Tell us who you are?
I’m Bander Alsharfi from Jordan. I originally come from a city in Palestine called Nablus. We are famous for making Nabulsi Soap from Olives and sweets such as Kanafeh. I hold a Bachelor of Science: Computer Information Systems (CIS) major and Marketing minor, and a Master of Business Administration (MBA). On a professional level, I have the following certificates:

I Specialize in GRC, Connected Systems, Business Intelligence, and Virtualization. Nowadays, I work as an IT Governance and SharePoint Subject Matter Expert for ARD Inc. a Tetra Tech Company. I’m involved in the Jordan E-Government IT Master Plan – Implementation Phase. I’m helping the implementation of a successful merger between the Ministry of Water & Irrigation, Jordan Valley Authority, and Jordan Water Authority. In addition, build an SOA offering for the water companies and the government water sector that facilitates information sharing, business process automation and knowledge management. In short English: enforcing best practices, standards, and design patterns available in the market to cut down operational cost in the large corporate using IT.

Tell us about your MVP history, when were you first awarded?
I’m a big enthusiast and sponsor for the IT community focusing on East Med and the Arab Gulf. During 9 years of passionate community support and a record of over 400 presentations in local and regional events, I was awarded the Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) award 4 times. My first MVP award was back in 2006. Up till now I got 4 MVP awards, 2 for Connected Systems and 2 for SharePoint Server.

What do you do in order to keep up with latest tools and technologies?
I follow up on daily basis Twitter, Channel 9 videos and forums, product teams’ blogs, technology related blogs, and Microsoft Connect. Furthermore, in spite of constantly getting me into trouble, I always try to push management into adapting Microsoft’s newest technologies.

What does being an MVP mean to you?
Everything to start with! I remember the first time I wanted to be an MVP was during the Microsoft campaign for Longhorn. Watching these guys on stage presenting the future was a thrilling experience for me. I just wanted to be that guy who climbs the stage, tells people about new features, fires up Virtual PC and demo great stuff, answer their questions, and throw giveaways at audience! Being an MVP gave me that adrenalin rush and satisfaction I was looking for.

What do you do when you are not building software’s?
Spend time with family & friends, reading about technology, and following up on forums.

If you could ask Steve Ballmer one question about Microsoft, what would it be?
I would ask him about the Arabic localization support. With all due respect to the involved product teams, the translation of the words is correct but is meaningless in the domain context. What are Microsoft’s plans for the Arab market?

Had a chance to attend “MVP Global Summit”? When and how was your experience?
Unfortunately no

What makes you a great MVP?
I won’t call myself a great MVP. I’m trying my best to reach out to the community. Great MVPs would be people like Todd Klindt, Mike Watson, Andrew Connell, Sahil Malik, and Heather Solomon. I’m on their track and hopefully one day I would be honored to name myself between these outstanding passionate people.

What you think about the MVP’s role in promoting technology in Middle East?
It’s a big role. Such a prestigious award would give you the enough credit for people to start listening to you. I regularly provide free consultancy to ISVs and Corporates about best practices, design patterns, and problem solving techniques to help them leverage the quality of service into higher standards. It’s a growing young market in the Middle East with big challenges! I would say it’s the best place for an MVP to be.

What is in your computer bag?
Nothing fancy, I like my bag as light as possible

Which was the last book you read?
It’s called Understanding Business by William Nickels, James McHugh, and Susan McHugh.

If there was one place you could travel to, right now, where would it be and why?
Microsoft HQ in Redmond to meet the Channel 9 team

Your contact information?

• MVP Profile Link – https://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Bander
• Blog / Website – http://www.isharethepoint.com/
• Twitter – http://www.twitter.com/ibander
• Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/people/Bander-Alsharfi/624620192
• LinkedIn – http://www.linkedin.com/in/banderas

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