IT Grand Prix Day 0 – Red Team takes the Capitol!

Welcome to Washington DC! Is what we would have heard.. err.. no, but seriously :) Hi! We are here in the Capitol as the starting point in our whirlwind tour for Charity, Non-Profits, Education, Learning, Consulting, Technology and innovation!    Also known as the IT Grand Prix sponsored by Microsoft and NPower working with non-profits and more!   Most of us arrived either last night, or this morning, but nonetheless we are all here!   So, how did we start off the day?!

Unloading at the White House?!Daniel and I on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial Me and Lincoln kicking it old style! The flag of America in such majestic flow in the wind

After eventually getting from the airport to the shuttle to the hotel, I took a walk over to meet my fellow Red Team member Daniel Nerenberg and Gold Team member Susan Ibach who waited for me on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.    On the way to meet them, I did pass by the White House where I took this photo of apparently Biden taking advantage of the fact that Obama was back in my native Chicago and moving some things out! err… I mean something else entirely! Though tweeting my ‘joke’ about that resulted in a rather awkward snafu of ‘auto-correct’ gone wild :)

Get on the Bus - FrontGet on the Backpack Get on the Bus - Back Just outside the realm of the bus! oh my! 

In all, it was a good start off to what is already a fairly confusing (intentionally) adventure of working with non-profits, charities and others as we travel our way over the next several days before finally descending upon New Orleans.      For those who had not seen our ‘agenda’ so to speak, here is the breakdown of where our travels will take us:

  • Tuesday, June 1st – Washington DC
  • Wednesday, June 2nd – New York City, NY
  • Thursday, June 3rd – Houston, TX
  • Friday, June 4th – New Orleans, LA

After which point, we take a brief moment to relax before each of our respective responsibilities take charge at TechEd, whether it is running labs, working a booth, interfacing with customers, or in my case – Covering the event for the Media, Press and general community so you can get a unique perspective on stuffs, so to speak :)

 Look at me on the Front Page of the Chicago Tribune - Middle left

And if that doesn’t wrap up the day.. Enjoy this little story my good friend Jorge sent me… Notice: my little picture/name are there on the left/middle.   I guess that’d translate into.. I made it onto the Front Page of the Chicago Tribune! :)    In the meantime, if you have not already joined the Red Team! Please do so :)  It’s for our charity NetHope that we are trying to win $10,000 for!

Enjoy, and look forward to sharing the festivities and events of Days 1 and beyond for you!   Take care and talk to you soon!   – Christopher :)

Exchange 2010 Beta Exams are calling you! Update your SME Profile today!

Wait, what?! Yay?! That’s right! The Exchange 2010 exams will be hitting beta soon, and you can get first crack at testing it in the beta process – All it takes is clicking random links and updating your profile to reflect the fact that you’ve been playing with the 2010 bits!

Step 1. Visit this MSL Post to get the highlights (thanks Krista Wall!) Exchange 2010 beta exams coming soon—submit your SME profile now!

Step 2. Visit this second MSL Post in order to get the details about the SME Profile on connect! One word, rhymes with sneeze—Sign me up!

Step 3. Alright, I didn’t follow steps 1 or 2 because I don’t like clicking links so I want to go directly to setting up my SME Profile on Connect

    • Visit the Connect Home Page
    • Click on “Were you invited to join Connect?”
    • Put this invitation code into the box: SME2-JC3G-DKDY
    • Fill out the survey/profile
    • You’re set and on your way to being the part of this beta and other future betas! Yay?!

So, the keys are in your hands – So step up and be a part of the future of the Exchange 2010 exams… or sit on the sidelines waiting until its released in final form in a million years!

Get on the bus, Magic Euro-Bus!

Hey, you remember the bus! Well, the locations have been published! Which is especially great if you’re a number of destinations along the path you will want to hook up and meet the bus along the way!

  • Milan, 26 Oct
  • Zurich, 27 Oct
  • Paris, 28 Oct
  • London, 29 Oct
  • Brussels, 30 Oct
  • Amsterdam, 2 Nov
  • Frankfurt, 3 Nov
  • Munich, 4 Nov
  • Vienna, 5 Nov
  • Prague, 6 Nov
  • Berlin, 9 Nov

 

Host a Career Express and/or a TechEd EMEA community event!

The best part of the tour are the local stops the Career Express makes at training partners and community events. On the Career Express USA tour in May, we stopped at a luau thrown by a partner, high schools, and colleges. What do you get when you host an event?

1) Company profile promoted on Get On The Bus Tour website

2) Event resources to facilitate local event in your area as part of Get On The Bus Tour stop

3) Increased visibility with TechEd EMEA registrants and/or attendees

4) Technical training on Microsoft Windows 7, Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2, and Microsoft Exchange Server 2010

If you would like to host a local event, we are taking applications until August 18. For more details, download the application form here: Bus Tour EMEA Event Application Form

Why yes, much of this was hijacked from Born to Learn, but hey! I had a lot invested in that trip and I equally want to see this one be successful! So get out there! Be a hosting location, or visit one of the hosting locations, it’ll be an experience unlike no other!

Career Express, MSLearning team and Twitter

Hey, I use Twitter, you use Twitter right? Want to follow us on the Career Express and beyond on Twitter? me thinks you’ve come to the right place! Stay tuned for impromptu tweetups!

Contest Winners Twitter ID
Christopher Kusek @cxi
Chris Rue @chrisrue
   
Microsoft on the Bus  
MSLearning @MSLearning
Ken Rosen @Krosen
Ryan Danner @rnd105
Sarah Grant @sarah_mcp
Dana Calleja @DanaCalleja
Elise Eckel @Ellie_e
Tjeerd Veninga @TjeerdVeninga
Joanne Lin @LinQ
   
Met on the Tour  
Glen Gordon @glengordon
Eric Griffin @ericbgriffin
Joey Snow @joeysnow
Brian Prince @brianhprince
Harold Wong @haroldwong
Rick Taylor @slkrck

Join @CXI and @MSLearning in Atlanta on Friday, May 1st!

That’s right! You can come party with us as we begin our tour of Education and America!

Our first stop will be Atlanta!  So I encourage to come join us in whichever capacity you can!   Also feel free to follow the happenings on Twitter if you’d like! @cxi and @mslearning

Friday, May 1st: Atlanta, GA

I look forward to seeing and meeting you guys!