Tell us who you are?

My name is Saifullah Shafiq. I am a SharePoint Server MVP. I am a SharePoint consultant and author. I have been writing technical programming articles/tutorials since 1999. My technical articles have been published on 62 different programming related web sites. I have also written for magazines, both paper-based and online. I am founder of SharePoint Pakistan User Group, which is the first and only SharePoint related user community in Pakistan. We started this group in 2006. Currently it has over 450 members.

Tell us about your MVP history, when were you first awarded?
I got my first MVP award in 2007. I got renewed in 2008 and 2009. It felt really good to be honored with an award. I have been doing volunteer work since 1999 but this was the first time I was recognized by the Microsoft for my community work. There were only a handful of MVPs in Pakistan in 2006. The most prominent were Saqib Ilyas, Adnan Hashmi and Hammad Rajoub.

What do you do in order to keep up with latest tools and technologies?
I read books and blogs to keep myself up to date. Technical blogs are an excellent way of keeping oneself up to date. I also attend conferences and technical events.

What does being an MVP mean to you?
It’s an honor. It keeps me motivated. Honestly speaking, it’s not easy to be an MVP. It requires lot of hard work and commitment on your part. You don’t do it for money. You do it as a passion, to help the community. Many people ask me these questions. How do you become an MVP? Is it easy? Is it difficult? I tell them it’s all hard work and your love for the community. You share your knowledge with the community. You help them by answering their technical questions. You have to spend time.

What do you do when you are not building software’s?
I am an active blogger. I write technical blogs. I write articles. I try to learn new tools and techniques. I love going to technical events. Personally, I like dining out. I like music. I was very fond of watching Pakistani TV dramas, now I don’t get enough time. I love Pakistani pop music. When I am not writing software, I am listening to music. Honestly speaking, I sometimes also listen to music while writing code.

If you could ask Steve Ballmer one question about Microsoft, what would it be?
What’s Microsoft’s planning for the future? What will Microsoft do to keep itself competitive in the market?

Had a chance to attend “MVP Global Summit”? When and how was your experience?
Yes, I attended MVP Global Summit in 2008. It was a wonderful experience. I met MVPs from all over the world. It was an excellent socializing event. Visiting Microsoft campus during the summit and meeting different IT teams was also an interesting experience.

What makes you a great MVP?
Well, I don’t know if I am a “great” MVP or not but I know one thing for sure that I work very hard. I write technical blogs and articles for the users. I answer their questions in newsgroups, forums, and in my own user group.

What you think about the MVP’s role in promoting technology in Middle East?
Well, I know lots of MVPs from the Middle East. They are very hard working and they are brilliant. Unfortunately, MVPs from the Middle East did not have the same opportunities to promote technology as MVPs in North America and Europe had. The number of conferences held in Middle East is far less than that of Europe or America. Still Middle East MVPs have been active on different fronts and they have been promoting technology by arranging and attending user group meetings, local events and through their blogs.

What is in your computer bag?
Business cards, pens, emergency medicine (pain killers, etc), print-outs of two chapters of my upcoming SharePoint book.

Who are your top 5 favorite Middle East MVPs?
This is tough. As I have mentioned earlier, all MVPs are brilliant. To name a few is really difficult. Ok, I will name five MVPs from my own field, that is, SharePoint. Shady Khorshed, Muhanad Omar, Mohammad Zaki, Marwan Tarek, Rehman Gul.

If you get a chance to suggest one conference in Middle East? What would it be and why?
Best Practices conference! This is the conference where experts share their real world experiences. You don’t learn mere theory in this conference. You get to know real world experiences that can save you lot of time when deploying products in your organizations.

What is the best thing that has happened since you have become an MVP?
Best thing is I have got more recognition. I get job offers from different companies. I get book writing offers.

Who are your top 5 technical experts in your professional circle (from your country)?
Ayaz Ahmad, Rehman Gul, Arsalan Ayub, Umar Khan, Adil Ahmed Mughal

What was the last book you read?
Professional Microsoft SharePoint 2007 Reporting

If there was one place you could travel to, right now, where would it be and why?
Turkey. I have a desire to visit Turkey at least once. I have been reading about Turkey since childhood. I had friends from Turkey when I was in college.

How can one be a part of MVP Club? Any suggestions for them?
Anyone can be a part of MVP club. Work hard, devote time for volunteer activities, share your knowledge, visit forums, help other users.

Any Message you want to give to the readers of MicrosoftFeed?
Share your achievements and success stories on Microsoftfeed. Let’s join hands and work together to expand the local communities.

Your contact information?

MVP Profile Link – https://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Saifullah

Blog / Website – http://vspug.com/ssa , http://sharepoint.walisystems.com

Email – share.point [at] yahoo [dot] com

Twitter – @sshafiq

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/saifullah.shafiq

LinkedIn – http://www.linkedin.com/in/sshafiq

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