they ACTUALLY marry these two groups together.. The SharePoint professionals are the ones who are willing to dive across both party lines… I know this may be a poor example, but to me it could not be closer to the truth. Think about yourself or someone you know who works in SharePoint… Think hard… They would openly have a conversation on development or server and not think twice about it… Can you imagine that same conversation with someone from the Development world about Server issues??? I don’t want to take credit for this discovery but I am willing to bring it to the table and relish in its glow =).

RockStars:

Tech Ed is filled with wall to wall IT rock stars. They say the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem so here it goes. My name is Tiffany Ingargiola and I didn't know who Mark Russinovich was.. A huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders. That changed this past week and I already feel smarter from being in his presence. Actually, I was so enamored with his cult like following that I attended his session on Thursday afternoon titled “The Cases of the Unexplained”. I feared at his level of intelligence and knowledge that I would be tweeting or binging to pass the time; however it was in fact the total opposite… The audiences of several hundred were just as enamored as I, and he could even tie a joke into the blue screen of death. Honestly you had me at blue screen. I now admit I am part of his cult and a tad smarter to boot! 

You don't have to be a Technical Fellow to be a RockStar however. Folks like Stephen Rose and Ken Rosen who are constantly involved in the community, open and responsive make us all feel like IT RockStars in our own worlds every day!

Tech ED 2011 Assignment:

Stay involved in this community as they embrace this launch year like never before, Follow those who are leading the cutting edge of the Microsoft world and actually aspire to be one of those RockStars! I am anxious for TechED 2011! Eager to see how my friends have grown professionally and personally, hungry to learn the most efficient tools to grow our business and how the training we offer can help you reach your goals.. See you in the Twitterverse!