When you're in an MVP's shoes, you accumulate a large number of conference experiences.
This year, at MMS, 1E MVP Ron Crumbaker was reminded of one of the best he's ever attended, The Microsoft Management Summit. When Microsoft ended MMS, there was a large void. But since its return, (thanks to Brian Mason) he was proud to say that MMSMOA has embraced its community and developed a gathering of experts that really shine. Because MMSMOA caps it's attendees at 750, you get to have conversations with people who are genuinely interested.

Ron Crumbaker and Jason Swenson distributing 1E swag at the booth

Ron told me that experiencing a hackathon is one of the best ways you can dive deep into core functionality and resolving functionality.  There's a lot of information being passed between a lot of smart people and sometimes you get to experience a solution that you never knew existed. He used Twitter whilst attending and sent out some messages into the ether, not expecting to get a response. Not only did he get one, but one that was useful!

Troy Martin showing attendees the ins and outs of Tachyon and WSS
He also mentioned that if you didn't learn anything at MMSMOA, "you just weren't listening. There's an opportunity around every corner to learn something. The caliber of people who are speakers at this conference is absolutely amazing. Someone like Kent Agerlund who is really big in the community and always brings his A-game is always exciting to see. There's just so many MVPS and non-MVPs who are just brilliant."

First-year attendee Mark Warren also commented on the caliber of participants:
"I met some really expert, interesting people. While some might call them "geeks", they are all really good, know their stuff, and everyone there had community spirit. The positive attitude throughout was encouraging for people who were first-timers. The 1E sponsored session was so good- it was timely to see the value of good systems management and the #staycurrent messaging. A lot of the issues at the conference were surrounding the question, 'how do you stay current?' so I think we were able to educate a lot of people."
And of course, both gentlemen conceded that it was just plain fun. The 1E party at SMAASH was definitely a highlight for a lot of people.

 

Hope to see you next year at #MMSMOA! If you missed us at the booth, no worries. You can always contact us to learn more. For more information on other events, visit our events page here.