Shawn Weisfeld on DevOps Certifications - Episode 86

Joining Jeffrey Palermo today is Cloud Solution Architect at Microsoft, Shawn Weisfeld! Shawn works on the One Commercial Partner team helping Microsoft Partners architect solutions that run on Azure. He is also a Microsoft Certified Trainer, who, in addition, runs the Azure Meetup in Austin TX and two community websites. These two fantastic websites are SouthCentralCommunity.com, where he lists all the groups and events that he knows about in the region, and UserGroup.tv, where he posts recordings of technical user groups and conferences for folks to watch for free.   In this episode, Jeffrey and Shawn are diving into the topic of Azure certifications! Shawn works with partners every day helping them get Azure certified and in today’s conversation, he is sharing his experiences, some of the ins and outs he learned throughout his career, invaluable tips and tricks, and his go-to resources!   Topics of Discussion: [:40] Be sure to visit AzureDevOps.Show for past episodes and show notes. [:50] About Jeffrey’s current promotions and offers. [1:30] About today’s episode with Shawn. [2:22] Jeffrey welcomes Shawn to the show! [2:27] Shawn speaks about his career background and shares how he ended up in his current role! [4:10] Shawn speaks about his community speaking outside of his main role and answers the question of whether or not he would be willing to speak at a virtual user group [4:52] What is the landscape for certifications, in general, these days? [5:52] What percentage of the developer population are getting certified? And how has that changed over the last 10 years or so? [7:22] Why certifications are important to obtain even if you’re a senior developer. [11:31] How many people are getting certified in the industry? And what does it do for them? [12:29] A word from Azure DevOps Podcast’s sponsor: Clear Measure. [12:53] Jeffrey shares some quick announcements. [14:43] Shawn gives a rundown of the relevant certifications in the DevOps space from a Microsoft perspective. [19:57] Shawn explains how you can take a test for a certification at home. [21:38] Are there currently any discounts on Microsoft certification tests? [22:40] Shawn provides his top tips and advice for those looking to currently take a certification test at home! [28:07] Is there anything in the works for certifications regarding DevOps capabilities integrating GitHub? [30:11] Shawn shares what’s new and upcoming with him! [31:13] When can people register for future conferences such as Microsoft Build? [35:19] Jeffrey thanks Shawn for joining the podcast!   Mentioned in this Episode: Azure DevOps Clear Measure (Sponsor) .NET DevOps for Azure: A Developer's Guide to DevOps Architecture the Right Way, by Jeffrey Palermo — Available on Amazon! bit.ly/dotnetdevopsebook — Click here to download the .NET DevOps for Azure ebook! bit.ly/dotnetdevopsbookforcommunity — Visit to get your hands on two free books to give away at conferences or events! Jeffrey Palermo’s Youtube Jeffrey Palermo’s Twitter — Follow to stay informed about future events! [email protected] — Email Jeffrey for a free 30-point DevOps inspection (regularly priced at $5000!) — Spaces are limited! SouthCentralCommunity.com UserGroup.tv Azure DevOps Podcast Shawn Weisfeld’s Resources How to Use Microsoft Teams to Host a Virtual Lab or Virtual Hackathon Event Microsoft Certifications Microsoft Training and Certifications DevOps Learning Plan Exam AZ-400 Pluralsight AZ-400 MeasureUp Microsoft Exam Policies   Want to Learn More? Visit AzureDevOps.Show for show notes and additional episodes.