On June 3rd PASS announced their annual Summit for Data Professionals was moved to a virtual format. This is not surprising to those of us in the SQL Server community. Many events are moving to a virtual platform as well as being able to offer them at no costs to all attendees. PASS though, is a different kind of “company” for lack of a better word. We are a community of people that built this “company” from the ground up. Due to normal day to day commitments, like jobs, most of us do not have time to run the day to day operations of the “company” and we rely on…
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I am very excited to announce I will be delivering a pre-conference session on SQL Server Performance Tuning on November 5th at PASS Summit 2019. If you have ever attended one of my sessions, you know how passionate I am about this particular topic. So, you also know how very excited I am to have this opportunity to spend a full day talking about SQL Server Performance Tuning and Optimization. Performance Tuning is one of my favorite things to do with SQL Server. There is nothing like seeing performance improvements in an environment as your reward for your hard work. It’s tangible and gratifying. In this session you will be…
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I’m It Survival Tips for the Lone DBA – Level 100 (Not Accepted: Higher rated session selected) Track: Professional Development As others have done I also will share my feedback from my submission to speak at PASS Summit in hopes it will lend some more insight into the process. Abstract: Are you the only database person at your company? Are you both the DBA and the Developer? Being the only data professional in an environment can seem overwhelming, daunting, and darn near impossible sometimes. However, it can also be extremely rewarding and empowering. This session will cover how you can keep your sanity, get stuff done, and still love your job. We’ll…
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For those who don’t know Idera Software sponsors a SQLChat on Twitter once a month. This month I got the privilege to host and had come up with a topic and questions for discussion. Below are the questions and answers I provided as well as some from others that chimed in. I think these are worth noting and give some valuable information especially to newbies of the SQL Community. Q1: How have you benefited from networking with SQL professionals? My Answer: As a lone DBA networking has gained me “co-workers”. I now have people to bounce ideas off of. I use these connections daily. Many have gained job opportunities based on…
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I am thrilled to announce that I have been chosen as one of the 2016 Idera ACE’s. It is truly an honor to be part of this great program and give back to the SQL community. What is an Idera ACE? According to Idera. “ACEs (Advisors & Community Educators) are active community members who have shown a passion for helping the community and sharing their knowledge. We help the ACEs pursue that passion by sponsoring travel to select events and offering guidance for soft skill training. Requirements to become an Idera ACE: Enthusiastic members & leaders of the SQL community Accomplished contributors to the SQL community Good speaker, writer and presenter…
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As most of you know, I have been a Lone DBA for 15+ years and during that time I have learned a thing or two about how to survive on my own in relatively large environments. One of those things is knowing when to admit you cannot do it all. Working alone on 56 servers you can imagine how the workload can seem insurmountable. There are times when in one week I will do 70+ tasks, not including project work and daily monitoring. To manage and get this type of workload accomplish you have to learn to work smarter not harder. That’s when you have to enlist help and hire…
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For my first blog I want to talk about my experience as a member of SQL Family. My Start I started my career as a lone DBA, 15 years ago, with zero knowledge of what SQL Server actually was. I was promoted into a sole DBA job with expectations I would get certified and take the bull by the horns to manage the 50+ SQL Servers . The company, The Port of Virginia, took a big risk with me, but within 6 months’ time the gamble had paid off. In the beginning, most of what I learned to do the job was from a site called SSWUG.org. This is where…
