Master Training: Are You Ready?

So I just made it back home after attending the 3-week R2 (Beta) rotation of the Microsoft Certified Masters SharePoint training.  I wanted to specifically call out the fact that this was a beta program because I really wanted to commend Microsoft for putting together a very polished experience even though it was “beta”.  Sure, there were a few minor issues and there is always room for improvement but it is clear that they’ve worked very hard to get this right.

How was it?  Absolutely incredible… and the most difficult training I’ve ever attended in my entire life!  It was 20 straight days of mental gymnastics.  I don’t want to come off sounding negative though.  It was a very rewarding experience.  Microsoft is clearly aiming for a very “pure” Master certification here.  If you aren’t extremely experienced with virtually all aspects of SharePoint, then there is a good chance you won’t be successful.  I had a few weak spots and I had to work my tail off (many late night study sessions) to compensate.  But I think that was the case with a lot of the attendees.  It’s hard to have broad AND deep experience in every aspect of IT Pro and development that SharePoint touches.  So each one of us found areas that could be improved.

So just to be clear before I get a bunch of specific responses to this post, there isn’t much that I can say legally.  But I do want to convey just a little flavor of the experience in general.

Let’s say you’ve got your 4 MCTS exams covered, you’ve got several years of field experience with SharePoint, and you’ve talked your company into putting up the $$,$$$ to cover the training expenses.  Congratulations, you’re ahead of the game!  But wait… You’ve got to make it past the interview.  You have to be prepared to prove to the MCM training team that you have what it takes to be successful and trust me, they can figure out pretty quickly if you’re all talk and no walk!  If you pass this interview, then you’ll make it into a rotation. (Congrats to those of you heading to the R3 rotation in June!)

So from there, I can’t say a whole lot about the training specifically, but I can talk about the experience as a whole.

First of all, you’re in the fire from day 1 and that fire has an interesting way of forging you together with your classmates.  One of the things I enjoyed most about the training was the people in the class.  We had a very culturally diverse group with folks from the UK, India, Austria, Germany, Portugal, Netherlands, Chicago, California, and of course St. Louis, MO (me).  But it doesn’t matter where you came from.  Everyone enters the pressure cooker at the same time and the best way to make it through is to connect as a team.  Group study was key.  These people are some of the most intelligent and experienced SharePoint minds in the world and everyone has strengths and weaknesses in different areas. 

Also, I was fortunate that every single one of my classmates were just plain “good people”.  So I want to mention them.  For the sake of privacy, I’ll just abbreviate – here’s a shout out guys – you know who you are!  We had:

• Ali, a very experienced MCS consultant and all around great guy
• Ram, a fun dude and high quality MCS consultant out of Chicago and fooseball master – at least in our class
• Dn, an extremely experienced Microsoft field engineer who blew my mind with the crazy problems he’s solved. Dn was awesome.
• Gln, the instructor from Germany who asked great questions and had a cool British accent
• Tj, a soft-spoken but confident consultant from India
• Ptr, another quiet but extremely friendly (and intelligent) guy.  You don’t realize just how smart he is until you talk to him a bit.
• Brt, another MCS consultant with mad skills and amazing study habits
• GP, MCS consultant from India, nice guy, fun to be around, asked some great questions
• Rmn from Austria (another cool accent), MCS lifer (15 years!), dev guru, could probably code circles around me
• Chs, a very well spoken independent consultant and all around Information Architecture philosophizer
• Sp, an incredibly knowledgeable independent consultant who really added a lot to the class… particularly after the instructors were gone for the day
• Mir, an extremely intelligent person from the Netherlands.  Very pleasant contributor who’s trying to become the “second” in the Netherlands.
• Mau, an X- product team member who had some really cool nuts-and-bolts background info on WSS, and owner of the class mascot “Asta”
• Nkl, a wickedly smart SharePoint guru from India.  He had some awesome tips to provide from lessons learned
• Kl, an independent consultant and hosting guru from Chi town. Gotta love this guy.. he a fan of Da Bears!
• Me, I brought a bit of infrastructure and SQL to the table.

I don’t want to forget our Program Manager and Class “MC”.  I don’t know if he wants his name called out, but I wanted to publically say that I really appreciated all his hard work and effort in this program.  He did a fantastic job of managing the entire process and the candidates.  This training really has it’s highs and lows and “J” was there to help guide us through.  Thanks man.

Let’s be honest, SharePoint is a HUGE product and nobody is a Master of all the deep dark corners of SharePoint when they walk in the door.  But as you can see from the list above, the whole group together IS functions as a Master of SharePoint.  When experiences are shared everybody learns.  Then you mix in the excellent instructors that Microsoft has commissioned, the top minds in their respective fields.  I don’t want to call them out because they may or may not be the instructors for future courses, I don’t know.  (OK, I have to say that Paul Randal – SQL Grand Master – was straight up amazing.  I really geek out on SQL stuff.)  But it is clear that Microsoft is serious about the true Master nature of this program. So what you end up with is not just training.  Rather it’s a true LEARNING experience.  If you invest in the corporate learning experience and you put in the work, you can’t help but come out much stronger than when you entered.  On top of that, you’ll feel more confident in your skills and, if you pass, you’ll feel validated in your knowledge.

The days are long.  Hours upon hours of lecture, but oddly enough, they fly by because this stuff is so relevant.  Before you know it, the “day” is over.  Heh, but then the study time begins.  There are labs to complete, material to review, and tests to study for late into the night.  Then you have to find a way to shut your brain off long enough to catch some sleep before the whole process starts all over the next day!  Usually this isn’t a problem because you’re wiped out mentally every day.  But you’ll end up dreaming about this stuff too!

I don’t know what I can say about the last day other than it was the hardest day of my professional career!  I’ll just leave it at that.

Was it worth it?  Yup!  You know it’s interesting.  This is by far the most expensive training course I’ve ever attended, but the resources that Microsoft brought to bear on this project were nothing short of incredible.  I can’t image how much money has been spent to bring together this comprehensive set of presenters, courseware, and hardware resources.  I figure that MS is probably just breaking even!  At least in the early rotations.  I think they are mostly interested in getting competent SharePoint Masters out into solution space to ensure that SharePoint is successful.  I don’t think this program is going to make them a bunch of money. 

Is it expensive?  Yes.  But it is THREE weeks of training.  If you do the math compared to some of the week long training courses out there then you’ll see they are fair.  There is no way anyone else but Microsoft could put together this much brain-trust in one place.  This isn’t your standard training class where you’ve heard most of the marketecture before.  This is REAL knowledge.  Hard core nuts-n-bolts information that will lay a strong foundation and enable you to tackle ANY SharePoint engagement no matter how complex.  That type of value will benefit ANY organization or independent consultant who works in the SharePoint space.  I was VERY fortunate that KnowledgeLake sees the value in having an MCM on staff.

I believe that the Microsoft Certified Master (MCM) SharePoint cert will quickly be recognized as the pinnacle of technical achievement in the SharePoint community.  A Master is someone you can trust for accurate information.  If for some reason they can’t help you directly, then they have the connections to get it done.  Probably someone from the rotation they attended has the information.  Even if that isn’t the case, then there are other lines of communication that can be tapped by a Master to get answers to the hard questions.

I still don’t know if I’m a Master yet or not.  But even if I didn’t pass all the tests, I can assure you that I WILL be a Master eventually, even if I find out that I have to re-take some stuff.  On that topic… If you know anyone who attends the training and fails one or more tests, please don’t think less of them.  The Master tests are designed to make sure you are unquestionably competent in ALL aspects of SharePoint.  They are indescribably difficult.  The sheer volume of knowledge that has to be in place to even make it into the class puts each candidate on a higher plane already.  Even someone who washes out and doesn’t achieve certification is probably a better SharePoint resource than most.  There is a very small minority of those who make it TO the class that pass everything the first time through.  There is NO SHAME in a retake!

Now that I’ve been through the gauntlet I am more aware of technical weaknesses.  The cool thing is that, armed with that information, there is a clear path to improvement.  There is no way to convey the difficulty of the program in words.  You have to experience it.  My biggest recommendation to potential candidates is to STUDY THE PRE-READING materials.  That is your best preparation tool.  Once again KL was very helpful in this regard and even gave me plenty of extra to pre-study before I even attended.  I was surprised to find that almost everything that was taught was available “somewhere” out in the ether.  But if you are experienced… and you are prepared… Don’t fear the program!  Mind your training!  Save you it can! (gratuitous Star Wars reference).

Bottom line:  The MCM training just put me on a knowledge rocket ship.  The G-forces were intense.  It was like one of those roller coasters that scares you to death and thrills you at the same time.  I’ve never enjoyed a knowledge expansion exercise as much as this.  If you’ve got the skills, you’ve got the nerve, and you’ve got the $$$, then GO FOR IT!

I now know that if I haven’t passed everything, I am capable.  So I won’t give up.

To anyone else who is accepted into this training, GOOD LUCK!

To my classmates in R2, thanks for everything guys.  It was an honor.