Well, I have some good news and some bad news.
Bad news: My job at Avanade didn't work out.
The problem was the travel. The job was great and the resources available to Avanade are awsome. My family just couldn't handle me traveling so much. It's a shame, but when it comes to choosing between work and family the decision became an easy one to make.
Good news: I am going back to Planet.
That's right! I am headed back to the same company and job I had before. It's nice to know that you CAN go home again. I start on 2/14. I wonder if Janet will accept that as her Valentine's Day present?
Avanade and MS have teamed up to reengineer the Patterns and Practices group's Application Blocks. The new release is called “Enterprise Library”. Avanade gets to use them exclusively for 90 days starting 10/27/04. After that, they will be made available under the same terms as the App Blocks have been.
Since I work for Avanade, I have had a chance to see and load them up. I haven't gotten through all of it yet, but it looks very nice. It will be good to have all of these parts made consistent and interoperable.
For more info:
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/practices/comingsoon.mspx
Well, the time has come and I have an announcement to make.
Over the last couple of weeks, I have been discussing a new opportunity with
Avanade (http://www.avanade.com). This morning I took the plunge. I am leaving
plaNet to join Avanade. Avanade is a national consulting firm that is 20% owned
by Microsoft and 80% owned by Accenture.
The group I am joining is called the "BizTalk SWAT Team". This is very exciting
(and more than a little scary) for me. I will be working with other architects
specializing in BizTalk-oriented solutions. I will be traveling throughout
North America helping Avanade's regional consultants design high-capacity, high-
availability and generally ass-kicking BizTalk solutions.
If you have been reading my blog, you will know that I have been talking about
specialization vs. generalization with respect to BizTalk. Now you know why.
:->
There are several reasons that I chose to do this now. For one thing, I am
getting older and this new lifestyle will help keep me active and challenged.
Also, Avanade works on some very large and sophisticated projects. That really
appeals to me. I also hope to get more time for writing and doing speaking
engagements around the country.
The folks at plaNet have been great to me and that is the hardest part of
leaving. It is a great place to work. If you are a .NET developer in the Omaha
area, or are thinking of moving there, I would definitely suggest that you
contact plaNet. Feel free to contact me if you want the inside scoop.