This week Microsoft hosted the 2022 Microsoft MVP Summit. In honor of the event, our Microsoft 365 Voice team discussed our journey to become MVPs.
Unique MVP stories
Antonio Maio, Mike Maadarani, and I had different experiences on our paths to being recognized as MVPs. We share our journeys on this episode, including details on how we got started giving back to the Microsoft 365 community and why we wanted to be MVPs.
It’s all about service – and there are so many paths to take
Being an MVP is all about giving back. Whether your passion and talents lie in public speaking, coordinating events, or answering technical questions, there’s a way for you to engage and share what you know. We highlight many different ways we’ve seen MVPs share their time and talents with others:
- Speaking at user groups/conferences
- Blogging
- Podcasting
- Hosting virtual or in-person coffee chats
- Hosting ‘clubhouse’ sessions to answer technical M365 questions
- Answering questions on the Microsoft tech forums
- Organizing virtual or local user groups
- Organizing SharePoint Saturdays or other community-run events
- Engaging with Microsoft product teams to provide feedback on strategy and features
Finding your path
If you’re interested in becoming a Microsoft MVP, listen in for our ideas on building relationships and tracking your community activities.
Sarah Haase 
That was a good overview. In the old days there were more categories. Rather than Office Apps and Services, there were groups for Excel, Word, PowerPoint and others. So, the current categories are broad. I would recommend having a broad knowledge in a category backed up with intense focused knowledge in one specific area. Watch and learn and solve problems, be a specialized expert. No one is an expert in everything. A great expert is one who has a Rolodex of other experts to complement their skills.
Anyone can speak at an event, the MVP ones are the ones who can handle the Q&As.
The MVPs are the communities voice to the various product groups. Listen to the community and make people aware of issues.
love to hear the journey from each of you to become an MVP, we all have such different stories and there’s no set path. It’s all about the commitment and dedication to the technology and sharing your experience and helping others in a way that is meaningful and impactful.