#MVPbuzzChat with Kent Agerlund

Hey everybody, it's Christian Buckley doing another MVP buzz chat and I'm talking today with Kent. Hello. >> Hey, and thanks a lot for inviting me. Um, I'm super excited to be here and have a conversation with you. So, >> well, and it's always great to and as I go through this, I'm not always just reaching out and talking to brand new MVPs. I mean, you're an MVP and a regional director like myself and and so and been in this in the system for a while. So, I love to ask some of the same questions, but Kent, let's start things off the same way. I always start these off. Who are you? Where are you? And what do you do? >> Yeah. So, let let's start with uh where am I? because you can probably tell, you know, from my accent that I'm not from Dallas. I'm from Copenhagen in Denmark. Um, I I've been within the IT industry um pretty much since 93. Uh been started founded my own company back in 99. Um I sold that company in 23. Uh and ever since then I've been I've been working uh within that company as a global technical uh director. Um and I'm I mean I'm I'm doing fine. I I really love this ecosystem, you know, this Microsoft ecosystem, the community here. And I've been I've been a part of it uh for most of my career. Uh and I've been an you you know you can say active part of the MVP community uh since I've been an MVP since 2010. I had I had one year off uh but uh just changing um you know the the the technology I I focus on and because the MVPs are you know you need to be a deep technical expertise expert which I totally understand. uh then you know as as if if you're changing direction then you know sometimes it can take a little you know a year or two to >> that's you know I I don't think I've covered that in any of these I've I've interviewed a couple folks who uh like lost their MVPs for uh you know there's different reasons why that they stopped contributing because of life changes or work changes or something or other but it can also happen that that you know Microsoft kind of changes the categories, shuts down a category and and so you've not yet built up the contributions over in another area. Is that kind of what happened to you? >> Well, um yes and no because the I've I've been in the endpoint category, you know, used to be called configuration manager in tune and what have you. It's still around but but >> in the whole world has changed. I mean uh where five 10 15 years uh ago when I when I started with within the MVP program you know endpoint management and configuration manager was such a huge part of uh of of of the community but nowadays it's it's much like uh it's zero trust so it's it's it's it's not like you know a single service or feature or product you need to understand everything >> and I made it I made be very clear for myself uh that you know if I want to if I want to work within security and and that discipline I I really want to know uh you know pretty much everything I can know about all the aspects and I don't know all the aspects of zero trust but I'm doing I'm doing my best so I for I would say maybe for a year year and a half I kind of I kind of left my in tune and my configuration manager focus so you And it it wasn't really Microsoft removing those because they're still around, but it was more me saying, you know, I want to I want to I want to pay attention to where I believe the puck is going to be within the next three, four, five years. >> A lot of people have made that same shift over there. I mean, there's a changes on the Microsoft side. You probably know David James pretty well. >> Oh, yeah. uh he he's my brother-in-law. But so uh uh married to one of my sisters and uh uh he left Microsoft and is over at uh um patch my PC now and doing a bunch of other things. But I mean that space happened inside of Microsoft as everything moved to the cloud anyway. And uh so again that's that's one of the reasons why like the buckets change and evolve. To your point though, the multi- topics like I started as a SharePoint MVP and still primarily you know focused you know SharePoint teams co-pilot but they had to roll everything under that the M365 bucket because it's difficult for anyone just to specialize in a single product. >> Yeah. because we do things across multiple areas and so that that's why it's I I don't know if if if the generic Azure bucket is bigger or M365 as far as number of MVPs but security is getting pretty big as well as >> def definitely and and and I I I I I totally understand why you know it has shifted like that because you know when you when you when you engage with customers, they don't want to talk to, you know, one SharePoint person and another Exchange person and another and and there you go. Because for them, it's the M365 service. So, they want to engage with someone who at least knows. You don't have to be an expert in in every area, but you need to know about, you know, the different services, right? And I think to your question, you the M365 or the Ashure um at the MVP summit, I I I I was at the M365 um um intro session and I was I mean there are a lot of MVPs in there. So that's I mean that that's a big group. Well, there's um if you probably don't know Laurian Strand down from Melbourne, Australia, he actually created a site um I don't remember the URL for it, but he has a site out there where he's scraping data that Microsoft has made available, but he's built a site where with a uh a Power Platform solution sitting on top that tells you exactly well exactly as best we can estimate how many MVPs and which categories and make searching easier because you know the the for folks that haven't been out there if you ever wondered how many MVPs are there in the world you go to mvp.microsoft.com and it's limited in its search it doesn't really answer those kinds of questions like if I when I moved to Dallas last year just looking for other MVPs in Dallas unless they put in city of Dallas >> you know I'm not going to find them they could be in one of the you know the 200 cities, townships in the vicinity and unless I type in that name, I'm not going to find them. That Microsoft doesn't make it easy to go in and scrape that kind of data. It's intentional, you know, but >> yeah, I know that because that's that's I mean uh throughout my entire career, I've been very involved in uh community work uh user groups, local user groups and and also uh larger conferences and so on. And it's it's always something we do when we have our conferences especially in the US is try to facilitate you know who is from you know what area and maybe you should go you know hook up have lunch together form a form a user group because this is probably the best place for you to meet for the first time. >> Yeah. >> You know the the were were you ever a participant in the uh partner conference? Uh yeah, >> WPC and then Inspire. >> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. >> That was my favorite event. They did that really well because the the value of the conference was not never the content. I think in a decade of attending that conference, I attended one session one year. >> Yeah. >> I mean, I did keynotes, >> but sessions, that's not why I was there. I spent my entire time in the expo hall >> and half that time was roaming the booths. The other half was over in the, you know, in meetings with people or in the international lounges. So, if I knew my company wanted to expand in Ukraine, I could go over to the Ukraine uh uh you know, country booth area, lounge area, and meet partners that were sitting around gathering at that space. >> Yeah. >> Was fantastic. >> Yeah. And and that's that's that's really u that's really a good advice because it I mean if if you want to get involved in the community, if you want to get involved with the MVP program for instance and you attend something like uh build or you attend Ignite or another global conference that's also my advice you know obviously you want to see some of the sessions that's why your boss is sending you there probably but for you and your own career you know go go out there and socialize. >> Yeah, >> it's h the connections you make, you know, during that conference, you you you can benefit from those connections in in in years and years to come. >> That's why no matter what conference they're walking around and and especially in the expo hall where you have, you know, sometime you you go at different times and there's, you know, there's nobody else in there, so you could walk up have a conversation. I love just going up like, "What do you guys do?" Okay, that has nothing to do with anything that I touch. Or other times like find out that hey, this could be a competitive, it could be complimentary um or just interesting things that partners are doing >> uh in the space and to to learn that way. It's it's just a great discovery tool. >> Yeah. Plus plus plus to to your point there. I mean you know what the world is like today but you do not know what the world is going to be like in one or two years. So the conversation you have today maybe >> right >> you know maybe that will beneficial for you in in in in the years to come and I've learned I've learned that especially I mean it it goes so fast right you know you know that technology has never moved as fast as it is is as it is right now um it's crazy uh so so you you definitely you know your number one I would say your your number one thing is curiosity you know so stay curious u and then obviously also open-minded and if you go to a conference like that I'm curious I'm open-minded you will have lots of great conversations not all >> the Ted lasso approach to conferences that's right >> exactly yeah >> I think it's exactly it's it's uh you never know what you don't know and so have conversations >> yeah exactly that's I Um I I find it fascinating you know with with with all the technology we have which is you know super great people is still doing business with other people. >> Yeah. >> I mean so if you can build some trust if you you know um that's a great starting point. Yeah. >> Hey Ken I always like to ask I like to get an idea of uh you know as an MVP like what was your origin story into the MVP program? like it was something you were aware of for you for a few years and or like how did you find out about it? How did you get into the program? >> Yeah, so that's a really good question because I think I think the pro the program has definitely changed over the years. So I became an MVP in 2010. Um, back then I uh I saw a lot of the other MEPs in in the area, you know, that was that was uh uh David James was it was not an MVP, but that was that team, right? Um I I seriously saw them as rock stars. I mean, I was buying their books. I was reading everything I could online. I was learning a lot. So they were they were really I mean it was a time where there would be four years between each major version. So if there was if there was a you know a workaround or an issue with a product obviously you know there would be a service pack eight months from today but until that you you need you needed to understand how can I you know how can I work around that. Uh so the so the blog post that came out was fantastic and I started I had my own notes. I had a ton of notes from all my customer engagements and then my colleague and I were like you know how are we going to share these notes and you know there was hey we can do shareepoint and we're like we just lose the information on SharePoint like we lost all the other info we put on SharePoint. So he so he actually told me why don't we just publish them. I was like, "Yeah, why not?" You know, so we started to publish our own notes. Uh, you know, this is how we solve that. This is and and all of a sudden, I think, you know, we reached like a million hits uh on our blog post and we we we could obviously see the interest and, you know, once people start asking you uh you want to help them and it's I mean, I I really just fell in love with the community. But to begin with it was sharing our notes uh you know in a place where we would always be able to find them the internet. >> Yeah. >> Uh and then we obviously just made them public. Um so yeah so that was that and then after being nominated uh I started writing books and and yeah more more trainings more blog post and so on and so forth but in the beginning mainly blog posts. What what's your what would you say now your your primary contribution type is? Is it still writing or are you doing more speaking or what? >> Yeah. So definitely I'm I'm not doing blog post any longer because back then it was really this is this is how you fix your issue but you know the issue today is is gone tomorrow. So so I I kind of gave up on that. I've always always been public speaking. I'm I'm still you know speaking today. Uh I I have four or five conferences that I where I speak uh every year and then I try to uh I'm also running a couple of user groups. So I I really engaged in that. And then um uh in the last three or four years I've been very engaged in um a local community. a local being a local community in Europe called Ready School which is a a school for uh women primarily refugees uh who has a you know university background but maybe you know due to all sorts of global events they ended up in Denmark uh they don't know much about you know technology they don't know much about security but they they they need some knowledge so they can you know go become come the good citizens that they really want to uh do and contribute. So I I spend a week uh a day a week um training them. So that's that's super rewarding. I mean >> you have lawyers, you know, you have all kinds of of of smart people and they just lost everything and now now you know they want to contribute and >> that's awesome. That's fantastic. >> Yeah. So so yeah. So it has changed. Uh but I you know it's uh it's kind of funny because you you know when when when you're in a room with 10 15 people and you make a difference uh and an impact you can see that where if you write a blog post maybe you know maybe you have 100,000 visitors but you you don't feel the impact in the same way >> right >> so I mean everything is is is important I believe but uh there are so many different ways you can contribute. >> Yeah. Well, that's I think one of the So, I I I've been for about two and a half uh three years now. I've been uh uh kind of co-hosting a monthly call for people that want to become MVPs with fellow RD and MVP Sharon Weaver. Uh and we do it on the first Wednesday of of every month. And uh it's uh what one one of the common questions is uh you know like you know what what what what do I need to do to be you know additional things do I need to do to become like what's the checklist of things to become an MVP and we always tell them it's like there is no checklist. There is no like if I go do these 10 things I can become an MVP. It's it it it's really kind of a a black box on Microsoft's side of who they select, but here are the types of things that M MVPs are doing. And so if you want to become an MVP, go and find somebody that you really respect, that you like from the MVP community and emulate the types of things that they do. that that's any any other guidance you would give someone who wants to become an MVP? I mean yeah so for me being engaged in local user groups >> I mean that's that's a that's a fantastic way because >> who are always looking for help always >> always yeah I mean and and if there is no local user group you can start your own I mean you you know there are so many different tools uh uh so that that would definitely be one thing engaging in local conferences And obviously I think more importantly you know being an MVP is um you know contributing to community. So you need to figure out if you want to contribute to the community or not. And there are so many different ways you can you can you can do that. Um so it's I mean so yeah but but that would be my that would be my uh my recommendations. And there's there are also um I mean Microsoft have some different programs where you can get in touch with them. The the CCP program. So you know you can sign up for the CCP program, the customer care program or I think it that's what CCP stands for. U and there you can you know there you can connect with the uh the product team you know. >> Yeah. >> Inspire them, ask them questions, feed them with your feedback and so on and so forth. >> Yeah. I was going to mention uh for folks I I know that you said, "Hey, just go ahead and if there's not a user group, start a user group." And people that are like, "Well, I don't know what to do. How do what do I what are the steps to do that?" Microsoft actually has a program with an acronym, of course, because they're Microsoft. But the Microsoft uh uh global community initiative, MGCI, um is that right? Yes. Global Community. Yes. MGCI. Um I so I'm a regional uh uh uh advisor for within that program. But if you go search for Microsoft MGCI uh there are resources, there's a site you can get help, there are mentors that will help you to start that user group. So you're not alone. There are people out there that will help train you to go and do those things. So again, find find somebody like Kent that has started and is running user groups. Reach out and say hello. Say, "I'm in this area. There are no user groups. I'm looking for help. We're all willing to help. You just have to say hello and hey, here's what I need to do." >> Yeah. See, see what what you're saying there is actually the number one thing I'm going to miss the most when I'm when I'm, you know, not being an MVP any longer, you know, and that is the community. You can always reach out. >> And I hear that all the time, but every single time I reach out or someone reaches out, you know, we're here to help, >> right? Well, and again, because if I don't know the answer, I certainly know someone who knows the answer. >> Yep. Exactly. happy to help you introduce. So, yeah, >> exactly. Yeah, that's that's the other part that we have a lot of good friends. >> Yes. >> Yeah. >> Well, Kent, I really appreciate your time. Uh look forward to seeing you at uh summit next year, maybe. >> Hotel booth. Uh everything is everything is fine. Thanks a lot for having this conversation, Christian, and have a fantastic day. >> Talk to you later. >> Yeah. Wow. Heat.