How I Got Here: Microsoft
Bradley Schacht is a Principal Program Manager on the Microsoft Fabric product team based in Saint Augustine, FL. Bradley is a former consultant, trainer, and has coauthored 6 SQL Server and Power BI books, most recently Learn Microsoft Fabric. As a member of the Microsoft Fabric product team, Bradley works directly with customers to solve some of their most complex data problems and helps shape the future of Microsoft Fabric. Bradley gives back to the community through speaking at events such as the SQLBits, Fabric Community Conference, PASS Community Data Summit, SQL Saturdays, Code Camps, and user groups across the country including locally at the Jacksonville SQL Server User Group (JSSUG). He is a contributor on SQLServerCentral.com and blogs on his personal site, BradleySchacht.com.
Six and a half years. That's the amount of time I spent working at Pragmatic Works. It will be the longest employment slot on my resume for a while. Should I decide to make a change later down the road I would certainly hope the door would be open for me to return. That being said I don't plan on making another move any time soon. I can honestly say that the move to Microsoft has been everything I hoped it would be and more. The first few months have gone by faster than I could have ever imagined. There is so much information to take in. There are so many acronyms that I still don't know. Coming from a company of 80 things can be overwhelming. Luckily I landed on what is probably the most awesome team ever. When interviewing I asked everyone why they were still at Microsoft. Why didn't they leave to go someplace else. While each person had their own journey there was one thing that stood out in each answer without me even specifically asking about it: their team. The group I work with all genuinely enjoy working with each other. When we were at an event recently that was reinforced when we all went to get dinner together then all stuck together after dinner as well. The next night, same thing. The third night, same thing. There was no rule that said we had to stick together. I'm the newest member of the team and it felt like I had been with this group all along. The other great thing about the team is that everyone is crazy smart. We have people with BI background, DBA, product team, app dev, you name it and there's someone who did it at some point. The team dynamic all around is great. 
Every day I get to help a handful of customers discover and prove out solutions to solve their biggest problems. I help them understand how row level security and always encrypted can help secure campaign finances, how IoT can drive decisions to reduce carbon emissions, how machine learning can be applied to criminal justice and public health solutions and how Power BI can provide residents with a view into the inner workings of their government agencies. I get to talk about all the coolest technologies and help design solutions that can drive real change. Will I want to be in this role forever. Who knows. Right now I'm loving it. Maybe some day I'll want to switch to a PFE role or work in an MTC or work on a product team. I love that my options are open to go other places in the company should I decide it's time for me to move on from the DPSA role. I've had a fun and successful career so far for which I am eternally thankful. There are so many people that helped me get to where I am today. I thank God for the people that have been placed in my life and for the path I've traveled to get here. I said the following in my post 5 years into my career and it's still true today: "...How did I get to where I am today? I’ve been surrounded by a lot of amazing people. There is one thing they all have in common. Each and every one of them were willing to take time out of their day to help me out when I needed it and continue to do so today. So I’d like to say a big thank you to everyone that has had a hand in helping shape my career over the last few years."