I’m excited to announce that I’ve been renewed for the Microsoft Regional Director program. 

It’s an exciting time in technology, and especially in the Microsoft space. Since the last RD renewal cycle several big innovations have happened:

• The C# and VB compilers have been rewritten in C# and VB.NET, respectively.
• The C# and VB compilers have been released as Open Source projects with permissible cross-platform licenses.
• The core CLR is being released under permissible cross-platform Open Source licenses.
• The core .NET Framework is being released under the same permissible Open Source license.
• The Azure team keeps innovating at an amazing pace. (Too many updates to summarize in one blog post.)
• Windows 10 and a unified core OS across phone, tablet, PC, and server is on the horizon.

It’s an amazing time. I’m excited that my continued involvement in the Regional Director program can help my customers navigate all these changes. I can’t wait to see what the next two years brings.

I’m also excited to welcome many new RDs to the program. This latest wave recognizes many changes in the global technology industry in recent years. As I look at the list of new RDs, I have a number of observations:

• The program is more global. Many countries and regions that were under represented now have RDs in their locales. More folks are from Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, and the Middle East.
• The program represents the changing face of software and enterprise IT. Many of the new members in the program come from an IT Pro / DevOps background. This represents the changing needs of our customers. More and more businesses run more and more software that is strategic to their success. The data and system management needs have an increased importance.
• The program represents more different platform knowledge. It’s a multi-device, multi-platform world. It’s an interconnected world. The program represents people with knowledge of multiple platforms, languages, and devices. Interconnected systems are increasingly important.
• It represents a renewed community commitment. All the RDs are very engaged with their local communities, and the global community. We’re all committed to sharing what we know with our peers and colleagues. And, we’re always learning from other members of our community.

It’s been a great ride for my first 10 years in the program. I can’t wait to see what comes next.