I’m Robert Duffner, director of Product Management for Windows Azure and I’m kicking off a new series of blog posts where I will be interviewing thought leaders in cloud computing.  I’ll be reaching out broadly across the globe to industry, public sector, and academia. You definitely don’t want to miss these intellectually stimulating and thought provoking discussions on the cloud, my first interview is with Chris C. Kemp, NASA’s first chief technology officer for IT and the driving force behind the Nebula cloud computing pilot.

Whether I’m engaging senior IT executives or developers, I try to focus on amplifying the voice of the customer with the various advocacy programs I’m currently driving.  This is all in an effort to help shape the future product direction of the Windows Azure Platform.  Some of these include leading the Windows Azure Platform Customer Advisory Board as well as driving the Windows Azure Technology Adoption Program (TAP) to help our early adopter customers and partners validate the platform and shape the final product by providing early and deep feedback.  I also stay engaged with the top Windows Azure experts in the world as the community leader for the Windows Azure Most Valued Professionals (MVP) program.  

Outside of work I’m an explorer and anthropologist who enjoys traveling anywhere.  You can see some of my exploits here.  I’ve actually been to all 7 continents, including Antarctica!  But lately, I love to hike in the Pacific Northwest – the Cascades, the Olympics, and Mount Rainier.  More details about my experience and background can be found here.

Thanks for your interest in Windows Azure and stay tuned!

Tweet