At the End of One Chapter and the Beginning of a New Chapter

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I have been told by hundreds of DBAs that I have the best DBA job in the world as Director of DBA Education for Red Gate Software. And this has been very true. In the five plus years I have been with Red Gate I have traveled over 500,000 miles (breaking the million mile record on my frequent flyer program), slept in hotel rooms for just over 450 days, and given 154 presentations to over 10,300 people in six different countries. I have written four books, hundreds of blog posts and articles, and personally met thousands of DBAs. My face has been on millions of banner ads impressions, posters, and books, and of course, last year I had the most unusual experience of my life when I “starred” in a the DBA in Space videos. Being filmed by a professional film crew and working with a real actress will probably be the most unusual thing I will have ever done in my life. The last five plus years with Red Gate has been a wonderful ride, and a great opportunity to participate as an active member of the SQL Server family.

But things change. Because of recently changing family obligations, I am no longer able to travel as I have in the past, and because travel is part of my job, I have decided to resign from Red Gate Software. But that doesn’t mean I will be leaving Red Gate altogether. I will continue to do contract writing and editing work for Red Gate, including the SQLServerCentral.com Stairway Series, in addition to writing and editing articles for Simple-Talk.com.

In my time with Red Gate, I have worked with many great co-workers. While I don’t have room to mention all of them now, I want to give special thanks to Steve Jones, Grant Fritchey, Tony Davis, Andrew Clarke, and Phil Factor. I worked a lot with these fine individuals, and I will continue to be working with them, but on a much more limited basis.

I also want to thank all of the user group leaders, and conference chairs, who have invited me to speak. Without your invitations, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to reach out to so many DBAs.

Because of my inability to travel much, I will probably limit my travel to only attending PASS and the MVP Summit. On the other hand, I have only recently discovered that Springfield, MO, has an unusually large number of DBAs considering the size of its population, and I am in the process of starting a local PASS SQL Server users group called the Southwest Missouri SQL Server Users Group, and I will continue to blog and participate in the SQL Server family, on an albeit, smaller scale.

In addition, I have been hired as the lead DBA for a large firm whose national headquarters is located here in Springfield. MO. This new opportunity will allow me to get my hands dirty again as a production DBA, and also expand my skillset as I lead a new BI initiative at the company.

These five plus years have been a wild ride that I will never forget, but for now, I need to settle down and spend more time on important family matters. Thanks again for everyone who has attended my sessions, read any of my material, or shaken my hand at one of the many events I have attended. I’ll stay in touch.

Brad

33 thoughts on “At the End of One Chapter and the Beginning of a New Chapter”

  2. Congratulations and if there’s anything the KC chapter for PASS can do to help get SPFD started, I’m sure we’d be happy to help. I’d be happy to run down to present if y’all need someone.

  5. Congratulations and if there’s anything the KC chapter for PASS can do to help get SPFD started, I’m sure we’d be happy to help. I’d be happy to run down to present if y’all need someone.

    Thanks Bill. Once we get our first couple of user group meetings over, then I will take you up on your offer.

  6. I am sad and happy for you. Change is tough. You have impacted so many people and i assume you will continue to impact so many more in your future endeavors. I thank you for your impact upon my life.
    Good luck to you and yours.

  7. Very sad to see you go Brad. What on earth are we going to put on our banner ads now? 😦

    Best of luck with future work. I hope we’ll still be getting your feedback on our DBA products 😉

  8. Brad,
    Now you can put all that book ritin back to work for you. I have always said that your articles, especially your older ones on SQL Performance nearly always answered every question I might have had on a certain topic. “Yeah, but what if…?” and two sentences later there was the answer. Amazing how you did that. But that level of detailed thinking will carry you far in any direction you head. I wish you the best.
    Rodney Landrum

  10. I am one of your fans. I haven’t met you in person but you are one of the many people I consider as my “virtual mentors” (these people don’t necessarily know they are my “mentors”).

    Your followers will benefit from this move as well. You are now a Production DBA, and most of your followers are indeed Production DBA’s.

    You’ve committed to keep blogging, and this is the best part of this change. This means we will see more posts on production SQL Server databases.

  11. Congrats and Best Wishes on your next adventure in Missouri! You will still be the face of the DBA for many of us DBAs/developers!

    And you know… the PASS Virtual Chapters can still help keep you famous globally… maybe you can become the face of the DBA Virtual Chapter! 😉

    -Amy

  13. Hey Brad,

    Man I’ve learned so much from you over the years, in Red Gate, out of Red Gate, and I hope it continues for a long time to come, even if we’re not directly working together. Best of luck in all you do. And have fun running the user group.

    Grant

  14. All the best, Brad. You were always a pleasure to hear speak, and always easy to learn from. Happy trails!

  16. Brad – you have provided a great service to the community, with the amazing support of the Red Gate folks. Thanks! I look forward to seeing you at the PASS Summit 2012 and future MVP Summits as well. Congrats and best of luck on your new job!

  17. Congrats! Family is of utmost important to me as well. That’s why I gave up a gig with a consultant firm to be a local DBA.

  19. Brad,

    I expected your reason for leaving to be that Hollywood was calling after your DBA In Space adventure ;o)

    Sorry you’re leaving but wishing you all the best for the future.

  20. Congratulations, Brad! I am sure that your new employer will be more than thrilled with your contribution.

  21. “I have travelled over 500,000 miles”…… that’s slightly further than a return trip to the moon!

    It was nice to have worked with you.

  24. So sorry You’re no longer in the Red Gate team, but relieved that you’ll still be writing and editing. I have to admit it has been a great thrill for me to contribute, even in a small way, to a couple of your articles.

    I can perfectly understand the lure of a real DBA role, since there is nothing like a hands-on role to keep the skills bang up-to-date and fine-tuned. I don’t like airline travel and I’m amazed you managed to put up with all that for so long.

  26. Dearest Brad,

    You have always been an excellent example to follow, and I think you have well earned a rest (x1000) to spend time with your family. I can understand the huge sacrifice in time in dedication just to get the MVP level and achieve the status, but you did that for many, many years, thus, you have gone above and beyond your duty as an Exceptional DBA. You are in fact the Noble-Model DBA and Spokesman for our often misunderstood profession.
    Keep in touch, and look forward to a visit in Montreal with you and the family when you have a chance to drive or fly up to the Great White North 🙂

    Cheers, and all the best!

    Sincerely,

    Hugo

  27. Brad,

    Congratulations on your new gig and the time spent with RedGate. I believe RedGate is less with your leaving. Your blog is a great source of information and I always enjoyed the monthly Q&A entry.

    Regards,

    Robert Miller

  28. We over at OKC SQL are also happy to help if we can. I travel through Spingfrield, MO from time to time and would to present when you get things settled. Was very appreciative that time you came to speak in Tulsa a few years back and would love to pay you back. Best of luck and laughs on your adventures with the fam and at work.

  30. Thanks for all the support you have given me in the past. It was great to have you so present.
    Family is a very important thing and I admire you for taking that hard step. You will love getting back into the DBA space.

    Good luck and see you around and at the MVP Summit.

  31. Wow, that’s a big change of pace. I was always amazed how you would keep up while traveling all over the world. Glad to hear you will continue the sharing your knowledge through books, etc. And if you get a bit of cabin fever there in Springfield, you can always pay us a visit in Oklahoma, next door. In the mean time, all the best, man!

    Rob

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