CloudSkills.fm

Latest Episodes:

119: Testing with Terraform 0.15 May 18, 2021

Show notes

In this live recording of the CloudSkills.fm podcast Michael Levan chats with Luke Orellana about testing with Terraform 0.15.

In this episode we talk about:

Infrastructure-as-Code security
Securing Terraform code
Terraform security for the enterprise
Infrastructure-as-Code security concerns

Watch this episode on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3pVYFECVgs

118: How to Get Into Teaching & Public Speaking (Plus My Entire Gear List) May 14, 2021

Show notes

Have you ever wanted to give a talk or a presentation but weren't sure where to start?

In this episode Mike Pfeiffer shares his best tips for public speaking, teaching online, and recording podcasts and online courses...

Plus, Mike Pfeiffer and Michael Levan share their entire gear list, which is one of the most common questions they've gotten over the past couple years.

In this episode, we talk about...

Why You Should Teach
How Teaching Impacted My Career
Speaking Frameworks
Effective Speaking Tips
Gear Recommendations and My Office Setup

You can grab the entire gear list here:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1gLVlyjigd08kBUFZ10Ug20MwfvlxiNFZIiubIsum4_Y/

117: Azure Cloud Adoption & Strategy with Chris Nicholas May 03, 2021

Show notes

In this live recording of the CloudSkills.fm podcast we're talking all things Cloud Adoption & Strategy with Chris Nicholas, Managing Director of Cloud Solutions at Trace3.

Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework:
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cloud-adoption-framework/

Chris Nicholas, Managing Director, Cloud Solutions Group at Trace3
https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-nicholas-01420a90/

116: Fireside Chat: Infrastructure as Code in 2021 Apr 23, 2021

Show notes

In this episode Mike catches up with HashiCorp Ambassadors Ned Bellavance, Michael Levan, and Luke Orellana to discuss all things Infrastructure as Code. Which tools and services are people using, what are the pitfalls, and how do you get started? We answer these questions, plus more from a live audience.

115: Running SAP on AWS with Eamonn O’Neill Apr 14, 2021

Show notes

Michael is chatting today with Eamonn O’Neill, the founder and EVP at Lemongrass Consulting. This company focuses on helping customers get their SAP on AWS, which makes for a really interesting conversation topic.

In this episode, we talk about…

Eamonn’s career journey and how he has moved from a more technical role to a more business-minded role.
How Eamonn was at the forefront of SAP adoption back in the 90s and has stuck with that technology over the decades.
How SAP is a German-based software company that has made its name based around the ERP concept and which has recently broadened into SaaS operating.
The importance of automation services and how Lemongrass focuses on both efficiency and quality for their customers.
The role that Azure plays in the world.
How and why Eamonn got into tech and why he believes it’s important to know the technical side of what you’re doing, even if you’re a project manager or entrepreneur in the field.
How to proceed and what to look for if you’re interested in getting into SAP. However, the market is pretty saturated unless you’re also a programmer and/or infrastructure aware.
New use cases for SaaS.

Links to resources:

Eamonn O’Neill: Twitter |LinkedIn

Lemongrass Consulting

Michael Levan: Twitter

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114: David Cobb on Learning & Teaching Azure and AWS Apr 07, 2021

Show notes

Mike is chatting today with David Cobb, an Azure and AWS Trainer! They’re catching up on all the awesome things David has been up to the last few years both in the Cloudskills Community and in the industry. You won’t want to miss all the insight he has, especially around life-long learning and teaching.

In this episode, we talk about…

David’s background and career journey, from IT Help Desk work to web applications work to his current work on the cloud and teaching students.
How teaching opened up a lot of additional career opportunities for David. And why teaching actually helps you learn things better, because it forces you to know subjects inside and out, well enough to explain them to other people.
Different ways to teach and add value, such as public speaking, blogging, other content creation, and new social media apps like Clubhouse.
Why it’s important for everyone, no matter what level, to admit that they are still learning and figuring things out.
The pros and cons of learning new skills by studying as an individual versus joining a community. And why social learning is a true game-changer for anyone trying to learn cloud skills.
The benefits of multi-cloud competition and why it’s important to keep an open mind and speak all of the languages.
The best career advice David’s ever gotten, which involves learning and growing from our own mistakes. And how this can only happen if you’re first willing to try new things and fail.

Links to resources:

David Cobb: Cloudskills Page | Github

David’s hour-long AWS Command Line training video on Youtube

Mike Pfeiffer: Twitter

For a safe space to learn and grow, join the Cloudskills Community.

Microsoft TEALS: Computer Science Volunteer Program
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/teals/volunteers

Make sure to subscribe to our mailing list at cloudskills.io/subscribe for weekly updates, exclusive training, and advice on how to amplify your career.

113: Soft Skills with Jason Alba Mar 30, 2021

Show notes

Today’s subject is very important but often overlooked - polishing your soft skills. It can be so easy to focus on technical skills and forget about things like leadership, communication, and listening. But we absolutely need these skills for a strong career, too. Mike has Jason Alba on the podcast to discuss why you need these skills and how to build them. Jason has been in IT a long time and is also an expert on soft skills. He blogs, writes books, and authors courses on Pluralsight about professional development.

In this episode, we talk about…

Why soft skills are so important.
Jason’s courses on subjects like leadership, listening, emotional intelligence, and more.
How more intentional communication and better empathy can help you build relationships and advance your career.
How these skills will benefit you even if you have no interest in moving into management or if you fall into the stereotypical category of the tech person who doesn’t like talking to other people.
Tips to help you get started improving these soft skills right now.
Jason’s career journey and how he got started with Pluralsight.
The importance of long-term thinking in your career - we can’t have things right away.

Links to resources:

Jason Alba: Twitter | LinkedIn

Jason’s Courses on Pluralsight

Jason’s job search CRM, JibberJobber.com

Mike Pfeiffer: Twitter

Join the Cloudskills Community

Make sure to subscribe to our mailing list at

cloudskills.io/subscribe

for weekly updates, exclusive training, and advice on how to amplify your career.

112: Corey Knapp on Azure Landing Zones, Career Development, and Personal Branding Mar 23, 2021

Show notes

Mike is talking with cloud expert Corey Knapp today. Corey has 20 years of cloud experience, specializing in Azure, dev ops, and more. He is also a great mentor who enjoys teaching others and he has a lot of wisdom to share with you on the podcast.

In this episode, we talk about…

What Corey has been up to lately, his career background, and how he got started in this industry.
The importance of landing zones, so that you have a proper foundation to expand from, and how to deploy them successfully.
Why you need to lose your ego to thrive in this business and be willing to surround yourself with people you can learn from.
Why everyone in the industry needs to share their knowledge, rather than trying to keep it to themselves. IT is a team sport!
Tips for folks looking for a team to work with in tandem, like posting blogs, social media, and being open to constructive criticism.
How starting a blog or putting your code out on the internet can serve as a portfolio and help you prove your experience in interview situations.
Why if you want to learn Azure, the best thing to do is make up some small projects for yourself and just start doing and practicing.
How the Cloud is here to stay, so now is the time to learn all the skills you need.
The best career advice Corey has gotten - which is all about not being afraid to ask for help and to reach out to mentors.

Links to resources:

If you want Corey’s help with learning these skills, feel free to reach out to him!

Corey Knapp: Twitter | LinkedIn

Mike Pfeiffer: Twitter

Join the Cloudskills Community

Make sure to subscribe to our mailing list at

cloudskills.io/subscribe

for weekly updates, exclusive training, and advice on how to amplify your career.

111: Serverless in Today's World with Niall Dalton Mar 19, 2021

Show notes

On the podcast today, Michael Levan is hosting and chatting with guest Niall Dalton, who came from a systems engineering background and now has his own company. He’s the co-founder of Seaplane, a serverless company that’s working to help people not have to spend all their time managing infrastructure.

Niall’s career background and how he came to co-found a company.
How going serverless lets people concentrate on shipping their app rather than the nuts-and-bolts side of things.
Why it’s important to go global with your app right from the beginning.
How Seaplane works and how it isn’t trying to replace the cloud, but rather, it’s providing a better and more efficient way to consume it.
The importance of recognizing the granularity your project needs and how to match your service to that need.
How serverless features are still super new, but already are proving to be letting the cloud fulfill the function we all wanted it to.
Examples of programs and web applications that have revolutionized industries (like Excel for finance or e-commerce platforms for small businesses) and how serverless technology is also changing the game.
Niall’s opinion of what advances in serverless will do to the environment of current system admin and dev ops jobs.

Resources from this episode:

Niall Dalton on LinkedIn
Check out seaplane.io

110: Luke Orellana on Working at Microsoft as an SRE, Infrastructure Development, and Terraform Mar 10, 2021

Show notes

Mike is joined by special guest Luke Orellana, an SRE at Microsoft. Luke has a ton of great experience to share and has been up to a lot of fun things, like infrastructure development and terraform, that you’ll enjoy hearing all about.

In this episode, we talk about…

Luke’s background and how he ended up working for Microsoft.
The basics of terraform and an in-depth dive into how Luke manages the cloud infrastructure with terraform.
The most common question that Luke hears about terraform.
The different versions of terraform available, their pricing, and their advantages.
How you can go about getting started in terraform (it’s fairly easy to get started, and then build on your skills later so that you can take on more complex projects).
What it’s like working at a giant software company like Microsoft and how Luke prepared for the grueling interview process.
The best career advice Luke has ever gotten -which is to learn whatever skills you’re interested in, whether you’re using them for your company right now or not.
How if you want to get into producing content like a blog, you need to start doing it and you will get better as you go.
How content creation can get you noticed and level up your career.
What an SRE (site reliability engineering) does and how it’s becoming a sought-after skill set for many companies.

Resources from this episode:

Follow Luke on Twitter
Check out Luke's Terraform course

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