October 2024 Content Wrap-Up

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An entire month off the road, can you believe it! It was so nice not traveling anywhere and just focusing on work. I also got some quality time with Taco, my old and blind mini-pin dog. Things were incredibly busy, for sure. Lots of content, lots of planning, the wrap-up of one major client and the ramp up of a new client, and preparation for upcoming shows in November and December. Some exciting stuff underway!

I should mention the cover image – just a couple of months after leaving Microsoft, in October 2009 I attended the SharePoint Conference in Las Vegas, which is where I made many friendships that have lasted these many years. In fact, I talk to about a dozen people each week who were introduced to me at that event. Great memories! This photo with Joel Oleson, Jeff Teper, and I showed up in my OneDrive memories, and I thought I’d make it this month’s cover image.

Here’s my content output for the prior month:

The Return of the CollabTalk TweetJam

October 2024 Post-CollabTalk TweetJam PanelAfter a long hiatus (because I had a few too many things on my plate) the CollabTalk TweetJam returned this month — with some noticeable changes. In addition to the hour-long X/Twitter-based community discussion, we introduced the X Spaces audio discussion running in parallel, and following the tweetjam, I was joined by 5 experts for a panel discussion of the 7 questions from the tweetjam. I know….it’s a lot to consume. But there really is something fdor everyone —  you can participate in the chat on X, you can listen to and participate in the live audio discussion, and/or you can watch the panel discussion. The next tweetjam will be November 26th on the topic of cybersecurity. Hope you can make it!

The Weekly Project Failure Files Webcast

Episode 19 of the Project Failure Files on “Beyond Numbers: The Significance of Metrics”My good friend and fellow MVP+RD Sharon Weaver (@sharoneweaver) and I have been having a ton of fun with our weekly series every Monday morning at 9am Pacific chatting about the nuances of being a successful project manager. If you’re not yet following the series, check out my weekly blog summaries below, or catch a live show. We have the show broken up into 3 phases, and we’re about half way through Phase 1. In March or April, we’ll go into Phase 2 where we’ll focus more on interviews with PMs across different industries and learn from their experiences. While Phase 2 is underway, Sharon and I will be taking our notes and show transcripts and writing our book, which, once completed and available mid-2025, we’ll move the series to Phase 3 and focus on each chapter of the book each week. We’re excited about this path, and hope you subscribe to the show!

  • Project Failure Files: Mitigating Scope Creep [blog | YouTube]
  • Project Failure Files: Change Management as a Core Strength [blog | YouTube]
  • Project Failure Files: Confusing the Roles of BA and PM [blog | YouTube]
  • Project Failure Files: Using the Wrong Metrics [blog | YouTube]
  • Project Failure Files: Countering Business Misalignment [blog | YouTube]

The Weekly CollabTalk Podcast

Five new episodes of my weekly series in October, and six interviews booked this month. I’m planning a rebrand in January with some updates (and some paid promotions), but this weekly podcast on various business, collaboration, and productivity topics continues to grow. Also, Episode 147 is a re-share of the webcast I did for the online Come Cloud With Us show, focusing on building a governance framework.

  • CollabTalk Podcast | Episode 144 on Better Internal Storytelling [blog | podcast | YouTube]
  • CollabTalk Podcast | Episode 145 with Sean McDonough and Geoff Varosky  [blog | podcast | YouTube]
  • CollabTalk Podcast | Episode 146 with Norm Young [blog | podcast | YouTube]
  • CollabTalk Podcast | Episode 147 on Creating a M365 Governance Framework  [blog | podcast | YouTube]
  • CollabTalk Podcast | Episode 148 with Josh Bloomfield [blog | podcast | YouTube]

All Things Governance

Nary a month goes by without me writing something about governance. It’s been a major focus for more than 20 years. This month included a webinar for Smarter Consulting, and another monthly episode of the Guardians of M365 Governance show. Check them out!

  • A Governance Framework for Copilot Readiness [blog | YouTube]
  • Developing a Governance Framework [blog]
  • Summary of Guardians of M365 Governance Episode 10 [blog | YouTube]

More Community Questions Answered

Can I change the local search settings on my SharePoint site? #M365AMAOnly 5 new entries into the Microsoft 365 Ask Me Anything (#M365AMA) series this month, but the standalone YouTube page has been created (not yet live) and I’ve started working on the new website. The plan is to launch before the end of the year and give these videos and related articles a home of their own — as well as to provide the community with a place to ask questions directly. I’ll still summarize on a weekly or monthly basis here on this blog, but the idea is to increase the volume of output for this series and have more creators involved.

  • Can a user leverage the PnP Search in our SharePoint portal? #M365AMA [blog | YouTube]
  • Can I auto empty my SharePoint recycle bin every 2 weeks? #M365AMA [blog | YouTube]
  • Can I change the local search settings on my SharePoint site? #M365AMA [blog | YouTube]
  • How do I import a personal list into SharePoint Online? #M365AMA [blog | YouTube]
  • How many times can I prompt Copilot for a different result? #M365AMA [blog | YouTube]

Random Articles

Occasionally, I have an idea for an article that is not tied to a series, an event, or a client activity. Here are two:

  • Key Innovations from the 2024 Power Platform Community Conference [blog]
  • Where Does Email Fit in the Modern Workplace? [blog]

MVP Interviews

More from the #MVPmonday interviews with some new, some seasoned MVPs. Always love hearing people’s origin stories, and to learn more about the technology and community activities they are passionate about. If you’re an MVP (or RD) that has not yet participated in this series, please DM me and let’s get you on the schedule!

Weekly Music Posts

Blue Plate Special - YelloWhat began as a once-in-a-while music post is now part of my saturday activities each week. As a music collector with an extensive collection of CDs, vinyl, cassettes, posters, t-shirts, and other swag (I own an original distribution of the Peter Murphy video ‘All Night Long’ on reel-to-reel), I love providing an introduction to some of my favorite artists. You’re probably familiar with one or two of these bands each month, but I’m sure most of them are brand new to you, so please check them out.

  • Blue Plate Special: The Cure [blog]
  • Blue Plate Special: Yello [blog]
  • Blue Plate Special: Vicious Pink [blog]
  • Blue Plate Special: We Have Band [blog]

Blatant Self-Promotion

Limited self-promotion this past month, but here is a link to last month’s assemblage:

  • September 2024 Content Wrap-Up [blog]

And that’s a wrap on October. Here we are already in November, with a week’long trip to Texas for the TechCon 365 Conference where I’ll be conducting a half-day governance workshop and 3 sessions, so watch for the blog summaries. I’m then back home for a couple of weeks before a 2-week European trip in December. Lots going on, things ramping up with clients, and more weekly and monthly shows rolling out. Please subscribe! Thanks for reading/watching/listening!

Christian Buckley

Christian is a Microsoft Regional Director and M365 Apps & Services MVP, and an award-winning product marketer and technology evangelist, based in Silicon Slopes (Lehi), Utah. He is a startup advisor and investor, and an independent consultant providing fractional marketing and channel development services for Microsoft partners. He hosts the weekly #CollabTalk Podcast, weekly #ProjectFailureFiles series, monthly Guardians of M365 Governance (#GoM365gov) series, and the Microsoft 365 Ask-Me-Anything (#M365AMA) series.