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• Exceptional DBA 2011 Jeff Moden on why you should enter in 2012

  - by RedAndTheCommunity

  My "reign" as the Red Gate Exceptional DBA is almost over and I was asked to say a few words about this wonderful award. Having been one of those folks that shied away from entering the contest during the first 3 years of the award, I thought I'd spend the time encouraging DBAs of all types to enter. Winning this award has some obvious benefits. You win a trip to PASS including money towards your flight, paid hotel stay, and, of course, paid admission. You win a wonderful bundle of software from Red Gate to make your job as a DBA a whole lot easier. You also win some pretty incredible notoriety for your resume. After all, it's not everyone who wins a worldwide contest. To date, there are only 4 of us in the world who have won this award. You could be number 5! For me, all of that pales in comparison to what I found out during the entry process. I'm very confident in my skills, but I'm also humble. It was suggested to me that I enter the contest when it first started. I just couldn't bring myself to nominate myself. When the 2011 nomination period opened up, several people again suggested that I enter, so I swallowed hard and asked several co-workers to have a look at the online nomination form and, if they thought me worthy, to write a nomination for me. I won't bore you with the details, but what they wrote about me was one of the most incredible rewards that I could ever have hoped to receive. I had no idea of the impact that I'd made on my co-workers. Even if I hadn't made it to the top 5 for the award, I had already won something very near and dear that no one can ever top. "Even if I hadn't made it to the top 5 for the award, I had already won something very near and dear that no one can ever top." There's only one named winner and 4 "runners up" in this competition every year but don't let that discourage you. Enter this competition. Even if you work in the proverbial "Mom'n'Pop" shop, get your boss and the people you work with directly to nominate you. Even if you don't make it to the top 5, you might just find out that you're more of a winner than you think. If you're too proud to ask them, then take the time to nominate yourself instead of shying away like I did for the first 3 years. You work hard as a DBA and, as David Poole once said, if you're the first person that people ask for help rather than one of the last, then you're probably an Exceptional DBA. It's time to stand up and be counted! Win or lose, the entry process can be a huge reward in itself. It was for me. Thank you, Red Gate, for giving me such a wonderful opportunity. Thanks for listening folks and for all that you do as DBAs. As 'Red Green' says, "We're all in this together and I'm pullin' for ya". --Jeff Moden Red Gate Exceptional DBA 2011

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• Exceptional DBA 2011 Jeff Moden on why you should enter in 2012

  - by RedAndTheCommunity

  My "reign" as the Red Gate Exceptional DBA is almost over and I was asked to say a few words about this wonderful award. Having been one of those folks that shied away from entering the contest during the first 3 years of the award, I thought I'd spend the time encouraging DBAs of all types to enter. Winning this award has some obvious benefits. You win a trip to PASS including money towards your flight, paid hotel stay, and, of course, paid admission. You win a wonderful bundle of software from Red Gate to make your job as a DBA a whole lot easier. You also win some pretty incredible notoriety for your resume. After all, it's not everyone who wins a worldwide contest. To date, there are only 4 of us in the world who have won this award. You could be number 5! For me, all of that pales in comparison to what I found out during the entry process. I'm very confident in my skills, but I'm also humble. It was suggested to me that I enter the contest when it first started. I just couldn't bring myself to nominate myself. When the 2011 nomination period opened up, several people again suggested that I enter, so I swallowed hard and asked several co-workers to have a look at the online nomination form and, if they thought me worthy, to write a nomination for me. I won't bore you with the details, but what they wrote about me was one of the most incredible rewards that I could ever have hoped to receive. I had no idea of the impact that I'd made on my co-workers. Even if I hadn't made it to the top 5 for the award, I had already won something very near and dear that no one can ever top. "Even if I hadn't made it to the top 5 for the award, I had already won something very near and dear that no one can ever top." There's only one named winner and 4 "runners up" in this competition every year but don't let that discourage you. Enter this competition. Even if you work in the proverbial "Mom'n'Pop" shop, get your boss and the people you work with directly to nominate you. Even if you don't make it to the top 5, you might just find out that you're more of a winner than you think. If you're too proud to ask them, then take the time to nominate yourself instead of shying away like I did for the first 3 years. You work hard as a DBA and, as David Poole once said, if you're the first person that people ask for help rather than one of the last, then you're probably an Exceptional DBA. It's time to stand up and be counted! Win or lose, the entry process can be a huge reward in itself. It was for me. Thank you, Red Gate, for giving me such a wonderful opportunity. Thanks for listening folks and for all that you do as DBAs. As 'Red Green' says, "We're all in this together and I'm pullin' for ya". --Jeff Moden Red Gate Exceptional DBA 2011

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• Red Gate and the Community

  - by RedAndTheCommunity

  I was lucky enough to join the Communities team in April 2011, having worked in the equally awesome (but more number-crunchy), Finance team at Red Gate for about four years before that. Being totally passionate about Red Gate, and easily excitable, it seems like the perfect place to be. Not only do I get to talk to people who love Red Gate every day, I get to think up new ways to make them love us even more. Red Gate sponsored 178 SQL Server and .NET events and user group meetings in 2011. They ranged from SQL Saturdays and Code Camps to 10 person user group meetings, from California to Krakow. We've given away cash, software, Kindles, and of course swag. The Marketing Cupboard is like a wonderland of Red Gate goodies; it is guarded day and night to make sure the greedy Red Gaters don't pilfer the treasure inside. There are Red Gate yo-yos, books, pens, ice scrapers and, over the Holidays, there were some special bears. We had to double the patrols guarding the cupboard to protect them. You can see why: Over the Holidays, we gave funding and special Holiday swag (including the adorable bears), to 10 lucky user groups, who held Christmas parties - doing everything from theatre trips to going to shooting ranges. What next? So, what about this year? In 2012 our main aim is to be out there meeting more of you. So get ready to see an army of geeks in red t-shirts at your next event! We also want to do more fun things like our Christmas party giveaway. What cool ideas do you have for sponsorship in 2012? An Easter Egg hunt with SQL server clues? A coding competition? A duelling contest with a license of SQL Toolbelt for the winner? Let me know.

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• Red Gate's on the road in 2012 - Will you catch us?

  - by RedAndTheCommunity

  Annabel Bradford, our Communities and Events Manager, tells all about her experience of our 1st SQL Saturday of the year. The first stop this year was SQL Saturday #104 Colorado Springs, back in early January. I made the trip across from the UK just for this SQL Saturday event, and I'm so glad I did. I picked up Max from Red Gate's Pasadena office and we flew into Colorado Springs airport late on Friday evening to be greeted by freezing temperatures, which was quite a shock after the California sunshine. Rising before the sun, we arrived at Mr Biggs, the venue for the event, in the darkness. It was great to see so many smiling attendees so bright and early on a Saturday morning. Everyone was eager to learn more about SQL Server, and hundreds of people came and chatted with us at the table, saw demos and learnt more about Red Gate tools. The event highlights for the attendees were definitely the unlimited lazer quest, bowling and pool available during the break times. For Max, Grant Fritchey and I on the Red Gate table, the highlights have to be meeting customers and getting the opportunity to meet attendees who'd heard of, but wanted to know more about, Red Gate. We were delighted to hear lots of valuable feedback that we took back to share with the team. As a thank you for sharing insights about their work lives and how they use SQL Server and Red Gate tools, attendees are able to take away Red Gate SQL Server books. We aim to have a range of titles available when we exhibit, so that attendees can choose a book that's going to be most interesting to them, and that they can use as a reference back at the office. Every time I meet a Red Gate user or a member of the SQL community, I'm always overwhelmed by the enthusiasm they have for their industry. Everyone who gives up their time to learn more about their job should be rewarded, and at Red Gate we like to do just that. Red Gate has long supported the SQL community through sponsorship to facilitate user group meetings and community events, but it's only though face-to-face contact that we really get a chance to see the impact of our support. I hope we'll have the chance to see you on the road at some point this year. We'll be at a range of events, including free SQL Saturdays, one day free events 'the Red Gate way', two-day Rallys, and full-week conferences. Next stop is SQL Saturday #109 Silicon Valley on March 3rd where you'll meet Jeff and Arneh, two of our US-based SQL team members. Be sure to ask them any questions you've got about the Red Gate tools, as these guys will be delighted to hear your questions, show you the options, and will make a note of your feedback to send through to the development team. Until the next time. Happy learning! Annabel                         Grant, Max and Annabel at SQL Saturday #104 Colorado Springs

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• Taking our Friendships to the next level.

  - by RedAndTheCommunity

  Red Gate have been running the Friends of Red Gate program for years now, and over that time we've built some great relationships with some truly awesome members of the SQL and .NET communities. When I took over the running of the program from Annabel in 2011, I was overwhelmed by the enthusiasm and commitment of our Friends. There were just so many of them, however, that it was hard to make the most of the relationships we had with people, and I wanted to fix that. I decided to survey all our Friends, to find out what they wanted to get out of, and put into, being in the Friends of Red Gate (FoRG) program. From the results of that survey, I identified 30 FoRGs that were really willing and able to go that step further to help Red Gate improve their tools, improve their relationship with the community, and improve the Friends of Red Gate program. Those 30 Friends of Red Gate have been awarded 'FoRG+' status. That means they'll: Have a closer relationship with the product teams, by getting involved in projects Have even more access to the inside track about the tools they're interested in Get the opportunity to come visit us at the Red Gate office and really influence the development of the tools. Plus more, depending on how the individual FoRG+ wants to work with us. This doesn't mean I've forgotten our other Friends; I'm working on ways to improve their experience of the Friends of Red Gate program. I'll write about them in another post. If you're an existing Friend of Red Gate, and you're interested in finding out how to get involved in the FoRG+ program, then I'd love to chat to you. For anyone that's interested in joining the Friend of Red Gate program, take a look at the web page dedicated to the program, and get in touch at [email protected] to be put on the waiting list for our 2013 program.

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• Taking our Friendships to the next level.

  - by RedAndTheCommunity

  Red Gate have been running the Friends of Red Gate program for years now, and over that time we've built some great relationships with some truly awesome members of the SQL and .NET communities. When I took over the running of the program from Annabel in 2011, I was overwhelmed by the enthusiasm and commitment of our Friends. There were just so many of them, however, that it was hard to make the most of the relationships we had with people, and I wanted to fix that. I decided to survey all our Friends, to find out what they wanted to get out of, and put into, being in the Friends of Red Gate (FoRG) program. From the results of that survey, I identified 30 FoRGs that were really willing and able to go that step further to help Red Gate improve their tools, improve their relationship with the community, and improve the Friends of Red Gate program. Those 30 Friends of Red Gate have been awarded 'FoRG+' status. That means they'll: Have a closer relationship with the product teams, by getting involved in projects Have even more access to the inside track about the tools they're interested in Get the opportunity to come visit us at the Red Gate office and really influence the development of the tools. Plus more, depending on how the individual FoRG+ wants to work with us. This doesn't mean I've forgotten our other Friends; I'm working on ways to improve their experience of the Friends of Red Gate program. I'll write about them in another post. If you're an existing Friend of Red Gate, and you're interested in finding out how to get involved in the FoRG+ program, then I'd love to chat to you. For anyone that's interested in joining the Friend of Red Gate program, take a look at the web page dedicated to the program, and get in touch at [email protected] to be put on the waiting list for our 2013 program.

  Read the article

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