Microsoft SharePoint MVP Award
I am delighted to tell you that I received the Microsoft SharePoint MVP award today. This is my 12th Microsoft MVP award. In the previous years I was given the award in the Directory Services category. Because of my background and contributions in Microsoft SharePoint, this year I have been awarded in the SharePoint Server category.
I received my first MVP award on January 27, 2004 for Windows Server – Management. I didn’t apply for it or knew anyone who nominated me. It just happened one day. I received an email from Microsoft one day asking me some questions and then I received the formal award notification. For the next 10 years from 2005-2014 I received the award in the Directory Services category. This year my award was in the SharePoint Server category. Receiving this prestigious award is a great honor, regardless of the category, but this year is perhaps the most exciting for me because most of my business work is related to SharePoint. Besides doing training and consulting I also write a lot about SharePoint. In fact my last two books have been on SharePoint Best Practices. Microsoft noticed my SharePoint contributions to the community and it’s exciting to be an MVP awardee in this category.
For those of you who are not familiar with the Microsoft MVP award, it’s an annual award given to outstanding members of Microsoft’s technical communities based on contributions made during the previous 12 months to offline and online Microsoft-related technical communities. MVP award is not a certification so there is no exam that one can take to become an MVP. One has to be recognized by his/her peers and Microsoft to become an MVP. More details about the program are available on Microsoft MVP Web site.
Here are some important things to know about the MVPs and the MVP program.
- Out of over 100 million technical community participants worldwide, only about 4,000 of them (0.004%) are MVPs.
- You must be at least 18 years old to become an MVP.
- Microsoft employees are not eligible to receive MVP award.
- MVPs are independent third-party individuals and do not speak on behalf of Microsoft.
- Current MVPs reside in more than 90 countries, speak nearly 40 languages, and share their expertise in around 90 Microsoft technologies.
- Because MVP status is awarded based on past contributions, Microsoft has no expectations of MVPs beyond the normal expectations of courtesy, professionalism, and adherence to the MVP code of conduct and the community rules.
- MVPs do not receive any monetary payment from Microsoft but they receive some benefits for their contributions.
MVP-Related Links
