The PASS Board of Directors election starts on October 12th, and we’ve got four really well-qualified candidates to choose from:
- Brian Moran (Twitter)
- Jeremiah Peschka (Blog – Twitter)
- Matt Morollo (Twitter)
- Tom LaRock (Blog – Twitter)
You can read their bios at the PASS Candidate List, and they’re good, but I wanted more. I emailed each of them with a set of interview questions to satisfy my bizarre curiosity. Today’s response comes from Matt Morollo:
Brent: First, thanks for volunteering to dedicate your time to the community. What made you decide to run for the Board of Directors this year?
SQL PASS represents the type of Media organization that matches the type of vendor which aligns with my ideals of a highly reputable B2B Media porvider; one that would be a thrill to be a part of. Over the last 14 years my career has been committed to providing IT and App Dev professionals best-of-breed Media with integrity and enthusiasm. As a veteran Media professional that has built successful contemporary IT focused B2B businesses, my hope is to add value to the future strategy of PASS and also come away with some great experience and new professional acquaintances – people that share my passion for this work. PASS is a Media organization first and foremost and needs the next generation of Media professionals at the table to navigate through this very unique time in business Media. My aspirations match their goals and objectives, and few are as uniquely qualified in Media; this is what I do and have done all my career.
Walk us through one of your typical workdays. What do you do?
The Media business is extremely deadline oriented, dynamic, and very competitive. As many Media vendors, 1105 Media works in a virtual environment (7 offices in 10 states plus a large number of home office employees) so communication is critical to what we do each and every day; it is well orchestrated, disciplined, and highly complex. Keeping up my meeting and publishing schedules is what my day initially revolves around. When not traveling, my time is spent strategizing with sales, marketing, editorial, working on operational issues, meeting clients, developing partnerships, closing issues, forecasting, and working toward our revenue objectives. All this requires a lot of teamwork/meetings and working through day-to-day challenges as they surface. Organization and prioritization is critical in Media.
What parts of your day-to-day experience will make you a better Board of Directors candidate than the other candidates?
If this has not been stressed already; PASS is a Media organization serving a very influential community of SQL oriented professionals. Nothing is more important than serving the audience/community and content environments with the right information and asset types. My job is largely about keeping our business relevant and navigating through the murky waters of modern Media so the business is able to continue to sustain profitability and growth (my parent company, the Redmond Media Group now includes MSDN and TechNet in addition to all the Redmond branded assets in print, online plus Face-to-Face events and Virtual Conferences/Expos). Again, as someone with a track record of success, and someone who has been part of a team that has built Redmond Media Group, the most successful Media organization serving Microsoft- oriented IT and App Dev communities, no other candidate matches the experience required as the PASS BOD has outline to me.
I’ve heard that the PASS Board of Directors is a time-consuming hobby to say the least, and at this point in our careers, none of us have tons of extra time. What other projects or things do you expect to have to cut back in order to make time for the Board? (I’d just like to give the readers an idea of how tough it is to prioritize things.)
Having spent the last 14 years strapped to a PC, speaking with audiences, advertising partners, and traveling on airplanes, you cannot be successful in Media without a strong work ethic, and more importantly a passion for this business. I’m not saying being a SQL Administrator is not a hard job, but the Media business is a much different occupation – in fact given the complexity and competitive nature of the business, there is a high attrition rate and very few people and companies have had the kind of success that 1105 Media continues to have (just last week Questex and recently Cygnus filed Chapter 11 for example – B2B Media woes are in the news daily – its no secret). PASS can expect that kind of work ethic and enthusiasm from me. This business excites me and I’ve always been able to ensure the business strives and is successful through good times and bad (my personal sense is this is one of the best times as change is the most constant variable in Media and now is the time to build off that momentum). The reason why the BOD position is such a strong match is because hard work is what makes a Media business successful, and with a passion for serving Microsoft-oriented professionals, making time is something that the BOD can expect and is something that was expected upon my initial application.
I believe social networking and Web 2.0 tools like Twitter, Facebook, and StackOverflow are changing the way DBAs interact with each other, get training, and solve problems. Do you agree or disagree, and why?
(No answer)
Do you blog and use social networking tools? Where can DBAs find you online?
Yes: LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook. I am also a member of the Internet Advertising Bureau’s Executive Council on Sales and that community puts out a lot of community based information via SmartBrief. Social Networking represent great marketing assets in my opinion. They are also great tools for communicating, and guiding participating communities to key areas of the web. For Media organizations specifically, they help keep the community up to date with information they might not otherwise find as well as sharing ideas and other information resources. Again, as a BOD member, any DBA can certainly reach me, but my role would be mostly transparent to them; the PASS board is not a platform for me (that is a key distinction as a candidate) to be a key figure in the community of SQL professionals, but rather a role where it is possible for me to ensure the PASS community gets the best information assets in the market. The goal is to help guide the PASS strategy and make it the most relevant Media vendor and community for SQL professionals. Just as a publisher, the audiences don’t know me, our editors on the other hand they are intimately familiar with. They are out there in the “mosh pit” mixing with audiences. The role of a business professional in Media like myself, is to put the best content makers on a pedestal, keep them visible and available to the core community and audiences served.
Do you have any conflicts of interest that may pose a challenge?
None; the opportunity dovetails with my ambitions, aspirations, and more importantly my ability. My track record demonstrates this as do my prior statements.
If PASS put you in charge of increasing new memberships, what specific steps would you take?
New membership is critical to all Media organizations; maintaining a qualified membership community and providing best-of-breed content are essentially, or to net down, one the core objectives of any company in the business of niche B2B Media. As a publisher who has spent years and years building communities, I’m familiar with all models including qualified, paid, SEO/M, social networking, alliances, and contemporary Audience Development (AD) practices. There is no silver bullet here and there are a number of methods in order to accomplish this key objective. I can’t sit here and tell you what exactly I can do; no one can unless they are familiar with the resources and budgets that PASS has. What I can tell you, is that I will, and am extremely qualified in the practice of Audience Development and that PASS can expect that my skills will be applied along with my experience to the best of my ability. The best and most modern AD practices will be applied with creativity and enthusiasm. My experience also involves global expansion and my understanding is that is a core PASS objective (my BA from GWU in International Communications is also relevant).
What do you think PASS is doing right to improve the day-to-day lives of database administrators?
This BOD work is a great example. The team is looking for the best from a strategic business perspective. What I can tell you, is that each nominee, unless they have a decade plus experience in building, growing, and leading B2B organizations has really has no idea what kind of challenges and how hard the work is involved in growing a Media organization like PASS. Everyone I’ve seen on the ballot may make a great speaker, writer, or be a world-class SQL DBA, but aren’t experienced in the business of Media to the extent that I am. With respect to all of the nominees, they are highly skilled SQL technicians. That’s great, but PASS is Media company serving communities with information resources that keep them captive In my opinion, based on what I know, the PASS BOD needs a MEDIA PROFESSIONAL experienced with Microsoft and IT publishing/events. The reason PASS appeals to me, and to answer the question more directly, is that PASS has a strong reputation as a provider of best-of-breed information assets with integrity, and has access to the most innovative community of SQL based content providers. The challenge is the web has opened up a whole new set of opportunities for communities to find information. The Redmond Media Group for example references SQL and supports every key vendor in this market, employs some of the best contributors who produce articles, white papers, webcasts, speak at our events on the subject, but it is much broader and focused on providing information to the MCP, Developer, IT, & Partner communities across all Microsoft disciplines. Again, let me stress that PASS is in an extremely competitive marketplace, needs to remain relevant as a key information provider, and has to work on building the communities in the midst of a highly competitive and complex environment. PASS has two key competitive advantages; a) the organization is recognized globally as the most targeted and credible community reaching top SQL Professionals b) SQL is poised to grow as the information boom continues to accelerate at a pace that is almost impossible to describe; SQL is, and will remain fundamental to the data revolution. This excites me and is why I’m so keen to be a part of PASS.
What do you think PASS could do better, and how?
This is a question for the community and one that is mission-critical as PASS evolves and grows as an organization. B2B Media organizations rely on the communities they serve to provide this kind of feedback on a regular basis via show evaluation forms, surveys, and other research. Dialogue is also important and to borrow a phrase, the community and vendor partners must be treated “like family”. They are vital in providing this kind of information and shaping the organization. The first thing I’d hope to do as a Board member, is to dive into the community surveys, research, and other data (even if its verbatim) and speak with key members in person (via email, phone, in person at local chapters). Knowing and listening to the community is the most important thing the Board and team at PASS can engage in. The community represents the future, and the work that needs to be done revolves around them. Finally, to borrow another phrase in Media “content is king”. As long as PASS remains committed to providing the best and most relevant content, PASS will continue to be successful and have the communities” attention.
Sum up your goals for PASS in 140 characters or less:
Understand key objectives, challenges, and work to assimilate myself with the board, staff, and community. Help support PASS and ensure the organization remains relevant, poised for growth, and stands alone as THE SQL Media vendor in a landscape that is complex, and dynamic.
[...] has been some great discussion about the upcoming PASS Board of Directors election over on Brent Ozar’s blog. If you [...]
Matt, In all my years with PASS I have never seen a candidate so thoroughly vetted by the community at large. Thank you for your candidancy and commitment to the process.
Every election I’ve been a part of has always been made up of SQL Server community veterans and established leaders in the community. When I would ask who is X candidate? 99% of the time there is a body of work on the internet or lots of my peers that know of them and their previous accomplishments in the community. Even if they were new and trying to establish themselves other people in PASS still knew who they were and could validate their SQL credentials. Essentially, the candidates have always been “one of us”. You don’t have that inside track where people already know you, what you stand for and what you can bring to the organization.
The fact you would take the time to answer all the questions being posed to you tells me you have the right level of commitment to be on the board.
My biggest concern is what you think PASS is:
If this has not been stressed already; PASS is a Media organization serving a very influential community of SQL oriented professionals
I’ve been involved in the SQL Server community since the late 90′s and with PASS since ’02. Never have I considered PASS a media organization. It is a organization that facilitates education and connection with other SQL Server professionals. It isn’t a magazine or a web site, it is people. I don’t consider the chapter I run, or the chapter I helped found, media organizations. They are support organizations for people like me. PASS is the next logical extension of that around the globe.
SQL magazine is a B2B, their conference is a B2B con. You don’t see SQL Magazine chapters.
Don’t get me wrong, SQL Magazine is important to me as an education and information tool.
I recommend it to my users group in general. SQL Magazine and PASS may have parallels but they are completely different organizations with different goals.
K Brian,
My job largely revolves around keeping regular folk – all falvors of IT up to speed with information on new technologies and paradigms. Also, my job is ensuring our partners get ROI. The synergy between content and advertising results is mission-critical. Redmoned Media Group has always been about keeping that dynamic alive.
There are 3 different models, to more directly answer your question 1) help you find immediate information to a specific problem 2)provide expert level pro’s with information that will help you keep up with the dynamic pace as SQL evolves and as new versions are released, and 3) help people at all levels of the the profession learn more about the fundamentals, and usages for SQL Server, get better educated.
Please keep in mind this has not been outlined to me as an objective the board has in mind for the candidate, I’m simply offering up information, doing my best to answer your questions.
Lastly, as stated in my interview, I would turn the tables on you, and make sure you tell me what you need and make sure we deliver. Redmond Media Group is a reader driven organization – audience feedback, their needs are vital to shaping the content provided. We survey them constantly, then build our content outlines (pint, online, events) based on their feedback.
For example, the only qualification to join PASS is to pay. That means you have varying skillsets in the community and how do you go about ensuring everyone gets equal value?
K. Brian, you are asking great questions, and again, it is pleasure and much appreiated.
Thanks,
-Matt
I hate to jump in just to say this but…
PASS membership is free. At one time it was pay but that has since changed. I think it is little things like this that cause the community to feel that you’re out of touch with us and thus the backlash you’re seeing.
Hi Jorge, I was using a TDWI analogy/comparisom which I retracted and simply meant to reference the Summit as one of the key revenue streams for the organization (among the others). My apologies. Thanks for pointing this out, but it also supports my statement about PASS & Media. That said, as mentioned the community has spoken and their view on PASS has altered my perception. Much appreciated.
Best,
-Matt
[...] engaged a little in the discussion on Matt Morollo's interview on Brent Ozar's blog. It made me go back and re-read the other candidates, and when re-reading [...]
Wes, Thanks for the thoughful feedback. It is very constructive. The opportunity to obtain someone that brings the best experience of a reputable B2B media company, and combine that w PASS is unlike any other. Again, my service to IT professionals is the foundation for my campaign. As I’ve written to others on this forum, this community represents my people too. There is huge opportunity to carry that experience over, and ensure the community grows, the reputation is sustained, and PASS is poised continued success. This is a community that I remain committed and keen to support. If my ability was not a match, then it would be a different discussion. Clearly this is a close knit community and one that I’ll continue to work towards gaining my trust.
All the kind words and support are appreciated. Thanks so much.
Best,
-Matt
Matt,
and this kind of piggy-backs on what Jorge pointed out.
Put Redmond Media Group aside for a moment. You’ve had a ton of experience because of it and we respect that. I certainly do. But you’re only beating a dead horse by referring back to it. Drop the marketing/”Dilbert” speech like synergy and ROI. Those types of words are used so much that they don’t have a lot of meaning any more within the framework of this type of discussion. If we were discussing budgeting and cost reduction with business analysts, by all means, go for it. But we’re looking for you to use plain, simple language. Here’s what I’ve been trying to get a good response from you on. If the problem has been my questions, then I apologize (preface all of these with, “In your opinion”):
- Who do you think make up PASS’ membership?
- Do you think that’s the right membership?
- What do you think PASS is and what do you think it needs to be?
- In order to go from where it is to where it needs to be, what do you think needs to change, be improved, be dropped, be added, etc.?
- What can PASS HQ do to really contribute to local growth of chapters? (Marketing ain’t it.)
- What can PASS HQ do to provide opportunities for growth and professional development for its members?
- What do the members need to do to improve PASS HQ?
- What other communities, online or “in person,” have you actively been involved in that involve users coming together to “connect, learn, and share,” as Brent put it?
Great questions! I’d love to see all the candidates answer those.
I’d like to see future candidates interviewed live on twitter and UStream and have the community vote on who makes the slate. Based on this conversation, I feel safe to say that the SQL community can do as good a job (frankly better…) vetting candidates as any committee serving on our behalf.
Hi Chuck, Not a bad idea, a good one in fact especially since some comments, written on forums like this can be misinterpreted (guilty!). You make an excellent suggestion. This is also why I have encouraged people to call me. T 508 5321418 M 508 294 8183. Nothing would give me more pleasure to speak to any and all of you.
Thanks for chiming as always,
-Matt
K Brian,
I’ve got to run, but will answer questions that are not redundant happily. If the PASS community wants to embrace me, then the more success we will all have. The last thing I would want is to blemish my record. So if you embrace me, its easier to swallow “old media”, “marketing airhead” and “drop the marketing/Dilbert” statements. My skin is thicker than most, and can take it all day, but is it necessary? Your resect is acknowledged, bu my point is that PASS stands to benefit; that is the only goal here. I’m doing my best, have always done so, and you can expect even more. To answer Brent’s question, we’ve run TechMentor, VSlive, ITvirtualizationLive (Virtual -3500 attendees) and 11/5 SharepointVCX.com (w 3700 registered so far). 08/02/2010 we are holding a developer conference on the Microsoft campus. Don’t forget, we publish 16 newsletters each week, put out 5 magazines a month, and 12-16 webcasts a month, in addition to the virtual events we plan to contiunue in 010 (not to mention the custom work – we did an ERwin series which earner the PM a promotion).
It’s been my pleasure to engage you all, appreciate the scrutiny and due diligence, consider it an honor, and will log back on later, but family duty calls til 9pm EST.
My cell is 508 294 8183 or W 508 532 1418 & mmorollo@1105media.com
Thanks for your commitments to this effort and questions, It is appreciated. Great to to meet you if only via brentozar.com
Matt,
I would make a distinction here. What you’ve pointed to with things like TechMentor are events. They aren’t user groups or community organizations. I’ve done both and there is very little similarity between the two. Okay, time to delve back into my past… once upon a time (no, not a band camp reference), when I was a young officer in the USAF, I was part of the organization that puts on the Air Force Information Technology Conference (AFITC). It was the largest IT conference in DoD and we attracted all DoD and a lot of other federal government agencies. I won’t post the numbers because that would seem like I’m bragging, and that’s not my intent (if you’re morbidly curious, I can give you the details, but it was, in its heyday, on the scale of the PASS Summit). As a co-chair 1 year and being involved for 4 other conferences, especially on the technical side (including one year as the initial Technical Chief until I separated from Active Duty), I know what events are like. They aren’t like community/user groups. Completely different skill set. Completely different requirements and needs. So I would ask you to delve into the local user group scene where you are. It doesn’t necessarily have to be SQL Server. The .NET guys have similar issues. That will give you a better idea of what it’s like at ground level.
I agree with Brian. It’s one thing to host an event, and it’s another thing to build a community.
The PASS Summit is an event.
The local PASS chapters are communities. They’re ongoing, self-organized, groups of people that continue to stay in close contact with each other whether online or in meatspace (or as Greg Low said, baconspace!)
Matt – the events that you’re describing, like the magazines, are one-way information pushes from sponsors and sponsored speakers down to attendees. I can say this because my company’s a part of some of these events, like SharepointVCX. The sponsors pay to promote themselves, and give away free training as a part of that. That’s great – but that’s not a community, and that has almost nothing to do with PASS.
PASS sessions consist entirely of volunteer speakers who don’t have to pay or get paid in order to speak. PASS is a volunteer organization – people helping each other by connecting, learning, and sharing. Vendors don’t put on any sessions at PASS. Vendors don’t have anything to do with the speaker selection process.
You’re doing a great job of managing a business, though. I just want to draw the distinction between managing events versus managing communities. I think your experience is top-notch, and I think it would be an asset to have on the Board. I just think you should sell it for what it is: experience managing business, not managing communities. That’s nothing to be ashamed of. I know several prominent business leaders that I’d love to vote into the Board of Directors, and they don’t know jack about managing communities – and that’s okay. We need a mix of skillsets for a successful Board.
Brent,
This distinction is perfectly clear to me. Every event has a different flavor, no two are alike. Also, at all of our events they’re are social elements, networking receptions, BOF’s etc. It is a community – not like PASS – but one nonetheless.
Also, vendors do not speak rather hand picked industry leaders run our tracks. The content is vendor neutral and that is a fine line you must understand better than most.
As for communities; that is a broad definition. We call them audiences, and have vast ones. You can see on our BPA audits etc. But your point is taken. That said, and I’ll ask MS next week for input, there is an MSDN community; in fact a rather large one that I will be working to support. http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/aa497440.aspx. Addditionally there are hundreds of MS developer UG’s and community sites. Microsoft did’nt just say, “here, take it”. There was an extensive, highly competitive bid process that took the best part of 09 to win.
Note however that audiences/communities whether PASS or some other vendor organization in this market, essentially work to grow, serve, and support Microsoft oriented IT professionals. That is our mission. This is what we do. Maybe our (sorry) media model is a variation; that I will grant you.
If you perceived me as running on a community based platform only, that is simply one area where I have unique – possibly different skillsets. Adding business leadership in this market and diverse experience, in combination to all the other audience/community development and experience I have will be a good thing and something for the PASS community to embrace.
Finally, teamwork has not come up a lot on this blog comments section; I would obviously not be the sole person on the BOD, but an individual on the team that is a distincly different candidate, one that will be provided a distinct set of tasks. Fortunately there are great people on the team, in the community and my hope is to work closely with all of you and them to “get it done”. If my track record did not demonstrate I could, nor did I feel up to the challenge, we would not be sharing this information.
Brent, you are a Rockstar, an extraordinary individual. To note the respect you have provided me is a thrill as is to be in the company of all the people who read your blog.
Thanks for this opportunity and please – “keep ‘em coming!”
Sincerely,
-Matt
Matt, here is the local PASS chapter near you: http://nesql.org/. The reason I post it is PASS is like a lot of other professional organizations, in that there is a big (“HQ”) portion, but there are also individual groups locally. I think if you are able to get out to the New England SQL Server User Group, you’ll get a better sense of what I’ve been trying to explain in the difference between events and user groups. The MSDN community is a community. But the use of community is totally different than when we’re talking local user groups and even the SQL Server community at large. It’s closer to the latter, but it’s far apart from the type of community we’re talking about with respect to groups like NESQL. Events can’t duplicate what you get at places like a local user group (and the reverse is also true). And I think if you’ll attend a few meetings, you’ll see the difference and the challenge I’ve been talking about.
K. Brian, I fully intend to reach out to the local NE chapter in addition to attending Summit (including other aggressive travel plans – yu can rest assured -I’ll reach out). Thanks for the suggestion. Again I ask you consider the diversity and leadership that I bring to the table; someone who has a track record and proven skillset and has built successful businesses. Thanks again. You’ve been very helpful through this journey.
-Matt
Don’t worry, I’ve considered all factors. I blogged about others doing the same. You not being a “SQL guy” is not an impediment IMHO. Others have pointed that out, hopefully, enough for folks to keep in mind. But on the same token, taking time to really understand who makes up PASS is important. I would feel it’s critical to being able to well represent the members from the BoD. And that only comes through getting to know us, such as through avenues like this and the Summit but also at the local level and at more informal events like Code Camps and SQL Saturdays.
Although this might be close too: http://www.snessug.com
Thanks Grant, I think the one in Waltham? is closer – I live in Newton, but would happily make the trip down to meet you all. In fact, I’m trying to organize something in the Boston area before the voting ends (also for anyone near Redmond tomorrow at 8/PM at the town center Marriott.
All the best,
-Matt
First off this is in no way an attempt to approve or dissaprove Matt for the position as I haven’t gone over everything in enough detail as of yet. But I do want to voice my opinion in that I don’t feel every board member needs to be a SQL Server professional per say. The tasks that the board have to deal with are more about running an organization / conference than anything directly related to SQL Server. And as such demand different talents or skills than most SQL Server professionals are best at. How many corporate executives have the skills necessary to function effeciently as any of the non-executive workers in the company? Not many. And while if there were a choice fo two individuals with the same executive skills and one had (in this case) SQL Server experience they would usually be the prefered choice. But if all one knew how to to was administer a dataabase and the other knew how to run the company there would be no contest. We need more people on the board who can make the correct decisions that have very little to do with SQL Server in reality. Now whether Matt is that person or not is up to the masses to decide.
Andrew,
All good points and I think most (if not all) of us are in agreement that the BOD needs to have a variety of folks, not just DBA’s, in order to ensure the success of the organization. However I think the driving issue and concern from everyone is having someone at the helm, that will be responsible for the direction of our organization, that doesn’t understand the fundamental building basics of the ship he/she is trying to steer. Matt seems like a very sharp individual who is very passionate about what he does and obviously very talented in what he does but the million dollar question here is “is it a good fit for this particular organization?” and that’s what we’re really trying to sort out here.
Matt, thanks for taking the time to answer all of these questions and engaging the community like this. It might seem like everyone is “picking on the new guy” but honestly I think it’s just everyone feeling the need to make sure we’re as informed as possible about our choice of candidates and given that you’re a relative unknown to us you’re going to see a lot more prodding than the other candidates.
Andrew, THANK YOU! Gosh, I wish I could have written that. Outstanding. I understand it is not an endorsement by any stretch, but it nets down so much.
Much appreciated.
Kind Regards,
-Matt
Jorge,
Yes but we all have to remember some facts about the BOD for PASS. First off a this is why you have a BOD in the first place. It is not a single individual making all the decisions, it is a collection of individuals hence the “board” aspect. This is exactly why corporations have multiple people on the board. And second this nomination is just for a seat on the board and not for the president of PASS. The normal PASS process will ensure it is years before anyone gets to the top of the chain. There is plenty of time for any capable individual to fully understand the needs of the organization long before they get to the helm. In the meantime it is up to all the members of the board to ensure the unique talents of all members are utilized to the fullest extent.
Jorge,
Thanks, it was a bit of a shock – the prodding that is, and with no disrespect some of the choice words caught me off guard but after getting to know this community a lot better through this important dialogue, it makese sense. Believe me, the business of publishing we are in, rejection is a daily part of the routine due to the competitive nature of the business. Smart people get by, and follow up w strategic info and have incredible success and build great relationship that translate into good business partnerships. PASS has a rock solid community, that much is clear, and with great leaders, and proven business strategist backing you, and supporting the community, it will continue to thrive.
Thanks again,
-Matt
I finally decided to comment on this long string. I’ll Keep my post to some simple statements as to not spur to much controversy.
1. The PASS Board needs variety. No doubt we need people on it that our different otherwise great ideas would not happen.
2. PASS Hires great Marketing people. The Marketing that has been done for some of the events and the Summit in my opinion is excellent. Again I’m not a marketing guru but I’m the person they are trying to get to PASS and it works very well for me. Now is there room for improvement and are we going to change the marketing absolutely but I see that as a function of the consultants/marketing people we have hired. In my opinion we need a Board person to manage those people and drive the ideas of the Community since they may or may not be plugged in with the SQL Community. The Board person doing this has to be plugged in with the community so he/she can drive these people in the right way.
3. As Many people have mentioned here. PASS is a Community first and foremost. We are not here to make money. We are here to help those that use and support Microsoft SQL Server. We make money at PASS only to put it back into the community. Whether through 24 hours of PASS or regional events or supporting Chapters. It’s about building a Community not an Organization.
Thank you to Brent and the many others that have asked questions and posed these ideas. If you want to know what Community is I think this blog is a good example of a great community.
Pat
OK this will be my last post as well because it can go on and on. Wait it already has
. Pat not to pick on you because I still want you to come to my sessions 
. But I think you just proved my point. You stated that PASS hires someone to do the marketing for PASS and they do a great job. Well how many people on that marketing team do you think are SQL Server professionals. My guess would be 0 yet they do a great job. That is because that is what they are good at and that is what they do. If you looked around I dought very seriously if you would be able to find a company who has has a board of directors in which everyone on the board was even in the same profession as the underlying company. Again there are valid reasons for this otherwise it wouldn’t be this way all around the world. Yes it is important for the board members to understand the needs of the community from a PASS perspective but let’s face it, this is not rocket science. Any intelligent individual should have no problem if they are dedicated to the cause. What they do need to be able to do well which may not be so simple is to execute the goals & tasks that come with the position. And most of those have far more to do with running a business than with SQL Server per say. It is not a position for just anyone. First they need to have a lot of dedication and will endure a lot of self sacrafice if done correctly. If and when they execute the position well they should be very respected by the rest of us but in my opinion being a SQL Server professional is the least of the requirements. Done now. I won’t accept any unmarked packages in the mail for the next few days at least 
Don’t worry I’ll still attend your sessions.
Pat
Matt,
We appreciate your willingness to serve and answer questions in this forum. Please avoid taking these questions personally, as they are not directed at you, as a person, but were intended to help us choose individuals to represent us in our chosen line of work. The comments that may have seemed harsh or like attacks, were not intended as such, but, rather were intended to determine your credentials for a seat on this board. While we here at PASS joke around and have a good time, our representation and perception as a professional association is something that we take very seriously. You will find this membership as committed to learning and helping each other succeed as any out there. Bottom line, please don’t mistake our passion for what we do as attacks, rather this is a very important election to us. I only wish this passion and level of particpation in electing leadership was always exhibited by the general citizenry in all of the other elections that affect our lives.
Hi Tim,
Thank you for the feedback. It’s helpful and this has been a great experience. Again, while some of the words directed at me were not that endearing nor something I’ve ever experienced, it was hard not to take personally, as my only goal here is to help and be a part of the community. I’m not afraid to tell you there is a human side to me and that some of the comments made, might not have been the right thing. So we make some mistakes and we learn. But if you’re not outthere trying, what does that say. Thats why I’m jumping in and continue to be aspired and am working as diligently as time allows. Also getting some great experience along the way. I’m goal oriented, ambitious, clearly have great respect for PASS and am keen to help you all. This is a market I know, but a community I need to understand better. As someone commented yesterdat, its not rocket science, and feel like progress has been made in that aspect. In the same vein, I’m grateful to all that have taken the time to get to know more about me – someone on the other side of the fence, but in the same line of work – only from a business perspective. Thanks again.
Best,
-Matt
My Final post for today as my 9pm deadline just got shut down and my sense is we’ve all had a good run for today (please do call or email if there are any burning questions – or please send me your email/Tel and it would be great to converse with you). Again my thanks go to Brent for providing the community this incredible blog. Pat Wright summed it up incredibly well in his 4:27pm post. Perfectly. This is a deeply committed community – its wonderful to see how much this means to you all. Clearly my work is not done, and hopefully we can continue this important dialogue. Everyone provided valuable feedback and insight that will go a long way in my effort to demonstrate my value proposition, business case, and distinction as candidate. Thank you.
Sincerely,
-Matt
K.Brian, as promised
- Who do you think make up PASS’ membership? (Matt: I’m not sure what the question means – but my understanding about this community is better than it was on Weds, and I had a pretty solid nuts and bolts understanding about PASS for years that was passed down by my TDWI and Redmond colleagues in addition to the vendors that support PASS, and the Executive BOD.)
- Do you think that’s the right membership? (Matt: If the members maintain and get value, then yes. The core vendor community and partners we support who exhibit a the SUMMIT, certainly tells us, its audience that is world class. Summit is also one of about 5 industry events we send representatives too and will continue to do that. You can meet me there as well this year)
- What do you think PASS is and what do you think it needs to be? (Matt: A not for profit organization providing world class SQL Pros with important information resources – it is also clearly a lauchpad for the community blogoshere, and will continue to expand globally as SQL continues to proliferate)
- In order to go from where it is to where it needs to be, what do you think needs to change, be improved, be dropped, be added, etc.? (Matt: this is a question for the community; again as a business professional serving communities like PASS, we survey them, do research, and benchmark our performance through their feedback. It would be a pleasure to transfer my knowledge to PASS and increase “customer satisfaction”. That is a key objective.
- What can PASS HQ do to really contribute to local growth of chapters? (Marketing ain’t it.) (Matt: Putting into place best of breed audience development, continuing to support viral community growth and the blogosphere, and not to be disagreeable, some marketing – this point was outlined to me, and some people on this comment board have also suggested as much.)
- What can PASS HQ do to provide opportunities for growth and professional development for its members? (Matt: not be terse, but I see this community doing so much innovative work, information sharing; the blogoshere almost competes w PASS! HQ can certainly be a platform to fuel this community based activity and also provide a foundation or gathering point. I’d like to get some of the eval forms from Summit and hear what you all have to say – again, much of the role is about listening and responding to the communities needs).
- What do the members need to do to improve PASS HQ? (Matt: continue to urge the community to provide input, what is good, not so good, and also contiue to communicate as you do as a community. Unlike any other technical community, there is massive and effective communication and great cameraderie. My sense is the community will get what it wants and needs as the dialogue continues, and hopefully expand.)
- What other communities, online or “in person,” have you actively been involved in that involve users coming together to “connect, learn, and share,” as Brent put it? (Matt: as mentioned in my 4:15 post yesterday, 1105 Media is conference provider in addition to publishing a large portfolio of media assets serving diverse, niche audiences. We also actively train people in community development and social networking via IAB nad through a company wide steering committe. One thing that is important to note, is that 1105 Media is what is called a “roll up” that has acquired legacy products like TDWI, Federal Comuter week, Visual Studio media and dozens of other IT focused assets. That fact alone brings a lot of diversity and some of the key executives have worked hard to blend the employees and created virtual and in-person forums where information and talent in community building is shared. The 08/02/2010 VS oriented event on campus in Redmond is a good example how the company leaders have worked to create opprtunities for our audiences).
Thanks for your questions Mr Kelley, and it would be my pleasure to answer and discuss more.
Regards,
-Matt
Thanks for taking the time to answer these questions. I hope everyone will take your answers into consideration when making their choice of who to vote for. Also, I applaud you for sticking your neck out like this. We DBAs can be a curmudgeonly lot, and those who are database developers who haven’t been sucked over to the dark side usually aren’t far behind. So please understand that most of our comments aren’t intended to be personal attacks.
K.Brian, It has been a privilege. Glad to have made you acquaintance. You may be a tough crowd – more so than expected – but everyone’s passion and commitment I share, maybe that what initially put me on the defense and I made some mistake. Again, I’m in this too but only from the other side of the fence. Certainly its clear to me its not personal – at first it was’nt, but live and learn. Thanks for your gracious comments and my hope is that you support me in this race as I run on the business leader and diverity platform.
All the best,
-Matt
This think those who selected candidates for BOD really thought it through.
Let me ask one question : How many excellent and well known DBA and Developer are trained to do database in their school/collage?
I guess my everything else is already talked about and discussed in other threads.
In the US, there aren’t college programs for current database platforms. By the time the database software is out, then courses are designed for it, then they go into the college curriculum, then the student takes the course – by that time, there’s a newer version of the database software out. I’ve seen people learning SQL Server 2005 in school right now, which is okay, but there’s a limited life span for that training. It’s not the best way to spend your college dollars/time.
Brent,
That exactly is my point. One can be expert by experience (please note that first five letters in expert and experience are same) and that is counted the most.
Getting job done right on time is the most important. That is my expectation from BOD of PASS.
Pinal, This is a core part of where the passion comes from as the community commits so much of their time and energy to learning, attending conferences, webcasts, reading WP’s, blogs etc. You have all invested time and money in yourselves, and on top of that its a never ending challenge to keep up the pace! This is core to the business we are in and why making sure you and your peers get best resources and are able to advance your knowledge and careers. Brent asked me a good question about my day to day work which requires discipline and structure (see above – hopefully this speaks to your expectations). As for volunteerism, its not something that scares me -while my friends were enjoying college fun – I enjoyed 4 years of voluntary military service which is a foundation for my leadership skills and work ethic. Service people cannot mess up – it may cost a life. Attention to detail is mission critical.
Thanks for adding your comments.
Best,
-Matt
[...] bit of a brouhaha over the slate of candidates for this year’s PASS Board of Directors on Brent Ozar’s blog. When I saw my name was mentioned I was humbled at first. I’ve seen it come up a few more [...]
Comments on all this hubbub are on my blog: http://thesqlagentman.com/2009/10/pass-board-of-directors-election-comments/
Tim, Thanks to you as well for your thoughful comments. More on your blog to come.
Thanks again,
-Matt
I tried posting this on your blog. Error message. Still, I would encourage people to visit.
Timothy,
Thanks for this compelling post and for putting down your thoughts. This comment especially is appreciated “These individuals on the slate before us now, and those that were filtered through the interview process wanted to contribute in some manner to the success of PASS.”
In all candor, my expectation was the community did have a little more insight to the process and maybe that’s why my dialogue on Brent’s blog did not go that well at firt, but improved as we got to know each other.
Anyhow, this is incredibly valuable information for the community, that helps them understand what we went through. My only hope is that you would have piped up sooner!
My condolences on the fact you did not make the ballot; I have not had to interview for 14 years, but was able to convey a different and unique message which my sense is what helped (I know the feeling)
Perhaps if the community knew all this from the outset, my nomination would not be “controversial”. Nonetheless, Brents forum is excellent, and I applaud the community for the due diligence and commitment to this process.
Thanks again,
-Matt
Here are my thoughts on what we have learned:
http://chuckboyce.blogspot.com/2009/10/its-transparency-stupid.html
This is a good debate. I was out of touch with my reader the past week and a half so I missed the conversation but I wanted to add a few thoughts.
I think Matt’s candidacy brings up a great point: “outsider” influence is great for a board of directors of any group. I
It also brings up another point in my mind: harnessing media (especially social media/networking today) is key for success of any organization/company. As someone helping a gubernatorial campaign, I am seeing this myself. A good friend and social networking expert (Jon DiPietro at http://www.domesticatingIT.com) has inspired me to think this way… He has some great principles around how having a complete web presence with “Content, Content, Content” is critical.
PASS is starting to do a better job here. The bloggers initiative this year, a presence on Twitter, director’s blogging openly, the virtual chapters. I think with more outreach we could have more members, more collaboration and a stronger voice of advocacy towards Microsoft. We could also help garner more “respect” from our management regarding the importance of the Summit (yes, a lot of bloggers give a lot of great reasons already).
I know a lot on the board have historically had business experience in addition to their SQL experience and that helps. Having someone on the board without SQL experience helps keep someone focused on the business, growth and outreach aspect in my mind. Someone to help focus on the community side (though I also argue that that is being done already, look at the “Unite” tag for the Summit, look at the Chapter leader lunches, the Birds of a Feather lunch, etc.)
Now Matt seems to misunderstand our purpose and direction, which is concerning. We are a collaborative community of SQL Server “people” in all walks of life and career. We are not a magazine that wants to sell subscriptions and 4 broad conferences a year as a revenue stream. Yes, we need to have a revenue stream in the summit but of equal (or greater to the membership) importance is the community feeling. The ROI for our members, the ability to network (I love the networking sessions this year!) and build relationships on common values, etc. are important.
So I am rethinking if Matt is the right candidate for me but this debate brings up a need in my mind. A BOD level person from without. Someone who understands building communities, keeping communities and harnessing a web presence for marketing our group. For instance the fact that the answer to Brian’s first question starts with “I’m not sure what this means”. Any of us who have ever volunteered for PASS or have been a member/attended a summit/etc. can all answer that pretty easily.
So the question in my mind is: how do we get that outside direction setting (hiring and paying is fine but someone on the Board is more credible to me. They are donating their time, making sacrifices and more tied to success. A hired hand is a hired hand. They may be great but this isn’t a “part of their life” necessarily)… I’ll continue.. The question in my mind is: how do we get that outside direction setting/media/web outreach help while keeping that person in touch with our goals and what we are? A Steve Jones, Andy Warren, Brent Ozar are good mixes of knowing the community and knowing community building. But they may miss that outside perspective.
I lean towards saying a yes for a Matt and hoping the rest of the board and great volunteers and staff at PASS can help explain what we are but then I fear, “What if we had all 3 candidates as “outside” candidates and they all misunderstood PASS?” I don’t want to lose the momentum that we seem to be on this past year but I am willing to see what a vote for Matt brings about, I guess. The other candidates are all great and strong and that should balance things out enough for me.
Mike, Thanks for the feedback and thoughtful comments. As mentioned on several occasions, I was caught off guard and did not expect such candor and some of the language – especially from people that don’t know me on a personal level. It caught me off guard, I have indicated regret and that I’m just human The PASS community is unlike any other as I come to learn and as the posts have evolved, my feeling is the dialogue has been very constructive – but I will not deny some initial posts started badly. That I deeply regret (especially to Lori Edwards who is a class act). Finally, I’m grateful for all the notes of empathy and “don’t worry Matt”; essentially people saw my plight. Thank you all. Sometimes people regress, and in this instance, initially I missed the cues. Heck, in all my 14 years in this business mistakes I’ve made, but each and every has been worth it, adn to among less than a dozen VP in 300 sized organization, should tell you that each time a “gaff” was made, I though long and hard about improving myself as a professional. There is one shot for me at PASS and my only hope is to be an advocate for you all – this community has inspired me like no other; it would be an honor to dontate my time and expertise. Again, in business leadership the community has an opp to choose a unique diverse person on the ballot. I stand here alone, and simply want to be accepted. That is as honest and transparent I can be.
Thanks so much for commenting on this great blog.
Best,
Matt
Matt -
You responding had me thinking of another question… Why? I read the BIO and the interview but why do you want to be on the board of PASS so bad?
After learning more about what we are and how the focus is less on publishing/media and more on community are you still as interested?
But why do you want to do this volunteer position on a board that will impact your personal time and life? I already know what you think you can give us from your comments but what are you getting? Don’t tell me “a good feeling and sense of fulfillment”. I mean what do you hope to gain? How can I be sure before I revote that you are dedicated to making this organization that you are just learning about better?
I would love to hear an answer to help consider. Shoot from the hip and be blunt like us
Matt isn’t a DBA, he has a different perspective, and he brings a fresh look at things to PASS. He actually reminds me of a past board member that viewed the world in a different way. I’m not sure if that’s good or bad, because, as Brian Kelley pointed out, a fresh view can help, or cripple a board.
I agree with Andrew Kelley that we don’t need to just elect SQL professionals, and in fact, I’d like to see one non-SQL person on the board to stimulate debate. In fact, on many corporate, and other boards, the people are not necessarily engaged in that business. They might have a tie, but they work in other areas, typically non-competitive.
That being said, I worry about Matt’s personality. I have not met him, but the responses I have seen to the interview concern me. A number of them seem to be taken as personal attacks, and the responses seem to shift arguments.
I can’t tell if Matt’s answers in the interview and comments that mention his company are going to be a problem, or a conflict. They’re part of his experience, and they might be analogies to make a point. Or they might be plugs to push in the future. I can’t tell, but they raise a (small) flag for me.
Did I vote for Matt? I can’t say as I don’t want to influence people. I’ll disclose my votes after the results are in.
Ha! About time someone told Andy how to spell his last name right! Andy, I kid, I kid!
I should have followed Steve’s lead about discussing votes but just trying to explain the dilemna in my head and why I lean a certain direction. I have the reservations I stated but I also echo these reservations from Steve. At the same time, I like a fresh perspective.
My apologies, Mr. Kelly (Andrew).
It’s Andrew Kelly, and K. Brian Kelley.
Like I said on Twitter, it was humorous to see the misspelling go the other way for once.
It is always interesting how non-IT folks react to the “bluntness” of IT pros. Gets me in trouble a lot but I love bluntness.
True, we are blunt. But there are only so many ways you can attempt to make “critical server failure” sound better before you realize it’s just better to spit out the truth and take the hits. And that carries over into other aspects of our speech and interactions.
Yes, by bluntness, I do not mean one has to be mean sprited or rude, but to get to the point, get the information needed to resolve the issue. To me that is a great quality that IT folks have and wouldn’t hurt in most aspects of life.
Chuck, K. Brian, Thanks for the comments and insight. As a business professional, that luxury is not mine, but you both have given me good perspective.
Best,
Matt
Hmmm. “but the slanders are not something I’m used to nor expected” – Not blunt –
“The synergy between content and advertising results is mission-critical.” – Not blunt – PR
“I was caught off guard and did not expect such candor and some of the language” – Blunt
Chuck, I’m not sure I follow. No worries and thanks for your attention to the posts.
Regards,
-Matt
You reply “As a business professional, that luxury is not mine”,i.e., the luxury of being blunt.
Yet you were very blunt to a number of commentators. I was pointing out that calling comments ‘slander’ is not being blunt or helpful. PR comments are not helpful. Saying that you “was caught off guard and did not expect such candor” is helpful and truthful.
Thank you for for your service: “I enjoyed 4 years of voluntary military service.”
Chuck, Thanks. Agreed, the comments did not start off well, and I’m grateful for those who reeled me in and explained that my candidacy is under the Microscope a little more than others. As the dialogue continued, we all learned more about each other and there was some very constructive feedback.
Thanks again,
-Matt
I would like to see a vote early in the new Board’s life… “What are the directions/issues you think PASS should focus on in 2010/2011?”
To me, PASS is mainly about a local user group and the summit. Yes I have built and continue to build relationships through PASS, yes I have discovered new bloggers (and posted my own blog) on the PASS Blogging project. Yeah I entered my personal info into the profile area. Yes I have volunteered some for this summit.
But… PASS isn’t a destination for me outside of the above. I don’t have a reason at this point to continually go there and look for new updates. I am not actively engaged except for seeing a tweet for a good virtual chapter meeting I want to try and make..
Not blaming PASS, I don’t subscribe to enough and look enough but I would like to see a focus on marketing/web presence and being out there with content (useful content). Maybe that isn’t the role of PASS? I have SQLServerPedia and SQL Server Central and a feed Reader to stay connected to blogs, content and questions. I have twitter for quick questions, info on events and fun conversation with colleagues.
I guess maybe it’s my fault for not fully knowing the mission of PASS? I see PASS as what I already mentioned above a few posts… Collaboration, Collective voice to Microsoft (though does that happen as much as earlier in PASS’ life? I mean we have connect now but I would like to see PASS work together to bring industry info as a whole to Microsoft. Stronger as one big voice than a few votes on a connect item), provider of excellent content (Summits, events like code camps, sql saturday’s etc.) but is that it?
I want to see conversations like that at the board meetings and that is where I think an outside voice can help. But I guess the question to figure out is, is this the right voice?
Mike, Thanks for thoughts. Hopefully some of my posts have provided a little more clarity in terms of this being the right vote. Many have accepted the notion of diversity and combined with leadership, it is the right vote. I’m a leaders, leader and have not asked any colleagues, friends, or partners with whom we share valued partnerships, because I do not want them to influence this community. I stand alone, a person who has worked on behalf of IT pros my whole career. There is no question that, I’d rise to the occasion and be tested like never before, eager to demonstrate my leadership abilities and have this community embrace me. I’m putting myself out there to be at your service as a volunteer to you.
Thanks again.
Best,
-Matt
See my questions above, that will help me. I love the sentiment about wanting to serve as a volunteer and I give you the benefit of the doubt and believe you and don’t blame you, we’re a really fun group! I am curious to see your answers to those other questions about why though
Mike, Sorry for missing that. The PASS experience dovetails with the work we’ve done to support Microsoft IT professionals over many years. Also, as my colleagues, business partners have all indicated, PASS works well for them. It fits perfectly with my current job and leadership responsibilities, represents a community that is also one we serve – but from the other side of the fence. My hope is to maintain contact with the community via PASS, open myself up to new challenges that are extremely relevant, and be a part a team that shares my passion. I’m not a technical person (but can speak some tech and Microsoft), but it boils down to a passion for the business and ambition. Volunteerism is also something that is very rewarding to me, so what better fit than PASS?
Thanks again,
Best,
-Matt
Mike, Also, there is so much attrition in this business and fallout, but we are successful because we live for this stuff! Who else in crazy enough to put a pubs and sites like Redmond Channel Parter (www.RCPmag.com) and Virtualization Review (www.virtualizationreview.com). We didnt have to but did it. We didnt have to bid on MSDN/TechNet but did because we are Microsoft nuts and live and breathe this stuff all day. Look at http://www.RedmondReport.com – why push information from other sites to the community – a) because we are a resource to them, and b) not at all threatened by any other media providers. Why did Ballmer agree to adorn the 5th anniversary issue of Remdmond this Oct – because it wreaks of passion. Thats why. To be a part of the PASS team would be an experience that I seek professionally – just like each winter I hunt for untracked ski runs in deep powder, Microsoft IT is my professional passion; the people, the technologies, the conferences, the pubs, – I love it all.
Best,
-Matt
Matt -
Thank you so much for your continued replies and thought you are putting in. Who are the “We” you keep referring to? You? Your current company? Obviously not PASS because you are referring to what you are offering.
I can appreciate your enthusiasm and passion. I’ll tell you, I was waffling with my original comment above. You see why I believe “fresh views” are good. You see why I believe a focus on marketing/social networking is good (though not sure if the latter is you, honestly)
To be honest, your most recent replies confuse me. I don’t really get why you want to be on the BoD because the answer seemed a bit “public relations firmy”. You also really seem to be repeatedly talking about business deals and positions you have held. It seems adverserial (e-mail, comments, etc. are a horrible way to communicate because emotions can be easily mistaken) and turns me away a bit. We don’t need someone to strong arm Balmer into something or get a publishing contract.
We need to grow our community, get more people connected, maybe listen to the membership about future direction (I gave some of my thoughts above.. off topic, I know). I don’t know if we need an IT industry media mogul power broker (if that identity is even possible in the IT industry media genre)
I don’t know. I’m being honest. I appreciate your enthusiasm and fresh input but I don’t know if the media industry focus is the fresh outside input I was thinking. I’ll consider all when I revote.
Mike,
OK. Fair enough. However, we didn’t strong arm Ballmer, rather asked him. I dont consider my self a power broker (nor think any of my professional acquaintance would either – a hard worker, yes), nor have I worked in PR. Please note that. My goal was to simply convey my passion, enthusiam and excitement and gald for your recognition. Make no mistake, during the interview process the community issue was a part of the conversation. In this business, whether for profit or not, I cant tell you what resources are available to grow chapters, nor that would be my specific task. There is a lot of work to be done in many areas, and the BoD saw me as someone, that can get things done. Again, looking at the diversity factor, and business leadership necessity, please consider this in addition to what else I’ve stated. Hopefully you will vote for me and let me make help difference. Thanks for the continued feedback.
Sincerely,
-Matt
[...] Matt Morollo [...]
If Chuck Boyce and Tim Ford can do it, I can, too :
Here are my thoughts on what I learned from this discussion.
http://codegumbo.com/index.php/2009/10/16/all-atwitter-about-pass-nominations/
lol. damn right!
Stuart, Thanks for your thoughts and feeback, and opening up a new chapter in the campaign dialogue. Much appreciated.
Best,
-Matt