Presenting Aplication Lifecycle Management: Precursor

I am doing a presentation this afternoon on Application Lifecycle Management (ALM). This is the first time that I have ever presented on this topic, and I found out that I was doing it on Friday!

I have put together a bunch of slides pulling information mostly from Wikipedia. I have another presentation afterwards on Visual Studio Team System (VSTS), but it is the ALM one that scares me. I already had canned slides for Visual Studio Team System , but ALM is something that I have really only begun to get a handle on. I know enough to know that I do not really know anything at all :)

So why am I doing it?

Well, if you are involved with TFS in the UK you will probably know, or have heard of Neil Kidd. He is the current UK “Developer TS Visual Studio Team System ” at Microsoft. I have delt with him both at events and in the context of work, and I have found him knowledgeable, helpful and patient, even when I ask stupid questions.

I had heard that he was moving to another area within Microsoft (I think something to do with the TFS Rangers), but I was surprised when one of the guys (thanks Jon) I have delt with at Microsoft over the years gave me a call and asked if I would be interested in the “Developer TS Visual Studio Team System ” position… Wow, an internal recomenation…

So here I am, on an easyjet flight on my way to London.

And I now return to the topic of this post, I do waffle so…

The reason the ALM presentation is making me anxious is quite apart from my fledgling knowlage on the subject, my slides are terrible! No really… They are so bad even I have trouble following them, or even coming up with a story behind them.

I am going to have to use my slides as vague pointers and try to create a presentation on the fly…bad I know, but it is the best decision out of a bad bunch. I have an hour interview before the presentation so maybe I can do some limiting of the expectations. The second presentation on Visual Studio Team System should go a little better…I hope…

If you are going for an interview at Microsoft make sure you lock yourself away for however amount of preperation time you need, with no distractions! That means no Tv, Xbox, children, wifes, family events of any kind. Preferably you should go to a cabin in the mountins with only your internet connection to keep you company… ;) Wish me luck….

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