Ed Pollack is a Microsoft Data Platform MVP with a passion for learning how Data Platforms work and sharing that knowledge with the community. His experiences in data architecture, database design, performance optimization, and security are motivation for public speaking, writing, coding, and other community activities.

Ed has spoken at Day of Data events, SQL Bits, PASS Summit, EightKB, and many other regional and international events. Ed is the organizer of the Capital Area SQL Server Group and Day of Data Albany, as well as a co-organizer of SQL Saturday New York City. He has published a number of books, including "Dynamic SQL: Applications, Performance, and Security in Microsoft SQL Server", "Expert Performance Indexing in Azure SQL and SQL Server 2022", and "Analytics Optimization with Columnstore Indexes in Microsoft SQL Server: Optimizing OLAP Workloads". Ed is also an active contributor of content to SimpleTalk.

In his free time, Ed enjoys video games, traveling, cooking exceptionally spicy foods, and hanging out with his amazing wife and sons.

Ed Pollack is a Microsoft Data Platform MVP with a passion for learning how Data Platforms work and sharing that knowledge with the community. His experiences in data architecture, database design, performance optimization, and security are motivati... Show more

Maria is a Data Platform Microsoft MVP and a technology expert with more than 20 years of experience, a community leader with a profound knowledge of Microsoft products and services, while also being able to bring together diverse platforms, products, and solutions, to solve real-world problems.
She has a hands-on experience managing various data management technologies in Azure, AWS and Google public cloud platforms, including SQL Server, Azure CosmosDB, AWS DynamoDB, MemSQL, MySQL, Postgresql, Snowflake, Redis, Amazon Redshift, Couchbase and Elasticsearch, Spark, Databricks, Big Query. She is the main organizer of the Israel annual conference "DATA TLV" datatlv.com, one of the featured authors at mssqltips.com (mssqltips.com/sqlserverauthor/305/maria-zakourdaev) and her personal blog is queryqurious.com

Maria is a Data Platform Microsoft MVP and a technology expert with more than 20 years of experience, a community leader with a profound knowledge of Microsoft products and services, while also being able to bring together diverse platforms, products... Show more

Daniel is a Microsoft .NET MVP and software consultant at Lean TECHniques. He helps teams deliver high-quality software while adopting modern practices such as effective CI/CD, automated testing, AI usage, and product management. With experience spanning multiple industries, including finance, retail, and agriculture, he has served as a technical coach, agile coach, and tech lead, with a primary background as a software developer. Outside of work, he enjoys playing piano and guitar, swing dancing, and game development.

Daniel is a Microsoft .NET MVP and software consultant at Lean TECHniques. He helps teams deliver high-quality software while adopting modern practices such as effective CI/CD, automated testing, AI usage, and product management. With experience span... Show more

RAPHAEL KÖLLNER
Compliance Manager

Raphael Koellner combining the law and the information technology in particular the cloud computing. He worked for universities, Microsoft Germany (DX) and Microsoft Partner as consultant.

As CEO for KöllnService GmbH he works for huge international companies to migrate and implementate cloud solutions on a technical and a contract/law way.

Since 2019 Raphael Köllner is Microsoft Regional Director. He is the community guy, MVP for Office Server & Services, Windows 10 Insider MVP, MCT, Microsoft Student Partner Evangelist and become an attorney in Europe. He is the lead of the Office 365 Usergroup Germany, the Office 365 DACH, Leader of the Office 365 conference Germany, the SharePoint Saturday Cologne and one of 30 Windows 10 Top Insiders. Moreover he is member of the TEAMS Elite Team and the organizer of the TeamsCommunityDay. In this connection he leads the biggest Windows 10 Insider Community in Germany.

MVP: https://mvp.microsoft.com/en-us/mvp/Raphael%20%20Koellner-5000185

Microsoft Regional Director: https://rd.microsoft.com/en-us/raphael-koellner

RAPHAEL KÖLLNER Compliance Manager Raphael Koellner combining the law and the information technology in particular the cloud computing. He worked for universities, Microsoft Germany (DX) and Microsoft Partner as consultant. As CEO for KöllnSe... Show more

Zain Hasan is a Staff AI/ML DX Engineer at Together AI a company that allows people to train, fine-tune, and inference generative AI models faster, at lower cost, and at production scale. He is an engineer and data scientist by training, who pursued his undergraduate and graduate work at the University of Toronto building artificially intelligent assistive technologies. He then founded his company developing a digital health platform that leveraged machine learning to remotely monitor chronically ill patients. More recently he practiced as a consultant senior data scientist in Toronto. He is passionate about open-source software, education, community, and machine learning and has delivered workshops and talks at multiple events and conferences.

Zain Hasan is a Staff AI/ML DX Engineer at Together AI a company that allows people to train, fine-tune, and inference generative AI models faster, at lower cost, and at production scale. He is an engineer and data scientist by training, who pursued ... Show more

Cortney Nickerson is a Principal Product Marketing Manager at Akamai Technologies. As a CNCF Ambassador, she leads the Kyverno Community and is highly active in the cloud native community co-organizing various Kubernetes Community Day events, serving on the State of OpenCon Advisory Board, and co-hosting the "Code to Culture Platform Engineering Podcast" and "Humans of Cloud Native" podcast.

A recognized speaker at international events, Cortney transitioned from a non-technical background to tech as an early employee (#7) at a startup later acquired by DataDog, where she wrote content for the Data on Kubernetes Community.

Beyond technology, she is a vocal advocate for DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) and openly shares her experiences with imposter syndrome. On a personal note, she's also a parent navigating the challenge of getting her kids to bed on time.

Cortney Nickerson is a Principal Product Marketing Manager at Akamai Technologies. As a CNCF Ambassador, she leads the Kyverno Community and is highly active in the cloud native community co-organizing various Kubernetes Community Day events, serving... Show more

Kito D. Mann is the Principal Consultant at Virtua, Inc., specializing in enterprise application architecture, training, development, and mentoring with microservices, cloud, Web Components, Angular, and Jakarta/Java EE technologies. He is also the co-host of The Stackd Podcast and the author of JavaServer Faces in Action. Mann has participated in several Java Community Process expert groups (including CDI, JSF, and Portlets) and is an internationally recognized speaker. He is also a Java Champion and Google Developer Expert in Web Technologies. He holds a BA in Computer Science from Johns Hopkins University.

Kito D. Mann is the Principal Consultant at Virtua, Inc., specializing in enterprise application architecture, training, development, and mentoring with microservices, cloud, Web Components, Angular, and Jakarta/Java EE technologies. He is also the c... Show more

With 20 years of experience in web development, usability, and accessibility, Karl Groves is widely regarded as a pragmatic solution-finder and thought leader in the accessibility industry. In his role as accessibility consultant at AFixt, Karl focuses on pragmatic and efficient ways of improving the accessibility of websites and software.

With 20 years of experience in web development, usability, and accessibility, Karl Groves is widely regarded as a pragmatic solution-finder and thought leader in the accessibility industry. In his role as accessibility consultant at AFixt, Karl focus... Show more

Barkha Herman is a technologist, experienced developer advocate, and the founder of WiTVoices and South Florida Women in Tech. With a deep understanding of technology and a love for fostering inclusive and diverse tech communities, Barkha is dedicated to empowering individuals and organizations to thrive in the rapidly evolving digital landscape.

In addition to her work at WiTVoices, she takes great pride in leading South Florida Women in Tech. These organizations are committed to empowering women in technology and creating a supportive environment for their professional growth. Through mentorship programs, networking events, and educational initiatives, they strive to break barriers and foster inclusivity in the tech industry.

Barkha Herman is a technologist, experienced developer advocate, and the founder of WiTVoices and South Florida Women in Tech. With a deep understanding of technology and a love for fostering inclusive and diverse tech communities, Barkha is dedicate... Show more

Victor Dantas has over 25 years of experience in digital transformation. Recognized as a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP), he is part of a select group of over 3,000 global MVPs known for their deep expertise in Microsoft technologies. Victor is the founder of Eyedeas Inc., where he helps businesses enhance productivity and innovation through Power Platform services.

Victor is also an international speaker, sharing his knowledge on digital transformation with audiences around the world. His work has not only improved numerous organizations but has also inspired many in the tech community. Victor continues to guide businesses through digital transformation, solidifying his reputation as an expert in the field.

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ZeroToHeroesAcademy

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thevictordantas

Instagram: https://instagram.com/thevictordantas

Victor Dantas has over 25 years of experience in digital transformation. Recognized as a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP), he is part of a select group of over 3,000 global MVPs known for their deep expertise in Microsoft technologies. Vict... Show more

Gerrit Grunwald is a software engineer that loves coding for around 40 years already. He is a true believer in open source and he is an active member of the Java community, where he founded and leads the Java User Group Münster (Germany), he is a JavaOne rockstar and a Java Champion. He is a speaker at conferences and user groups internationally and writes for several magazines.

Gerrit Grunwald is a software engineer that loves coding for around 40 years already. He is a true believer in open source and he is an active member of the Java community, where he founded and leads the Java User Group Münster (Germany), he is a Jav... Show more

Nico Vermeir is a Cloud Solution Architect at Microsoft, where he has a strong focus on application innovation and AI.

Being a strong believer in the importance of communities he tries to share knowledge wherever he can, be it on BlueSky, at a user group or conference. He has spoken on many international conferences such as NDC Oslo, NDC Sydney, NDC London, Swetugg, Build Stuff, DotNext.
Nico is a former Microsoft MVP in Developer Technologies, crew member of Techorama BE and NL and crew member of VISUG, Belgium's largest .NET user group.

In his spare time he enjoys brewing (and tasting) beer, playing the guitar, riding his Harley-Davidson and doing Karate.

Nico Vermeir is a Cloud Solution Architect at Microsoft, where he has a strong focus on application innovation and AI. Being a strong believer in the importance of communities he tries to share knowledge wherever he can, be it on BlueSky, at a use... Show more

Hi, I’m Achraf Ben Alaya a Cloud and Azure Architect, Microsoft MVP, Microsoft Certified Trainer, and DevSecOps Engineer.

Today, my work focuses on designing and delivering modern cloud architectures, helping organizations build secure, scalable, and reliable solutions on Microsoft Azure. With a strong background in .NET, Xamarin, full-stack development, DevOps, and security practices, I bring both architectural vision and hands-on technical experience to every project.

As a lifelong learner, I believe that growth comes from continuous improvement and knowledge sharing. Beyond my work as an architect, I’m passionate about helping the tech community better understand Azure, Cloud, DevOps, and DevSecOps through practical content, training, and real-world insights.

My goal is to simplify complex technologies, share what I learn, and inspire others to keep growing in their own cloud and technology journeys.

Whether you’re an architect, developer, DevOps engineer, cloud enthusiast, or someone exploring modern technology, welcome to my space.

Website: achrafbenalaya.com

YouTube: Achraf Ben Alaya

Hi, I’m Achraf Ben Alaya a Cloud and Azure Architect, Microsoft MVP, Microsoft Certified Trainer, and DevSecOps Engineer. Today, my work focuses on designing and delivering modern cloud architectures, helping organizations build secure, scalable,... Show more

George is a distributed systems expert and a hands-on engineering leader. He is a Director of Engineering at MongoDB, focusing on implementing cloud native technologies at enterprise scale. He is an Ambassador of the Data on Kubernetes community and the author of The Platform Engineering Playbook, by Packt. Most recently, he has been a speaker at global events like Kubecon, OpenSource Summit, Hashiconf, LeadDev, SaaStr, and more.

George is a distributed systems expert and a hands-on engineering leader. He is a Director of Engineering at MongoDB, focusing on implementing cloud native technologies at enterprise scale. He is an Ambassador of the Data on Kubernetes community and ... Show more

Dr. Henry Ruiz is a Research Scientist at Texas A&M AgriLife Research, specializing in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Remote Sensing. His work focuses on the development of advanced software systems and computational algorithms for analyzing multi-source remote sensing data, including satellite imagery, UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles), LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR).
As a Google Developer Expert in AI and Google Cloud, Dr. Ruiz actively contributes to the AI and open-source communities through research, software development, public speaking, and mentorship. With more than a decade of experience as a researcher, full-stack software developer, and data scientist, he drives innovation at the intersection of AI, geospatial analytics, and scientific computing.
His current research focuses on the emerging capabilities of Large Language Models (LLMs) and Multimodal Large Language Models (MLLMs), particularly their abilities in reasoning, planning, and agent-based collaboration, to enhance analytical pipelines for remote sensing and geospatial data analysis. By integrating multi-agent systems, Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), and multimodal AI workflows, he is developing intelligent, scalable frameworks to address complex scientific, agricultural, and environmental challenges.

Dr. Henry Ruiz is a Research Scientist at Texas A&M AgriLife Research, specializing in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Remote Sensing. His work focuses on the development of advanced software systems and computational algorithms for analyzing multi-... Show more

Bülent has worked at Avande for 15 years, where he drives Copilot and Copilot Studio. He is passionate about sharing and entertaining with his knowledge and insights on Copilot and the Power Platform.

Bülent has worked at Avande for 15 years, where he drives Copilot and Copilot Studio. He is passionate about sharing and entertaining with his knowledge and insights on Copilot and the Power Platform. Show more

April Dunnam is a Principal Cloud Advocate at Microsoft, Microsoft Certified Trainer, and author of The Copilot Compass (Apress, 2026), a practical guide to navigating Copilot and agents in Microsoft 365. Known for her ability to demystify the Power Platform and AI for both developers and makers, she blends deep technical knowledge with a knack for making complex topics approachable and fun.

With a passion for community and sharing knowledge, April runs a popular YouTube channel dedicated to Power Platform, AI, and low-code development. She actively contributes to the Microsoft 365 and Power Platform community through sample contributions, community calls, and mentorship.

April's expertise has been recognized with the Microsoft Technology Excellence Award for her innovative Power Platform solutions. She is a frequent speaker at international conferences, helping businesses and developers harness the full potential of AI and the Power Platform. When she's not advocating for the Power Platform, you can find her performing with her rock band or fueling her caffeine and LEGO building habits.

April Dunnam is a Principal Cloud Advocate at Microsoft, Microsoft Certified Trainer, and author of The Copilot Compass (Apress, 2026), a practical guide to navigating Copilot and agents in Microsoft 365. Known for her ability to demystify the Power ... Show more

Martin Förtsch is an IT-consultant of TNG Technology Consulting GmbH based in Unterföhring near Munich who studied computer sciences. Work wise his focus areas are Agile Development (mainly) in Java, Search Engine Technologies, Information Retrieval and Databases.

As an Intel Software Innovator and Intel Black Belt Software Developer he is strongly involved in the development of open-source software for gesture control with 3D-cameras like e.g. Intel RealSense and has built an Augmented Reality wearable prototype device with his team based on this technology.

Furthermore, he gives many talks at national and international conferences about Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, 3D-camera technologies, Augmented Reality and Test Driven Development as well. He was awarded with the Oracle JavaOne Rockstar.

Martin Förtsch is an IT-consultant of TNG Technology Consulting GmbH based in Unterföhring near Munich who studied computer sciences. Work wise his focus areas are Agile Development (mainly) in Java, Search Engine Technologies, Information Retrieval ... Show more

Thomas holds a degree in Business Economics, but has been a data explorer and a developer at heart ever since the days of dBase and Turbo Pascal. He touched his first SQL Server at V6.5, used covering indexes before they became a feature and joined the PASS community in 2006.

Thomas has been developing in Navision/Dynamics/Business Central systems for quite some time (since 2001, one year before MS acquired Navision), got his hands on R in 2014 (the year before MS bought Revolution Analytics), on the Power Platform from 2020 and the Arduino world from 2024 on. He has worked for ISVs as well as end-user companies, as a developer, consultant, accidental data engineer and he enjoys travelling around Europe speaking at data/dev events.

Thomas holds a degree in Business Economics, but has been a data explorer and a developer at heart ever since the days of dBase and Turbo Pascal. He touched his first SQL Server at V6.5, used covering indexes before they became a feature and joined t... Show more

💫🙆🏻‍♀️ Founder @ Stratadom
🎨📊 Data visualization and AI training
🧑‍🏫🤖 IA/ML Instructor @ LinkedIn Learning
🏅💻 Microsoft MVP Data Platform & AI Platform

I trust the power of data and persuasive communication.

Data visualization services: www.uxforpowerbi.com
More info: www.stratadom.com

💫🙆🏻‍♀️ Founder @ Stratadom 🎨📊 Data visualization and AI training 🧑‍🏫🤖 IA/ML Instructor @ LinkedIn Learning 🏅💻 Microsoft MVP Data Platform & AI Platform I trust the power of data and persuasive communication. Data visualization ser... Show more

Claude Community Ambassador. Founder of CS Dojo, a programming education YouTube channel with 1.9M+ subscribers. Also the creator of an open-source coding assistant with ~1200 stars on GitHub, and a Claude Code tips repo with 10,000+ stars.

Claude Community Ambassador. Founder of CS Dojo, a programming education YouTube channel with 1.9M+ subscribers. Also the creator of an open-source coding assistant with ~1200 stars on GitHub, and a Claude Code tips repo with 10,000+ stars. Show more

Peter van den Bos is a Business Intelligence Consultant, speaker, and founder of Dutch BI Geek. For over a decade, he has helped organizations get a better grip on their data – making Power BI not just look good, but also run fast and make sense. With deep expertise in data modeling and DAX, Peter has a talent for explaining complex topics clearly and with energy.

He shares his insights through blogs, vlogs, and training sessions, always with one goal in mind: helping others make better, smarter decisions with data. Expect practical tips, performance tweaks, and well-grounded advice – straight from the field. His sessions are a favorite among controllers, analysts, and BI professionals who want to understand what’s really going on under the hood.

When he’s not training or presenting, you’ll find him tweaking data models just for fun, deliberately slowing down DAX queries (so he can fix them), or stress-testing visualizations like it’s a competitive sport. His Dutch-language YouTube channel is a playground for anyone with a passion for Power BI – or anyone ready to embrace their inner data nerd.

Peter van den Bos is a Business Intelligence Consultant, speaker, and founder of Dutch BI Geek. For over a decade, he has helped organizations get a better grip on their data – making Power BI not just look good, but also run fast and make sense. Wit... Show more

I’m a creative technologist with a decade of experience designing AI and data-driven solutions that are both scalable and customer-centric. At the intersection of cloud-native architecture and GenAI, I specialize in building data products and platforms that thrive in highly regulated industries.

I’m a creative technologist with a decade of experience designing AI and data-driven solutions that are both scalable and customer-centric. At the intersection of cloud-native architecture and GenAI, I specialize in building data products and platfor... Show more

Nikki is an experienced software engineer with a sharp eye for detail and craft. She focuses on building high-performant, resilient products that solve real problems for individuals and organizations. She is also a technical writer and speaker who has authored several articles featured across widely read developer platforms.

A Rive ambassador and package author, Nikki is passionate about community building. She believes deeply in knowledge sharing as a way to spark collaboration and support continuous learning across the tech ecosystem.

Outside tech, Nikki is a thinker with a curious mind and a love for art.

Nikki is an experienced software engineer with a sharp eye for detail and craft. She focuses on building high-performant, resilient products that solve real problems for individuals and organizations. She is also a technical writer and speaker who ha... Show more

Whether it’s operators or observability, agile or accessibility, my expertise shines because I’m passionate about all of it. I’ve been building software for more than a decade and I love sharing experiences via public speaking. I’m currently a Developer Advocate for Altinity where I help create educational content about ClickHouse and OpenTelemetry, and I am a contributor to the OpenTelemetry project.

Whether it’s operators or observability, agile or accessibility, my expertise shines because I’m passionate about all of it. I’ve been building software for more than a decade and I love sharing experiences via public speaking. I’m currently a Develo... Show more

Hafedh is a professional coach, agile coach, and trainer with over 12 years of experience in guiding individuals and organizations toward resilience, adaptability, and improved performance. With a strong foundation in neuroscience, agility, and human sciences, Hafedh integrates these disciplines to offer a comprehensive approach to personal and organizational development. His work focuses on helping teams and leaders navigate change and foster growth in dynamic environments. Throughout his career, Hafedh has been committed to empowering his clients with practical, science-based strategies for achieving long-term success.

Hafedh is a professional coach, agile coach, and trainer with over 12 years of experience in guiding individuals and organizations toward resilience, adaptability, and improved performance. With a strong foundation in neuroscience, agility, and human... Show more

Michel Schildmeijer began his career in the pharmaceutical industry before moving into IT. He worked as a solutions and IT architect across multiple sectors and currently serves as an Enterprise Architect for the Dutch government. Michel regularly speaks at international conferences on cloud-native platforms and delivery engineering. He contributes to open source initiatives around containers and CI/CD and is the author of CI/CD Design Patterns.

Michel Schildmeijer began his career in the pharmaceutical industry before moving into IT. He worked as a solutions and IT architect across multiple sectors and currently serves as an Enterprise Architect for the Dutch government. Michel regularly sp... Show more

Radu Vunvulea is a technology enthusiast working as VP of Cloud for Endava. He has a vast experience in different technologies and industries. Most of his time is spent working with the cloud, helping companies to innovate and finding solutions to their business problems. He enjoys building bridges between people and helping others to grow. He shares his knowledge on his personal blog and at different events where he is invited as a speaker. In his spare time, he drives an IT community and he is also a Microsoft Regional Director and Microsoft Azure MVP.

Radu Vunvulea is a technology enthusiast working as VP of Cloud for Endava. He has a vast experience in different technologies and industries. Most of his time is spent working with the cloud, helping companies to innovate and finding solutions to th... Show more

Tim Spann is the Senior Solution Engineer - Financial Services working with Snowflake, Cortex AI, Apache NiFi, Apache Iceberg, Python, Apache Polaris, Streamlit, Cloud Data, Vectors, Data, Generative AI, ML, Hugging Face, Apache Kafka, Apache Flink, Pytorch, big data, the IoT, machine learning, and deep learning. Tim has over a decade of experience with the IoT, big data, distributed computing, streaming technologies, and Java programming. Previously, he was a Principal Developer Advocate at Zilliz/Milvus, Principal Developer Advocate at Cloudera, Developer Advocate at StreamNative, Principal Field Engineer at Cloudera, a Senior Solutions Architect at AirisData and a senior field engineer at Pivotal. He holds a BS and MS in computer science.

https://medium.com/@tspann
https://www.youtube.com/@FLaNK-Stack

Tim Spann is the Senior Solution Engineer - Financial Services working with Snowflake, Cortex AI, Apache NiFi, Apache Iceberg, Python, Apache Polaris, Streamlit, Cloud Data, Vectors, Data, Generative AI, ML, Hugging Face, Apache Kafka, Apache Flink, ... Show more

I started my Collaboration journey by anticipating the release of SharePoint Server 2001 and was updated with an invitation to be an MVP. I tell stories from experience and real-world examples of how we implement M365, PowerPoint and AI Solutions across the Microsoft Landscape.

With a background in Stand-up comedy and 20+ years of experience moving people to collaborative working. My stories have helped people and business identify the value they can bring to their organisations.

Delivering MS Teams & SharePoint Change to companies like Heineken, US Army, Atlas Copco, Ford Motor Co. and Euroclear Bank. I now head up the Infrastructure Services team at Lineas NV Belgium.

I started my Collaboration journey by anticipating the release of SharePoint Server 2001 and was updated with an invitation to be an MVP. I tell stories from experience and real-world examples of how we implement M365, PowerPoint and AI Solutions acr... Show more