Microsoft's TechEd sees India as a major focus area in developer evangelism

Sheila Gulati, director, Developer and Platform Evangelism of

Microsoft India spoke to R Jai Krishna about Microsoft's TechEd

programme

Can you brief us on Microsoft's TechEd and what does Microsoft intend to

do this year?

TechEd

is a premier technology forum for IT developers, which offers them an experience

on the latest cutting-edge technologies apart from industry trends. This year it

is bigger than ever.

We have added Pune to our list due to its potential of developers and this

year we expect to see seven thousand people.

We see this as largest tech event that has the ability to bring together

people from various sections and give them a hands-on experience on the new

products and interact with community and peer groups.

Is Microsoft also targeting Tier-2 cities?

A similar kind of event was also held targeting Tier-2 cities, called the

Tech Ed on the Road, which visited places like Kolkata, Pune, Ahmedabad, etc.,

last year and this year we plan to add some more cities.

What would you say is the significant aspect of this year's event?

The USP of this year's event are the new media elements. We have put out a

dynamic web page which has all the information about the cities, speakers,

topics to be covered, blogs etc., which gives a complete experience both in

physical form and online.

This year, we have introduced what is known as the Tech Ed TV and Tech Ed

Radio, where we have live reporters who would be reporting on the event, people,

and all that is happening at the venue. For this purpose we have tied-up with

Radio City as our premier partner. So there is a judicious mix of both media and

non-media that we have put into use for making the program a success.

Click

here to view the MS Tech.ED image gallery

Is Microsoft planning something big for TechEd?

As for our future strategy, we want to broaden the reach of TechEd in the

coming years and bring more and more people into interaction from all the tech

conversations across the country.






How significant is India as for Microsoft's TechEd events are concerned and
how do you plan to take it forward?

With the increase of Internet proliferation India has now become our major

focus as the events held here are the biggest as compared to any other country.

We are committed to providing community elements for the developers who come

from India, and we consider the Indian events very significant as compared to

any similar event across the world.

Having said that we are happy about the skill sets that the Indian community

possesses. In fact India is the 2nd largest developer audience and we continue

to see innovation and skills in newer platforms. We are bullish about the Indian

presence.






Is TechEd aimed only at the developers' community or is there something
more?

Another thing we would like to add is targeting the student community, which

possesses the right kind of skill sets for the next generation, and also have

the ability to innovate. For this purpose we have devised what is known as the

“Imagine Cup” for young students. It is a global event out of which many

student developers contest and those who win the contest are given the Cup. This

year is significant, as the global finals will be happening in India during

August when students from across 100 countries will culminate in Agra and

deliberate on solutions to the healthcare industry. This would be fourth

consecutive year that Imagine Cup is being held.






Could you tell us about any other projects from Microsoft for India?

Another aspect is the project named Code 4 Bill.

As may be recalled, during Mr. Bill Gates' recent visit, he announced a

unique program for the Indian technical student community. Named Code 4 Bill,

this program recognizes India's leadership in nurturing world class technical

talent and is open to pre-final and final year students pursuing various

technical streams across India. The contest is aimed at providing students with

a unique opportunity to showcase their talent and work directly with leading

technologists.

The best amongst the participants will get an opportunity to work directly

with Bill Gates Technical Assistants team for a year. India is the first country

where students will get an opportunity to learn about cutting edge product

development and innovations that are powering the world by working directly with

Microsoft's Product Development & Research teams. The registrations for

Code 4 Bill closed on 18th January 2006 and since opening of the contest on 1st

January 2006, the response has been tremendous. More than 20,000 students have

registered to participate in the contest.






Could you elaborate on your recent tie-up with Anna University?

We recognize Anna University as the top tech university in the country.

Moreover, some of our top tech team is from Anna University. The MoU paves way

for the students of the university to get hands on experience even before the

products hit the roads. This is an extension of our student project team, which

has been in existence for quite some time now.

© CyberMedia News