Journey of a Microsoft MVP: Nanddeep Nachan's Evolution from Java Developer to Office 365 Expert and Community Luminary

Mark Smith: 0:37
Welcome to the MVP Show. My intention is that you listen to the stories of these MVP guests and are inspired to become an MVP and bring value to the world through your skills. If you have not checked it out already, I do a YouTube series called how to Become an MVP. The link is in the show notes. With that, let's get on with the show. Today's guest is from Pune, India. He is an Office 365 consultant. He was first awarded as MVP in 2019, so he's had it for quite some time. He is an organizer and frequent speaker at various industry seminars, conferences and community events, including SPS Global Microsoft 365 Developer Bootcamp and the Global Power Platform Bootcamp. You can find links to his bio and social media in the show notes for this episode. Welcome to the show, Nanddeep.

Nanddeep Nachan: 1:34
Thank you. Thank you, mark, for having me with you. As Mark said, I'm from Pune, india. Pune is a kind of city which is known for education as well as for food, so if you're a food lover, you're going to enjoy Pune City. So, yeah, exactly, I have been Microsoft MVP since 2019. Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to celebrate as I became MVP because it was a COVID time just start of the COVID time when I became MVP. But yeah, exactly Then after I catch up with fellow colleagues and other MVPs and then got a chance to collaborate more. But even to that, I take that as an opportunity because during that COVID time, I got a chance to work with various virtual communities, got to know more people. So, yeah, at least I have been into this program for almost four years now. Right now I'm Microsoft MVP for business applications, as well as Microsoft 365 apps and services, and yeah, at least I enjoy working with Microsoft technologies.

Mark Smith: 2:35
So good. How did you get into IT? What was your journey?

Nanddeep Nachan: 2:40
Oh yeah, at least even I wasn't pretty much sure how I ended up here. In my initial days, probably when I was a child, I like trains, so I wanted to become a train pilot or maybe something into the train areas. But again, over the time I just saw my colleagues or my friends going into the software industries and everything. So I just thought to spend time with them. Just got to know, like, okay, we have a computer, then we can do some programming on top of it, and then, yeah, I started liking that. So I'm talking about the years. Maybe it was 1997, 1999. So at that time barely anyone, at least in India, didn't had laptops or anything. But we used to work with computer, the desktop computer, crt, crt monitors and everything. So yeah, miss, my first experience was with those CRT monitors and I like that. So I just thought, okay, let us have some career into this. So yeah, miss, at least I wasn't pretty much sure, like what I'm going to do, but I just thought, okay, probably I will be spending some time coding and then the rest of the time I can play some games.

Mark Smith: 3:55
So how did you ultimately get into the power platform area, into SharePoint, into the Office of Productivity Suite? What was your journey into that and how has that become the main focus of your career?

Nanddeep Nachan: 4:11
Oh, true, true, true. So just to begin from the start, start of my career. I started my career as a Java programmer. So even for most of the guys it is pretty much difficult to digest that I started my journey with Java. So I started my journey with Java. I was mostly working on to the Java EJB, all those kind of things. I was pretty much happy with that. But unfortunately our project didn't go well or maybe it got scrapped. So I was looking for another opportunity to go into the project and fortunately that on the coffee-wending machine I happened to meet one of the program managers there. So he just asked me what I'm doing and everything. I was kind of in pressure, maybe just six months of experience at that time. So I just explained him what I'm doing and right now I'm looking out for the new project. So he just asked me okay, are you interested to work on NET-related projects? So at that time, since I was a fresher, I didn't had much awareness of the technology, to be frank, there. So I started with NET project. So then after that, once I delivered that project again from there itself, I got the opportunity to work in SharePoint project. So it was SharePoint 2003. And yeah, I mean, at least on that. I am fortunate to work on SharePoint 2003 onwards. So that was the time when I started into the SharePoint 2003 project. Sharepoint again, it was pretty much new to me because the background that I came from I know that even if I want to have a button on to the UI, I need to have some code written. But when I got in touch with SharePoint it was like, oh, all the buttons and forms are there for me already. So, yeah, I started liking that. So then after my journey continued with SharePoint, with SharePoint 2007,. That means Moz, 2010, 2013, 2016. And then slowly I shifted to cloud technology. So that was the time when I settled down into the Microsoft-related technologies and then I enjoyed working with SharePointNET, all those kind of things. So eventually I'm not sure when I got shifted into the Microsoft world, the cloud world kind of thing, with Microsoft Azure and everything. So then after I slowly started exploring more onto the SharePoint framework and all this kind of thing, and then probably maybe just four years back when Power Platform came into the picture. So I started exploring that and then I started liking that even more, because even with SharePoint, if you want to create a button, you need to write at least one line of code, but in Power Platform you don't have to. So that's why I found some more potential into Power Platform. Then I liked the way how we can create the flows, power BI reports and everything. So I started feeling the solidness of Power Platform and that's where my journey continued with Power Platform as well. So even as of now, I work with Microsoft 365 plus Power Platform, all those kind of things, and then I don't want to compare SharePoint versus Power Platform or anything as such that, but at least I enjoy working with both the technologies.

Mark Smith: 7:21
So what type of use cases like if you look across your career, and particularly in Office 365, now in 365 and the Power Platform, what are the typical use cases you're building solutions for? Are they in a specific industry? Are they horizontal? What type of? Give me examples, without saying the names of companies and things like that, of the type of projects that you've been involved in.

Nanddeep Nachan: 7:47
Yeah, at least since last four or five years I have been mostly working on to the projects where we need to have the enablement of Microsoft 365 or cloud platform for the customers. So they already are into the cloud but probably they don't know, like, how to proceed with that. What are the capabilities each of the Microsoft product has got, what are the capabilities that teams has got, or maybe Power Platform has got, or even SharePoint has got. So I'm making them aware by spreading the knowledge or at least at the same time making them enable for using this Microsoft technologies. So most of the use cases that I worked on is to measure how the usage of Microsoft 365 or Power Platform into the organization and then at the same time, when we are doing that, mostly the requirement from the customer is like they don't want to restrict their users from using any of the technologies or any of the product. So let's say, for example, if they want to go ahead create Power Apps, let them go ahead, create the Power Apps app, just the test kind of thing that they just put a button or label there. Let them play with that so that it will make them feel very much confident about Power Platform. The same thing goes for teams as well, or maybe SharePoint as well. They don't want to restrict the users on maybe who can create a site or will there be any kind of an approval flow or like that, because most of the time, even I found this useful that let the people do what they want to do, let them explore the technology on their own, because if you just see the video, we will just come to know that, okay, click this link, there will be an canvas, you can drag, drop the controls and then you can start playing with that. But until and unless you start experiencing yourself, you will not see the power of it. So, since I just passed two or three years, the customers that I have been working with, they don't. Also, unfortunately, they don't want to restrict their end users on creating those apps as well as teams and SharePoint sites. But at the same time, when this is the case, we see like most of the test kind of end functionalities are more permanent and then probably if you're searching for your information, probably you're going to get this search from those test apps or maybe test SharePoint sites or these teams. So at the same time, they just want to have some kind of end governance on top of that so that we can see, like how is the adoption of Microsoft Teams, sharepoint, yammer or maybe at the same time Power Platform into the organization but at the same time we can just have some kind of end governance and we can have built some kind of reporting just to show, like how the end users they are using their product or all of these Microsoft technologies, how we are enabling them for using those at the same time, how we are, or at least how we are enabling the platform for them and then what kind of functionality they are using. So we have some dashboards built for that. Then, from there also we want to focus more on to the sustainability. For example, if you are creating too much of apps and everything, it's good that go ahead create, but at the same time when you are done with that, probably let's delete them or maybe let's archive them somewhere. So we are following those kind of end strategies. So mostly I'm working on those kind of things At the same time. Right now I'm working on more, more focusing on to the adoption score. So adoption score is again same kind of thing like where in your organization gets just onto how you have enabled technology for your end users At the same time, how end users are using each of those products. So we just want to let them use all the features but at the same time we just want to have some kind of an governance to see how they are using and probably we are not overkilling the technology. Okay, so that is kind of a work that I'm doing At the same time from the development side as well. I'm working on creating all platforms. Then flows a few of the resources into Microsoft Azure as well At the same time Teams application, sharepoint framework application. So, yeah, that way I can see I'm working on to the diverse roles. So most of the things which are related to Microsoft 365 as well as Power Platform.

Mark Smith: 11:58
Interesting. What was your journey to becoming an MVP? Who nominated you? What was that process for you?

Nanddeep Nachan: 12:04
Oh yeah, At least when I started contributing to our community. So MVP was not onto my mind, or at least it wasn't onto my mind. So I was just looking out for a platform wherein I will be able to share the knowledge, because I have seen the other MVPs who are taking their time out of their busy schedule. Then they are just making everyone aware of what are the technology, what are the new things coming up and everything. So I just followed few of those MVPs and namely Ms Priya Ranjan is the person who nominated me for Microsoft MVP program. So thanks to him that he saw that potential and nominated me here. But along with him I have been observing few of the other MVPs as well as few of the colleagues from Microsoft. So I've been closely following Vesa Yunan, who is running P&P. Then in the recent days as well, I'm following most of the people from Microsoft, including David Warner. Then we have a Hugo Bernier, april Dunham and even the Riza Durrani for the Power Platform kind of thing. When it comes to the Microsoft 365, I mostly follow Valdic, valdic Mastikas, as well as Gary Trinder, who are mostly into the Microsoft 365, and they also run the P&P community initiative for CLI for Microsoft 365. So yeah, at least these are the kind of people I follow virtually and then at least those are the motivations for me to go ahead, contribute something that I can do, maybe a small chunk of what I can do for the community, and probably from there the journey started. So mostly my contribution was on to speaking into the conferences or local events, writing the articles, and mostly I was involved on to the P&P kind of and contributions. So P&P is namely as the patterns and practices for Microsoft 365 as well as for Power Platform, where you can contribute on to the code level. You can contribute any kind of samples and everything. So there I contributed maybe 10 or 15 samples for SharePoint framework, as well as a few samples for Power Platform as well. Again, I'm kind of an independent connector publisher for a couple of connectors that we have got in the Power Platform, including Udemy, as well as for Sessionize, so that we should be able to use those capabilities into the Power Platform. So that's where from my journey began and then eventually I became Microsoft MVP. So thanks to Microsoft for seeing potential in me for that.

Mark Smith: 14:39
That's so good. That's so good. My final question to you is You've been in MVP for around four years. What's been the thing you've liked most since becoming an MVP? That's part of the MVP program.

Nanddeep Nachan: 14:56
All right, there are many things. First thing that I like being with MVP is the interaction with the Microsoft PGI product group interactions. So that way you get a chance to interact with PMs or the delegates who are working on to specific Microsoft technology. You get to discuss with them the upcoming things as well as probably the issue that are facing. So as MVP you are a kind of a face of the community so you can raise those concerns if the community is facing those kind of an issues, or maybe your customers are facing those kind of issues, maybe technical or maybe it could be something related to the functionality. So that is one benefit I clearly see of having the Microsoft MVP. At the same time it gives you more options to collaborate more with your community. So being MVP you get a recognition and then you get involved into various talks like the way that we are doing right now. So that way you get to have some strong network set up for yourself. At the same time you get a chance to spread knowledge with others At the same time, listen to the others and get more things learned from them. Because right now, if I see Microsoft or all of these technologies into the cloud, they are moving at a rapid pace. For an individual it is not at all easy, or even I will say possible, to go ahead and get all those updates. So let's say, for example, there are times when I focus more on to the Power Platform. So in that case, probably for those couple of weeks or maybe for a month, I don't get much time to see what is happening into the Microsoft 365 area, including maybe Teams or SharePoint. The reversing can happen as well, like, for example, when my work is more concentrated onto the Microsoft Teams or SharePoint related area. Probably that is the time when I miss onto the updates which are happening onto the Power Platform. But yes, at least that's where, thanks to the community, at least I follow the people and again I see all those posts coming through LinkedIn or Twitter. So at least I get just just about what is happening there. So at least that helps me keep updated. So, yes, with Bing and Microsoft MVP you get to be a part of various communities which are running across the globe and then again you get a chance to interact with more people, get knowledge from them again, discuss about what they are doing, what kind of issues they are facing, and then probably there you can get a solution to the things that you are working on, or at the same time, you can suggest your opinions to others as well. So that's the beauty of having a good community contribution.

Mark Smith: 17:38
Hey, thanks for listening. I'm your host Business Application MVP Mark Smith, otherwise known as the NZ365 guy. If you like the show and want to be a supporter, check out buymeacoffeecom forward slash NZ365 guy. Thanks again and see you next time.