Nigel Parker

Director, Developer & Platform Evangelism (DPE) Group
@nzigel

Nigel leads the Developer and Platform Evangelism Group in NZ. This means working with the great team below to excite customers and communities about Microsoft’s new and emerging technologies like Windows Azure, Windows 8 and Windows Phone.  Nigel has been in the DPE team for 8 years most recently as technical evangelist before taking on a business development role for Windows apps. Prior to Microsoft Nigel had broad experience in start-ups and system integrators building and launching software based products locally and globally. During his time in DPE he has led strategic change with New Zealand developers, government agencies, start-ups, top NZ websites and media companies. This work has evolved into the app focus we have today in DPE with Windows Azure, Windows Phone and the Windows 8 development ecosystems.

Ryan Tarak

Technical Evangelist – Windows 8 and Windows Phone
@ryan_tarak

Ryan T is passionate about the NZ developer community. Ryan focuses on building, growing, and enhancing the developer communities around New Zealand. In 2013, this is all about apps – for Windows 8, for Windows Phone. A graduate from both the University of Auckland and the University of Otago, Ryan is kept busy (and awake) by his beautiful baby girl, Kayla. With what little spare time he has available, he throws lavish barbeques for the DPE team at the house he hand-built for his family.

Ryan CrawCour

Technical Evangelist – Windows Azure
@ryancrawcour

Ryan C is an adventure sports enthusiast with a deep-set passion for IT. With over fifteen years' experience architecting, designing and implementing solutions on the Microsoft platform, Ryan has achieved a solid track record in all things distributed & connected. Ryan has been working with the Windows Azure Platform since its early days and has seen it grow and mature to be a serious offering in the exciting and evolving world of Cloud Computing. He now spends his time assisting others in their adoption of the platform.

Thiago Almeida

Technical Evangelist – Windows Azure
@nzthiago

Thiago has over ten years of experience working as a solutions architect and technical leader with a proven track record in designing and delivering solutions in the Asia Pacific region. A native of Brazil, Thiago now spends time helping kiwi Software startups and Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) with Microsoft technologies, with a main focus on Windows Azure. While not organizing events, presenting, writing blog posts, or helping others on twitter, Thiago enjoys travelling around New Zealand and the region with his wife Karla.

Nathan Mercer

Technical Evangelist – Windows Infrastructure
@nathanm

Nathan has been working with Microsoft-based networks since the "good ol' days" of Windows NT 3.x, and has been with Microsoft New Zealand since 2000 as a Systems Engineer, Technology Specialist and now as a Technical Evangelist for Windows Infrastructure. He is responsible for making sure that IT Professionals in NZ are fully briefed on infrastructure-related Microsoft software. A long-time and well-known contributor to community groups online and offline, Nathan's previous jobs have included consulting for the finance sector in Wellington, focusing on systems management, and being a *nix administrator for an ISP. He was a Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) for Clustering, and currently holds an MCT, MCSE and the CISSP security qualification. When not working, Nathan can be found listening to electronic music, skydiving, mountain biking, and/or visiting exotic destinations.

Gabriela Spindler

Audience Marketing Manager

Gabriela is a long-time IT professional holding various marketing and management positions over more than 20 years. She has been working for global hardware and software companies in Germany, and joined the DPE New Zealand team in August 2011. In her role as Audience Marketing Manager in DPE, she directs Microsoft's offline and online campaigns – to bring technical information to the New Zealand breadth audience of IT Professionals, and the software development community.

David Steele

Technical Audience Marketing Specialist

A recent graduate of the University of Auckland, David completed a BA-BCom majoring in information systems, psychology, marketing and philosophy. Within Microsoft, he is responsible for the digital marketing activities aimed at technical audiences – specifically focusing on developers, startups, and students. He creates and executes a wide range of marketing campaigns, manages DPE’s online assets including its social media presence, and supervises email communications and event management. David is the Digital Lead for the Microsoft TechEd conference, and the Project Manager for the Microsoft Imagine Cup. Outside of work, David can be found managing a cinema complex and moonlighting as a web developer.

Roshan Anand

Technical Audience Marketing Intern

Roshan is in his final year of a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Auckland, where he is majoring in Marketing and Information Systems. At Microsoft, his roles include event management and logistics, running DPE’s device loan program, and providing execution support for a wide range of marketing promotions. Roshan is the Managing Editor of the MSDN Flash and TechNet Flash email updates, and a regular contributor to DPE’s social media channels. He is an avid sportsman (trying his hand at tennis and cricket) who tries to ensure that he has enough time to socialise with family and friends.

Geraldine Maxwell

Team Administrator

Geraldine has a love for people, travel, adventure, and the environment.  Whilst part-time for Microsoft, Geraldine is a full-time Mum to two young and very active twin girls. With a Bachelor of Business Studies and a background in sales analysis and administration, she always tries to keep her team on top of those administrative and organisational tasks that could otherwise be overlooked.