Event Location:
University of Denver - Sturm Hall
2040 S Race St
Denver, Colorado
Abstract:
Power BI Desktop is often shown as a self-service reporting and analytics tool, but it can also be used earlier in the development cycle for prototyping and data modeling, doing it quicker and easier than other tools made for this purpose. In this session, we will go through multiple examples showing how Power BI Desktop is the perfect tool to quickly model data from multiple data sources (including web sites, databases, cubes, online services, and even flat files), and perform quick actions to cleanse and connect these various sources to each other using M and DAX functions built-in to Power BI Desktop. Once this model has been built, it can be used to create some quick reports to show how this will be used to help get a project approved/funded. Best of all, using Power BI Desktop to do all of this is completely free, no licensing or Power BI login required!
Speaker(s): Steve Wake,
Abstract:
Every wonder if you could predict the outcome of the Superbowl? Or know the score of any game? The NFL is perfect for predictive analytics: it has a fixed time frame, a set playing field, and rigorous rules. These are characteristics we can only envy in the business world. With the integration of ML Services in SQL Server 2017, we have the strength of statistical languages like R and Python right within the database engine. In this session, John will demonstrate the steps for successfully preparing the data, then run a regression model to predict the scores for the current week’s scheduled NFL game. Want to know if your team is likely to win against the spread? Wanna bet?
Speaker(s): John Byrnes,
Abstract:
Power BI Premium is the top level of Power BI that your company can pay to get dedicated capacity for your Power BI reports and models. But at a starting price of $5000/month is it something your company needs and is it worth that price? In this session, we will go over all of the current features offered with Power BI Premium and the features that we know are coming in the future, so that you can help make that decision for your company. With multiple demos in this session, you can see these features for yourself to help determine the worth. Come to this session if your company has been thinking about Power BI Premium, but you have been unable to determine if it is right for your company. At the end of this session, you will be armed with all of the knowledge you will need to make the right decision.
Speaker(s): Steve Wake,
Abstract:
Azure Data Factory (ADF) is a cloud-based data integration service that automates data movement and data transformation using both cloud and on-premises data sources and destinations. This introductory session will cover basic components of an ADF solution including integration runtimes, linked services, datasets, pipelines, activities, and triggers. We'll also discuss the development environment and integration with source control as well as monitoring. This session will include demos to show you how to build, execute, and monitor a pipeline. And since Data Factory is frequently updated with new features, we'll look at some of the latest releases. If you have been waiting to dip your toe in the ADF waters, this is your chance to learn the basics and ask questions.
Speaker(s): Meagan Longoria,
Abstract:
In today’s marketplace, moving to the public Cloud is a familiar and consistent trend within the SQL Server community. But which cloud provider do you choose? After all there are so many offering choices between AWS Cloud and Microsoft Azure, each with their own distinctive features. Migrations to the cloud are only going to gain greater momentum as organizations grapple with their on-premises alternatives. Planning plays a critical role in moving to the cloud. Preparing a check-list and asking the right questions to stakeholders lays the groundwork in this planning. There are different methods to migrate databases from on-premises to the AWS cloud. In this presentation, we will discuss various methods and explain the advantages and disadvantages of using each method. We’ll also showcase the surprises and pitfalls to avoid as we venture into the process. Learn more on what trends you can expect to see, what the future holds for public clouds.
Speaker(s): Manguirish Sardessai,
Abstract:
Modern-day computing power makes it possible to create sophisticated predictive models that classify data, perform anomaly detection, and predict behaviors and tendencies. Using data engineering principles and the latest tools released by Microsoft in Azure Machine Learning service to create a data science framework, you’ll see how to develop predictive models through the entire life cycle and incorporate them into your applications in a way that impacts the decision-making ability of everyone in your organization. Through a case study, you’ll learn how to choose a meaningful project with a high likelihood for success, including setting a prediction target and how to use data appropriately and adapt it to the model for maximum results. Best practices will be presented for developing, monitoring, and maintaining predictive models. Integrating predictive models into your architecture will allow you to take a step toward making predictive analytics pervasive in your organization.
Speaker(s): Carlos Bossy,
Abstract:
The corporate world has depended on Excel to massage and built reports for years. With the accelerated growth of Power BI, professionals are now looking to expand upon their knowledge of Microsoft Excel and enable themselves to start building interactive visuals. Power BI is a business intelligence tool developed by Microsoft designed for business users who are already familiar with Excel. It’s specifically designed to create interactive dashboards and reports using data from a variety of sources to be published and shared across organizations. Benefits of Power BI over Excel: • Easily share visualizations with your department and/or organization • Mobile friendly visualizations • Improved visualizations • Accelerated development cycle with monthly updates • Combine and work with data in multiple sources or workbooks
Speaker(s): Marc Beacom,
Abstract:
With Power BI Report Server, you can host traditional paginated reports alongside Power BI analytical reports, KPIs, and mobile reports. This session will show how to use the data in the ReportServer database to determine a smart migration strategy for upgrading to a new SSRS or Power BI Report Server. Starting with the new features of Report Manager, Mobile Reports, KPIs, and the Mobile Report Publisher app. The session will then focus on how to utilize the report meta data in the ReportServer database, combined with the transaction log table, to show how to determine which reports, data sets, and data sources are being used and determine what objects to migrate. Learn how to use PowerShell to extract the reports and data sets from the database, instead of downloading them, to facilitate an easy migration to a new implementation. Also, discover a way of determining all TSQL used by the reports. This session is particularly useful for migrating from 2008, but applicable to any migra
Speaker(s): Ted Stathakis,
Abstract:
Interested in working with large and varied data sets but don't know where to start? Wondering if your team knows enough to apply advanced analytic techniques? Not sure if you can use your SQL skills in Big Data world? Come and learn about Azure Databricks. This service combines power of Apache Spark large scale workloads with fully managed Azure cloud services to build data engineering pipelines, interactively run analytical tasks and implement machine learning algorithms. But what really sets it apart from other cloud analytical services, is that it is a truly collaborative environment that allows you to take advantage of diverse skills in your organization and let everyone work with data. By the end of this session you will know how to easily connect to various data sources in data lake, quickly spin up Spark clusters, use notebooks to share your code and mix languages like SQL, R, Python, and build visualizations to drive business insights.
Speaker(s): Yuliya Quintela,
Abstract:
Containers are no longer the future, they are a the present and are here to change the way DBA's used to think about building SQL Server solutions. Spending long periods of time installing, configuring and preparing databases and SQL Server instances is no longer the case with containers. In this session you will learn the basic and advanced methods to deploy a SQL Server solution using containers in minutes. We will explore the options and tools (open source) we have available when working with SQL Server running on Docker containers through real world scenarios, like backing up \ restoring databases, high availability, version upgrades and the most important portability between cross platforms.
Speaker(s): Carlos Robles,
Abstract:
This is the advanced part 2 of Innovative Data Modeling. Learn how to leverage Master Data Management and Azure Technologies to extend your model for performance, history and reference unstructured data. We will explore how you can use continuous integration and delivery to further maximize value. Let's look at platform specific techniques and also explore design options for Azure SQL Data Warehouse.
Speaker(s): Jeff Renz,
Abstract:
You want to frequently release quality database changes while maintaining high performance and availability standards, but how do you do it? While the term ‘DevOps’ has just turned 10 years old, database architects and DBAs have been developing patterns and practices to standardize and automate delivery of database code quickly and reliably for far longer. In this session, you will learn how to choose between state and migrations-based approaches to database code management in source control on a per-project basis, and what this choice means for your release practices. You’ll learn what release automation means for ‘rollbacks’ with database code and get to join the debate on the pros and cons of different approaches to handling post-release disasters in production. We’ll discuss release patterns and how to measure success, including the blue/green deployment model when applied to databases, the expand/contract pattern, feature flags, and special cases for releases including repli
Speaker(s): Kendra Little,
Abstract:
Dynamic Management views and functions allow you to easily see exactly what is happening inside your SQL Server instances and databases with a high level of detail. You can discover your top wait types, most CPU intensive stored procedures, find missing indexes, and identify unused indexes, to name just a few examples. This session presents, demonstrates, and explains a complete set of diagnostic DMV queries that you can easily use to detect and diagnose configuration and performance issues in your SQL Server instances and databases. This session goes into exhaustive detail on how to interpret the results of each of the diagnostic queries, including relevant background information on how to properly configure your hardware, storage subsystem, operating system, SQL Server instance, and databases in order to avoid performance and scalability issues.
Speaker(s): Glenn Berry,
Abstract:
You're a developer or DBA who wants to get your database code into source control, but you're not sure how to work with it. Should you use release branches? Feature branches? How do you handle emergency hotfixes? There are quite a few discussions and patterns available online for branching application code, but special considerations apply when it comes to database code. In this session, you'll learn to design the simplest branching strategy that meets the needs of your organization, based on the size of your team and your requirements for release practices. We will discuss multiple popular branching models along with “fit notes” describing the strengths and weaknesses of each model.
Speaker(s): Kendra Little,
Abstract:
You have probably worked as a direct hire for a company. You get medical benefits, vacation, and possibly a good 401k. On occasion you might have accepted a contract. The pay might be nicer, but you are concerned because you have less job security, no vacation, and no benefits. Yet, there are some who prefer contracts. We will cover how to negotiate a wage, appear professional, a look at finances, contractual gottchas, taxes and paperwork. Since most are experienced at being a direct hire with a company, this presentation will show the benefits of consulting/contracting, so that you can decide what is right for you and your career path. Presenter has been contracting for 18 of the last 20 years and will share many of his experiences - the successes and the falls along the way.
Speaker(s): Paul Paiva,
Abstract:
Virtually all of today’s data solutions are hybrid solutions – partially in the cloud, partially on premises – as organizations attempt to fulfill an ‘all in the cloud’ mandate. The reality is that cloud platforms like Azure do many things very well, but not all things, and functional gaps remain which complicate and sometimes prevent a full migration away from on premises environments. Azure Analysis Services (AAS) is a good example of this reality – it works very well for many applications but is limited to Tabular Models and cost can explode if those models are not created thoughtfully. And, what is the path to Azure for my multidimensional cubes? Do I care about Azure Analysis Services if I use Power BI? As always the answer to these questions is a clear and absolute ‘it depends’. In this session we’ll explore Azure Analysis Services functionality, fit in various solutions, and gaps and techniques that are important to consider when implementing AAS.
Speaker(s): Scot Reagin,
Abstract:
Are you aware of the SQL and NoSQL worlds, but don't know why you would use both in the same sentence, let alone implement a hybrid solution? And then if you did want to set up such a system, where would you start? After a quick overview of the SQL and NoSQL differences, we'll look at some scenarios where it makes sense to set up a hybrid environment to take advantage of the strengths of each database. Then we'll look specifically at accessing MongoDB from SQL Server. Microsoft offers native integration with MongoDB in SQL 2019. We'll look at the mechanics of how to leverage that integration to archive data, feed a web farm, and provide more data to BI reporting. We'll dig into querying normalized SQL and denormalized document db data structures simultaneously, and what that means for both data consistency and performance. Of course, this discussion wouldn't be complete without also knowing how to write to the document world from the relational world, so we'll cover that as well.
Speaker(s): Eric Peterson,
Abstract:
There is much more to life than 3rd normal form and dimensional modeling. Come explore how you can build a data warehouse solution or hybrid solution that is agile in nature with Data Vault. Discover this highly audit-able modeling technique used in international banking, manufacturing, insurance and many more industries. Made a mistake? No worries, own your model. Design changes happen and it can be addressed quickly avoiding pain and project delays and ultimately keeping your business happy. Let us bust the myth that data warehouses take too long to build and are too hard to modify by adding value to your environment and decreasing delivery time.
Speaker(s): Leslie Weed,
Abstract:
Modern application deployment needs to be fast and consistent to keep up with business objectives and Kubernetes is quickly becoming the standard for deploying container-based applications, fast. In this day-long session, we will start with an architectural overview of a Kubernetes cluster and how it manages application state. Then we will learn how to build a production-ready cluster. With our cluster up and running, we will learn how to interact with our cluster, common administrative tasks, then wrap up with how to deploy applications and SQL Server. At the end of the session, you will know how to set up a Kubernetes cluster, manage a cluster, deploy applications and databases, and how to keep everything up and running. Session Objectives • Introduce Kubernetes Cluster Components • Introduce Kubernetes API Objects and Controllers • Installing Kubernetes • Interacting with your cluster • Storing persistent data in Kubernetes • Deploying Applications in Kubernetes
Speaker(s): Anthony Nocentino,
Abstract:
Databricks is a very popular environment for developing data science solutions. More and more companies are interested in Databricks as it is very simple to set up and contains a collaborative workspace for working with a team of people. In this session you will see how to create Machine Learning Solutions with multiple workflows starting with ETL, to data exploration, model experimentation, and lastly to a production release of a data science solution. Today, more and more development is performed on very large datasets. Attendees will learn how to use Apache Spark, which is part of Databricks, to rapidly analyze lots of data. Learn how to use Databricks to reduces operational complexity to create solutions which can be scaled up or down depending on the amount of data needed to process without having to change the underlying code. Python, Jupyter Notebooks, and Apache Spark are the technologies used to create solutions within this session. No experience is required. Agenda
Speaker(s): Ginger Grant,
Abstract:
DevOps automation can be intriguing to learn and overwhelming to implement. This session will take a real life use case of a multi-tier and complex environments, with various stake holders to a successful conclusion. Unlike a session on concepts, this session surrounds itself with a real-life situation and how automation was used with DevOps practices to build a solution. The session will demonstrate the reasons to automate, along with the steps required to make it possible, offering insight into concepts that are often too vague to employ. The attendee will see multi-platform and cloud tool demonstrations on how to take the DevOps methodology and continuous delivery to actuality in their own projects, no matter if small or large.
Speaker(s): Kellyn Pot'Vin-Gorman,
Abstract:
TSQL is one of the most valuable tools any SQL Server professional can add to their tool-set. More aptly, TSQL is a whole chest of tools for the SQL Server professional. One of the most important tools in that TSQL chest is a good understanding of the SELECT statement. When was the last time you sat down to evaluate a SELECT statement? What actually goes into the processing of that teeny little word? There might be a fair bit more to this simple term than just fetching data from the database. This session covers the simplicity of the select. Then we take it a step further to dive into some of the complexities tied directly to this particular statement. This session will help the attendee better understand the Select statement. With a more solid understanding of this statement, the attendee can return and implement some of this new knowledge to help improve processing and query response times in their own environments.
Speaker(s): Jason Brimhall,
Abstract:
Kubernetes (k8) is a virtualized environment which runs containerized workloads. K8 is becoming a popular orchestration platform which runs applications as micro-services and stateful applications like databases. K8 can be run on-prem or in cloud. In this session, you will learn on the basic concepts of Kubernetes, create Kubernetes cluster in AKS – Azure Kubernetes Service and then deploy SQL Server instance on k8 cluster.
Speaker(s): Susantha Bathige,
Abstract:
Azure Machine Learning Studio, Workspace, Pipeline and Service are different products which you can use to create or deploy a solution and they are all called Azure Machine Learning[ AML]. Understanding the differences between the products provides the information needed to be able to architect the appropriate solution in your environment. The session demos show how to create an end-to-end AML workflow to prepare data, create ML models, deploy models, and use data contained within SQL Server by integrating a number of tools including Databricks, Python and Jupyter notebooks. Learn why you want to use AML Workspace for ML development collaboration, scaling, and management. Understand how to monitor ML models in production with AML Pipeline to organize releases and generate execution metrics. Key Takeaways Understand how to use AML products to work in collaborative environments, use ML created from a number of different tools and languages, implement version controls, and moni
Speaker(s): Ginger Grant,
Abstract:
Have you been asked to assist in a migration to the cloud? Where do you start? What are the potential pitfalls? How do you know which path to take to lead you to success? In this session you'll learn about the challenges of migrating from on-prem to the cloud and how to overcome them to ensure success for you and your organization.
Speaker(s): Daniel Janik,
Abstract:
A DBA's suite of scripts is worth its weight in gold. As Azure moves the SQL DBA to a more Linux focused environment, the opportunity to learn Linux scripting and to add these valuable skills to your pre-existing Powershell skills is a great goal. This session will teach you how to build out proper shell scripts, tips and tricks, along with how to learn faster. This session is the second session in the Linux for SQL Server Professionals Learning Pathway. For more information please visit our Learning Pathways page.
Speaker(s): Kellyn Pot'Vin-Gorman,
Abstract:
Containers are dramatically changing the way that application developers design and build their systems. Databases will need to be a part of this revolution as every application needs a data store. Come see a future vision of how full stack application development might look in the next few years.
Speaker(s): Steve Jones,
Abstract:
How many of you have digital pictures? We are drowning in them by their sheer numbers and storage space. We take so many we often don't even have time to look at them! Have you ever thought of storing them in a database? You will learn the pro's and con's about storing images in a database using varbinary(max), FileTable and by individual pixels. Technologies covered include Columnstore, In-Memory OLTP, Python, T-SQL, and of course Unreal Engine to display them in VR using the AdventureWorks database. Come and learn how to get a handle on storing and backing up your pictures!
Speaker(s): Todd Kleinhans,
Abstract:
Microsoft’s Power BI is the new hotness. In this session, you will get your hands dirty and dive into PowerBI and create an actual report, with actual data. You will get to learn from examples from what a DBA has done to implement Power BI in his shop and make his data accessible. As a DBA, we often need to collect and display data in a friendly and interactive fashion. We will play with some PowerShell to collect data from several systems, store this data in an Azure DB in the Cloud, then point Power BI at this data to display and interact with said data. You will learn a little about PowerShell, Azure SQL DB, Power BI, and how to make these work for you.
Speaker(s): TJay Belt,
Abstract:
If you heard of some of the data analytics products on AWS but unsure where to start, this session may help. Amazon Web Services offers analytics tools to enable data ingestion, storage, analysis, and visualization. From this session, take home an introduction to services such as AWS Data Migration Services, S3, Amazon Athena and take an introductory look into Amazon QuickSight, visualization on AWS. Learn how to leverage Amazon’s cloud infrastructure, platform and software as a service to build an analytics and insights solution on the cloud.
Speaker(s): Gabriel Villa,
Abstract:
DBAs agree, Access databases should be converted to SQL Server, but that sounds a lot easier than it turns out to be in most cases. In this session we will discuss when it is appropriate to migrate to SQL Server, migration strategies, how to manage the transition, whether to move to on premises or Azure and finally how to accomplish the task.
Speaker(s): Phillip Labry,
Abstract:
Are you struggling to get you analytics and data projects started on Azure? Overwhelmed by where to start or which services to choose? or perhaps just interested in learning more about the options to move your current BI platform to the cloud. This hands-on session is for you. We will start with a brief overview of the Azure platform then we will guide you through getting an environment setup. Along the way will answer any questions and talk about specific pitfalls and decision that need to be made to ensure you are able to continue to build on this newly acquired knowledge.
Speaker(s): Jason Horner,
Abstract:
You’ve heard the buzz about containers and Kubernetes, now let’s start your journey towards rapidly deploying and scaling your container-based applications in Azure. In this session, we will introduce containers and the container orchestrator Kubernetes. Then we’ll dive into how to build a container image, push it into our Azure Container Registry and deploy it our Azure Kubernetes Services cluster. Once deployed, we’ll learn how to keep our applications available and how to scale them using Kubernetes.
Speaker(s): Anthony Nocentino,
Abstract:
Wanting to take advantage of all that predictive analytics and machine learning have to offer, but unsure how to get started? This session will help you understand the types of business problems data science can impact and how to frame your scenarios for success. Understand the data science life cycle, what a successful team looks like, and the tools available to help you get started.
Speaker(s): Amie Mason,
Abstract:
Learn how Amazon Relational Database Services (RDS) helps SQL Server DBAs focus their time where it matters most. We will cover Amazon RDS for SQL Server features and the key differences between running deployments on Amazon Elastic Cloud Compute (EC2) and Amazon RDS. This will include HA/DR and performance monitoring.
Speaker(s): Richard Waymire,
Abstract:
Data collection and usage is all around us, it is what we do. But is what we do with the data ethical? Are we collecting and processing biased data? We will take a look at ethical data collection and usage, what it means to your models and forecasts, and how being aware of possible biases can impact your bottom line. You might be training on extremely biased data and not know it, skewing your forecasts in the wrong direction.
Speaker(s): Angela Tidwell,
Abstract:
How do you design a SQL Server 2019 infrastructure in order to meet specific Recovery Time Objective (RTO) and Recovery Point Objective (RPO) service levels? There are many aspects to consider, from technology choices and licensing, to policies and procedures. This session outlines and compares the various HA/DR technologies available in SQL Server 2019, showing how you can combine them to design and build a solution to help meet your HA/DR goals. This session also teaches you how to formulate policies that enable effective use of technology in your organization.
Speaker(s): Glenn Berry,
Abstract:
Data is everywhere and Data Science is a very popular topic among data analysts and BI professionals. In this session, I will cover the basic data science principles and methodologies using the Python programming language. I will also present some real-world data analysis case studies using the Python libraries, such as NumPy, pandas, Matplotlib, and SciPy. This session will benefit to anyone who is looking to get started in the data science/ Data Analytics field.
Speaker(s): Ganesh Lohani,
Abstract:
After spending more than a decade completely devoted to the Microsoft stack, I did some time supporting a Java team. Yes, sure, Java is just another language so there aren't really and issues that are absolutely unique to the Java world. But it is a different stack, different culture, and different group of folks giving bad advice to developers ... just enough different to keep life interesting. Come hear about my misadventures with server side cursors, output parameters, integrated authentication, and NOCOUNT settings.
Speaker(s): Rick Lowe,
Abstract:
ETL (Extract, Transform and Load) is the backbone of any data project and can be upwards of 70% or more of the effort. The tools you have access to allow you to make progress in a hurry. However, are you implementing best practices and techniques that will scale to the demands you need? Or will you be refactoring far too quickly than you should to meet performance requirements? Gian helpful insights from decades of lessons learned and walk away with best practices you can implement in your own ETL solution.
Speaker(s): Marc Beacom,
Abstract:
Are you thinking about runing Azure in SQL but don't understand all your options. Do you find the terms DTU and Elastic Pools confusing. Want to understand the difference between Azure SQL, Azure SQL Data Warehouse and Azure SQL Managed Instances. If you answered yes to any of these questions, this session is for you. In this session I will cover all of the SQL options you have available, the pros and cons of each and how to create and use each of these options.
Speaker(s): Mark Moore,
Abstract:
Do you have a great CI/CD setup on the web side but wish you could do the same on the data side? Installing SQL Server on containers may be the key technology you need to make this wish a reality. In this quick summary we will go over what containers are, differences from VM’s, gotcha’s and things to keep in mind, and talk a bit about newer orchestrators like Kubernetes.
Speaker(s): Christopher Wolff,
Abstract:
Because SQL Server is designed to efficiently operate with set-based queries it does not perform as well with loops and cursors. However there are situations where you really need some type of a loop. Tally tables give you the best of both worlds by allowing you to effectively "loop" through records in a set-based manner. We'll explore what tally tables are, how they work, and more importantly review some of the many ways you can use them to turn your loops and cursors into efficient set-based operations.
Speaker(s): Aaron Cutshall,
Abstract:
Newly available in Azure, Databricks is a managed service that makes it easy to run computations across a cluster of computers. This session will focus on what you need to know about Databricks to get started with coding out your own ETL or data science solution. The session will showcase a machine learning algorithm coded in Python that's been parallelized using the Databricks platform.
Speaker(s): Kara Annanie,
This is a list of speakers from the XML Guidebook records. The details and URLs were valid at the time of the event.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/yuliya-quintela-profile
Yuliya is a consultant and developer for Business Intelligence Solutions. She has experience in various areas including Education, Finance, Telecommunications, and Software Technology into model data, visualize and deliver critical information to solve complex business decisions using Microsoft data platform and business analytics. She is an active member of the Business Intelligence and SQL Server community in Denver and a member of the Colorado SQL PASS chapter user group. She specializes in SQL Server 2016 Reporting and Integration Services and holds professional certifications including MCSE for the Data Platform.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-tidwell-28a11528
Contact: https://www.TidwellTidbits.com
Angela Tidwell is an experienced Data Professional with a love for Data Analytics, Data Science, Power BI, Python, SQL, etc. She is a dynamic and exciting speaker armed with a zest for life and quick wit; her background and unique views on the world provide the backdrop for a plethora of great stories. Utilizing her strong interpersonal skills and verbal/written communications, Angela supports SQL Saturdays across the country and blogs about her experiences in order to help other data professionals grow at TidwellTidbits.com.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/daniel-janik/12/15b/606/en
Contact: http://www.sqltechblog.com
Daniel Janik has been supporting SQL Server for 18 years. Six of those years were at Microsoft Corporation supporting SQL Server as a Senior Premier Field Engineer (PFE) where he supported over 287 different clients with both reactive and proactive database needs. Daniel has presented at many community events and SQL Saturdays.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/tjaybelt/
Contact: http://tjaybelt.blogspot.com
TJay Belt is an outdoorsman at heart who enjoys riding dirtbikes, waterskiing, boating, playing racquetball and spending time with his family. When he can't be out playing, TJay loves to tinker with databases. TJay has been an IT professional for over a decade and a half. Currently serving as a Senior Database Administrator with Imagine Learning. TJay has progressed through several roles in his database career including developer, data guy, database developer, database analyst and DBA.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ginger-grant-3a177b157/
Contact: http://www.DesertIsleSQL.com
Ginger Grant manages the consultancy Desert Isle Group and shares what she has learned while working with data technology to people around the world. As a Microsoft MVP in Data Platform, Microsoft Certified Trainer and an instructor on DataCamp, she focuses on guiding clients to create solutions using the entire Microsoft Data Stack, which includes SQL Server, Power BI, and Azure Data Cloud components. When not working, she protypes the latest pre-release data technologies, maintains her blog http://www.desertislesql.com, and spends time on twitter @desertislesql.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin/in/carlosbossy
Contact: http://www.carlosbossy.com
Carlos Bossy (MCTS, MCP BI, CBIP) is a data and cloud analytics architect with 25 years of experience in software and database development. As a principal of Datalere, Carlos focuses on developing BI, Data Science, and Advanced Analytics solutions, including modeling data warehouses and delivering predictive models, integration, and visualization. He has developed warehouses and BI solutions for a variety of industries and state agencies, including health insurance, solar energy, foster care, telecom, and manufacturing.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sjreagin
Contact: http://sensibledataintegrations.com/blog/
TDWI Certified Business Intelligence Professional Certified Data Vault Data Modeler More than thirty years of technology experience serving in a wide variety of roles including: Software Designer, Solution Architect, and Operations and General Manager. Experience designing and implementing complete analytic solutions for organizations of many sizes and in diverse industries. Business intelligence specific experience encompasses all aspects of Enterprise Information solutions including: Information Quality, Enterprise Data Warehousing, Business Analysis Data Marts, and comprehensive visualization applications.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabevilla
Contact: https://extofer.wordpress.com/
Gabriel is a skilled leader, architect, and technical expert focusing primarily on Microsoft technologies and is passionate about open-source technologies for integration, automation, and development. Gabriel’s versatility extends from systems, data and development and leverages hybrid/SaaS/Cloud integration, proven software engineering platforms, and best-of-breed data management and business intelligence solutions. Originally from El Paso, Texas, Gabriel lives in Colorado Springs with his wife and kids, where he is an Architect for RevGen Partners, volunteers in the tech community and enjoys the Colorado outdoors.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/todd-kleinhans/0/920/981
Contact: https://toddkleinhans.wordpress.com/
Todd Kleinhans has been using SQL Server since the last millennium. He has served in different roles across many industries but he's mainly been a DBA. When not in virtual reality, he likes to speak at PASS sponsored events and volunteers in various groups like PASS, DSSUG, Colorado Virtual Reality and is the President of Denver/Boulder Unreal Engine group. He is on Twitter: @toddkleinhans and blogs at https://toddkleinhans.wordpress.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/pub/christopher-wolff/11/a07/458
Contact: http://sqlred.blogspot.com/
Chris Wolff has been a developer, report writer, and an admin in Microsoft and SQL Server Space since SQL Server 2000 in industries such as telecommunications, green energy, money transfers, and online accounting. He has been an active member of the Denver SQL User Group since 2011 and enjoys learning new things about computers. His interests includes video games, movies, and enjoying time with his wife and 2 kids.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/jeff-renz/29/82a/aa4
Contact: http://www.revgen.com
Jeff Renz is a Senior Architect at RevGen Partners, currently working as the design architect and implementation lead on several projects for a Fortune Top 50 company. Jeff has worked with SQL Server and BI for 15+ years and has 10 years’ experience with data warehouse design and implementation. In addition to consulting, he is joining the University of Denver adjunct faculty and is expected to begin teaching in the ICT program starting in June. He received his bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, his master’s degree in Operations Research from Colorado School of Mines, and will be graduating from the Harvard Business Analytics Program in December.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kendralittle
Contact: http://littlekendra.com
Kendra Little is a Microsoft Certified Master and a Microsoft MVP. Kendra fell in love with the challenge of deploying software to a complex database environment when she worked in a build operations team at a software startup. She went on to become a database administrator for performance critical databases at Microsoft Corporation. Since then, Kendra has worked internationally as a teacher and consultant, and founded the training site SQL Workbooks. She joined Redgate as a Product Evangelist in 2018.
Eric Peterson is a consultant specializing in database architecture with experience in demanding Fortune 100 company environments. He has a Computer Science degree complemented with an MBA, which meshes well with his jobs integrating business information with the systems that process it. He has worked with SQL Server since its inception and was an instructor of SQL courses at a national technical training company. He also speaks are regional SQLSaturday events.
Contact: http://phillip.labry.com
Phillip Labry is a Senior BI Consultant and Trainer with over 20 years experience in SQL Server and over 30 in IT. He has been lucky enough to work on data projects spanning telecom, banking, retail, law enforcement, health care, insurance, financial services and energy sectors. As a national consultant he provides training and builds solutions utilizing the full MS BI stack. He is an active member of the Madison, WI PASS chapter and speaks at events in the USA and Canada.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/amiemason33
Consultant with a demonstrated history of working with clients across multiple verticals to leverage their data to improve reporting and decision making in their business. Able to quickly assess business requirements and skilled in report design and predictive analytics enabling a direct translation from those requirements to business impact. Broad background includes experience in the public sector, survey design, and grassroots campaign management.
Leslie Weed is currently a Data and BI Architect with RevGen Partners in Denver, CO. She has been a SQL Professional specializing in Business Intelligence, data analytics, systems implementation, integration, and solutions delivery for the last 20ish years, including a variety of Enterprise Data Warehouses in various industries.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nocentino
Contact: http://www.centinosystems.com/blog/
Anthony Nocentino is the founder and President of Centino Systems as well as a Pluralsight author, Microsoft Data Platform MVP, Linux expert, and corporate problem solver. Anthony designs solutions, deploys the technology, and provides expertise on business system performance, architecture, and security. Anthony has a Bachelors and Masters in Computer Science with research publications in high performance/low latency data access algorithms and spatial database systems.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/croblesdba
Contact: http://www.dbamastery.com
Carlos Robles is a Microsoft Data Platform MVP, a Friend of Redgate, and a technology lover. He has worked in the database management field on multiple platforms for over ten years in various industries. He has diverse experience as a Primary Consultant and DBA Manager. He is currently working as a Solution Architect, helping customers to solve software/infrastructure problems in their on-premise or cloud environments. Speaker, author, blogger, mentor, Guatemala SQL User group leader. If you don’t find him chatting with friends about geek stuff, he will be enjoying life with his family or exploring the beautiful outdoors of Colorado.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/paulpaiva
Contact: http://paulpaivasql.blogspot.com
Paul has 22 years experience with Microsoft SQL Server. He has worked in the roles of production DBA, database developer, database architect, applications developer, business intelligence and data warehouse developer, and instructor for students aspiring for SQL certifications. He has performed numerous data migrations and supported large databases (3 Terabyte, 1+ billion rows) with high transactions. He is a member of PASS, blogs about lessons learned from a developer’s approach to SQL Server administration, and has been the president of the Boulder SQL Server Users’ Group from January 2009 to present. His specialty is using a developer's approach to do DBA tasks.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/profile/public-profile-settings?trk=prof-edit-edit-public_profile
Contact: https://glennsqlperformance.com/
Glenn works as a Principal Consultant for Dr. DMV, LLC in Elizabeth, CO. He was a Data Platform MVP from 2007-2017, and he has a whole collection of Microsoft certifications, including MCITP, MCDBA, MCSE, MCSD, MCAD, and MCTS, which proves that he likes to take tests. His expertise includes DMVs, high availability, hardware selection, performance tuning, and Azure SQL Database. He is also an Adjunct Faculty member at University College - University of Denver, where has been teaching since 2000. He has completed the Master Teacher Program at Denver University - University College. He is heavily involved in the SQL Server community, and is a frequent speaker at user groups, SQL Saturdays, and the PASS Community Summit.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nocentino
Contact: http://www.centinosystems.com/blog/
Anthony Nocentino is the founder and President of Centino Systems as well as a Pluralsight author, Microsoft Data Platform MVP, Linux expert, and corporate problem solver. Anthony designs solutions, deploys the technology, and provides expertise on business system performance, architecture, and security. Anthony has a Bachelors and Masters in Computer Science with research publications in high performance/low latency data access algorithms and spatial database systems.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/b5lurker
Contact: http://blog.wakebi.com
Steve Wake is currently the Principal BI Developer at Brown and Caldwell and has experience in consulting, advertising, media, manufacturing, retail, charities, telecommunications and financial services organizations using the full on-premises Microsoft BI stack. Recent experience with the Azure services: Analysis Services, Logic Apps, Data Factory, Databricks, Snowflake and Power BI. Steve is also very involved in the SQL community, speaking at events around the world.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sqlrv
Contact: http://sqlrv.com
Aaron N. Cutshall is an Enterprise Data Architect with 20 years of experience in analysis, design and development for applications and databases in manufacturing and warehousing plus over 15 years in the Healthcare Informatics field. His primary focus is in designing and developing solutions for extremely large data sets that perform quite well in SQL Server. He is active in the SQL Server community and speaks at SQL Saturday sessions across the country.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/b5lurker
Contact: http://blog.wakebi.com
Steve Wake is currently the Principal BI Developer at Brown and Caldwell and has experience in consulting, advertising, media, manufacturing, retail, charities, telecommunications and financial services organizations using the full on-premises Microsoft BI stack. Recent experience with the Azure services: Analysis Services, Logic Apps, Data Factory, Databricks, Snowflake and Power BI. Steve is also very involved in the SQL community, speaking at events around the world.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-moore-795876a?trk=hp-identity-name
Contact: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/markm
Mark Moore is a Cloud Solutions Architect working for Microsoft in North Texas. Mark has been with Microsoft for 25 years serving in various roles in Services and Sales. Prior to Microsoft Mark worked at Digital Equipment Corporation serving Federal and Government customers in San Antonio, Texas. Mark currently resides with his Wife (Deanne) in the DFW area.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonhorner
Contact: http://blog.jasonhorner.com
Hi, my name is Jason I'm a practice lead at Redapt. I spend most of my day helping clients solve business problems mostly in the Data and Advanced Analytics spaces. Sometimes this involves various and sundry cloud technologies including Azure Data Factory, Azure SQL Data Warehouse, Azure Data Lake Store, Azure Databricks, HDInsight and Azure SQL Database. I'm fluent in several languages including: SQL, C#, Python, and PowerShell. I'm a Microsoft Certified Master of SQL Server (MCM) and have been recognized for my technical excellence and evangelism efforts by Microsoft by being awarded the Most Valuable Professional (MVP) for the last 5+ years. In my off hours I like to snowboard, karaoke, ride roller coasters, and play arcade games
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/rick-lowe/a/228/441/
Contact: http://dataflowe.wordpress.com/
Rick is a Microsoft Certified Master with more than 20 years of SQL Server experience in a variety of roles. He currently lives in Washington state and works as an independent consultant providing remote performance DBA and performance tuning services for clients in the USA and Canada. His first exposure to SQL Server was as a database developer, but over time he became more and more interested in how the database engine operated... eventually specializing more on performance issues than code. Rick will work with all things relational, but most enjoys helping smaller companies get better performance from MSSQL, as well as smoothing over relationships between DBA and development teams.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/meaganlongoria/
Contact: http://datasavvy.me
Meagan Longoria is a business intelligence consultant with Denny Cherry Associates, and lives in Denver, Colorado. She is a Microsoft Data Platform MVP. Meagan spends a lot of time thinking about how to use data integration, DAX, and data visualization techniques to make data useful for people. She enjoys sharing her knowledge and experiences at conferences and user group meetings, as well as through her blog (DataSavvy.me).
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/manguirish-sardessai/
Manguirish is a Microsoft Certified Professional with 12 years’ experience in IT Industry specializing in Web Development, Database Development /Administration and Data Reporting. He provides efficient management and optimal performance for Datavail customers with health check analysis, installations and configuration of SQL Server plus automation of DBA tasks, disaster recovery solutions and providing customers with day-to-day comprehensive solutions to manage databases. He also undertakes business assessments and does project planning to deliver high-end pragmatic solutions for each client environment. When he’s not looking to play with databases, he enjoys traveling to new places and reading fiction literature.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richardwaymire/
Richard Waymire is a technical expert on Microsoft SQL Server. He has been involved in numerous Microsoft early adaptor projects and new technologies. Richard has broad ranging experience from the relational data modeling phase through the production implementation of database solutions built with SQL Server, including data loading, monitoring, and performance tuning. Richard has worked on SQL Server for more than 26 years, including 12 years as part of the SQL Server team at Microsoft. In his role with Amazon Web Services, Richard is the Americas specialist for SQL Server, as well as for Amazon Aurora.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbeacom
Contact: https://datalere.com/author/marc-beacom/
Marc Beacom, Managing Partner at Datalere, leverages over two decades of experience to better the data landscape for clients, along with nearly a decade of building and managing productive teams. Marc has led architecture and developed data integration strategies for dozens of Colorado based companies and organizations. Marc maintains an active presence in the Colorado community by volunteering and serving on nonprofit boards, speaking and running user groups.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/tedstathakis
Contact: http://fishheadted.com
Ted Stathakis is a data professional passionate about the presentation layer. He has worked with SQL Server since the turn of the century, has mastered Reporting Services since he began working with it when it was released in 2004, and is super excited about Mobile Reports and Power BI. Ted hosts the local PASS user group, is the organizer of SQLSaturday Orange County and presented on SSRS at Summit in 2019. As a 40+ year veteran of the restaurant industry, he is been an advisor, speaker and panelist at national trade shows. When he isn't consulting on Business Intelligence projects he can be found presenting at a conference, enjoying some live music or teaching kids, both young and old, fishing and archery at a nearby Scout camp.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susanthabathigesql
Contact: http://www.sqlservertorque.net
Susantha Bathige (MSc, MCITP) is a Microsoft Certified Database Professional specialized in relational database product, MS SQL Server. Having more than 16 years of IT experience including more than 9 years in database development and administration in non-production and production environments. He has experience of other databases systems such Cassandra and MongoDB as well.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kendralittle
Contact: http://littlekendra.com
Kendra Little is a Microsoft Certified Master and a Microsoft MVP. Kendra fell in love with the challenge of deploying software to a complex database environment when she worked in a build operations team at a software startup. She went on to become a database administrator for performance critical databases at Microsoft Corporation. Since then, Kendra has worked internationally as a teacher and consultant, and founded the training site SQL Workbooks. She joined Redgate as a Product Evangelist in 2018.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbeacom
Contact: https://datalere.com/author/marc-beacom/
Marc Beacom, Managing Partner at Datalere, leverages over two decades of experience to better the data landscape for clients, along with nearly a decade of building and managing productive teams. Marc has led architecture and developed data integration strategies for dozens of Colorado based companies and organizations. Marc maintains an active presence in the Colorado community by volunteering and serving on nonprofit boards, speaking and running user groups.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellynpotvin
Contact: http://dbakevlar.com
Kellyn Pot’Vin-Gorman is a member of the Oak Table Network and an Idera ACE and Oracle ACE Director alumnus. She is a Data Platform Architect in Power BI with AI in the EdTech group at Microsoft. Kellyn is known for her extensive work with multi-database platforms, DevOps, cloud migrations, virtualization, visualizations, scripting, environment optimization tuning, automation, and architecture design. Kellyn has spoken at numerous technical conferences for Oracle, Big Data, DevOps, testing, and SQL Server. Her blog (http://dbakevlar.com) and social media activity under her handle, DBAKevlar, is well respected for her insight and content.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-byrnes-6051b01?trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile
Contact: https://johnbyrnes.wordpress.com/
Sr. BI Developer in Omaha Nebraska. Over twenty years of SQL Server development experience in energy, banking and construction. I am a volunteer data analyst to a D1 Men's hockey team, where I have created a dimensional database to facilitate NFL style advanced hockey stats. I am a volunteer Alpine ski patroller with National Ski Patrol.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/profile/public-profile-settings?trk=prof-edit-edit-public_profile
Contact: https://glennsqlperformance.com/
Glenn works as a Principal Consultant for Dr. DMV, LLC in Elizabeth, CO. He was a Data Platform MVP from 2007-2017, and he has a whole collection of Microsoft certifications, including MCITP, MCDBA, MCSE, MCSD, MCAD, and MCTS, which proves that he likes to take tests. His expertise includes DMVs, high availability, hardware selection, performance tuning, and Azure SQL Database. He is also an Adjunct Faculty member at University College - University of Denver, where has been teaching since 2000. He has completed the Master Teacher Program at Denver University - University College. He is heavily involved in the SQL Server community, and is a frequent speaker at user groups, SQL Saturdays, and the PASS Community Summit.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ginger-grant-3a177b157/
Contact: http://www.DesertIsleSQL.com
Ginger Grant manages the consultancy Desert Isle Group and shares what she has learned while working with data technology to people around the world. As a Microsoft MVP in Data Platform, Microsoft Certified Trainer and an instructor on DataCamp, she focuses on guiding clients to create solutions using the entire Microsoft Data Stack, which includes SQL Server, Power BI, and Azure Data Cloud components. When not working, she protypes the latest pre-release data technologies, maintains her blog http://www.desertislesql.com, and spends time on twitter @desertislesql.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/way0utwest
Contact: http://www.voiceofthedba.com/
Steve Jones is a Microsoft SQL Server MVP and has been working with SQL Server since version 4.2 on OS/2. After working as a DBA and developer for a variety of companies, Steve co-founded the community website SQLServerCentral.com in 2001. Since 2004, Steve has been the full-time editor of the site, ensuring it continues to be a great resource for SQL Server professionals. Over the last decade, Steve has written hundreds of articles about SQL Server for SQLServerCentral.com, SQL Server Standard magazine, SQL Server Magazine, and Database Journal.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ganesh-lohani-6275a716
Ganesh Lohani has 10 years of experience working with Business Intelligence platform and Data Analytics, with over 8 years of experience with MS BI tools and Business Intelligence processes. He is currently working for Stericycle as a senior Business Intelligence Developer. He also enjoy his evening and weekend time in providing online training, coaching and mentoring individuals who want to learn MSBI (T – SQL, SSIS, SSRS, SSAS, and Power BI ) products. He holds MSIS degree from University of Texas at Arlington.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dbajbrimhall/
Contact: http://jasonbrimhall.info
Jason Brimhall has more than 20 years of experience and has worked with SQL Server 6.5 through SQL Server 2019. He has experience in performance tuning, high transaction environments, and large environments. He is currently a consultant specializing in performance tuning, server analysis, and problem resolution. Jason is a Microsoft Certified Master (MCM) and a Data Platform MVP.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kara-m-annanie-4b208084/
Kara Annanie is a Manager of Data Science at Datalere. I work directly with clients to understand the business needs of their organization, craft analysis, make predictive model recommendations within a designated budget that have a positive impact on the organization as a whole.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellynpotvin
Contact: http://dbakevlar.com
Kellyn Pot’Vin-Gorman is a member of the Oak Table Network and an Idera ACE and Oracle ACE Director alumnus. She is a Data Platform Architect in Power BI with AI in the EdTech group at Microsoft. Kellyn is known for her extensive work with multi-database platforms, DevOps, cloud migrations, virtualization, visualizations, scripting, environment optimization tuning, automation, and architecture design. Kellyn has spoken at numerous technical conferences for Oracle, Big Data, DevOps, testing, and SQL Server. Her blog (http://dbakevlar.com) and social media activity under her handle, DBAKevlar, is well respected for her insight and content.
The following is a list of sponsors that helped fund the event.