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Jason_Cao
Product and Topic Expert
Product and Topic Expert

In my role with SCN, I get to meet a lot of interesting people - passionate, dedicated, focused and generous members of our community. I have the pleasure of introducing to you one of these interesting members, and our newest SAP Mentor - Mico Yuk.

 

I'm really looking forward to working with Mico, and collaborating on the next fun and insightful project. The interview below gives you a chance to learn more about her background, accomplishments to-date, and plans with SCN and the BusinessObjects community.

 

Q: Congratulations on becoming one of SCN's newest SAP Mentors for 2010! How do you feel about this?

Thank you.  It's a real honor!  I am pleased to finally see Xcelsius represented on this prestigious SAP board.  After attending SAPPHIRE 2010 in Orlando last week and bonding with the other mentors, I really got a chance to understand the responsibility of being an SAP mentor.  As one of the few SAP Mentors representing BusinessObjects, we face a different challenge, as many BusinessObjects people don't see the value in being a part of the SAP online community.  My goal is to change that perception by setting an example of community leadership and innovation!

 

Q:  Tell us a little bit about yourself, what do you do professionally and outside of work?

Most people know me as the Founder of the Xcelsius Gurus Network and the popular weblog EverythingXcelsius.com. I actually started my career as an independent Xcelsius developer not too long after SAP acquired Xcelsius in June 2003 working in Manhattan, NY for BusinessObjects with some of their biggest clients.  From there, I went on to start the Xcelsius Gurus Network in June 2008 and also build the commercial side of Everything Xcelsius. We are now a full consulting firm of over 30 employees, of which I am part owner.  We work with a number of Fortune 500 clients across the US doing enterprise scale Xcelsius deployments.  In addition, to give back to the community, I continue to do a number of webinars and speeches. I just love watching our community grow and interacting with the members! Born and raised on the beautiful island of St. Croix, US Virgin Islands in a very multi cultural home, outside of work I enjoy being outdoors and next to the ocean.

 

Q: What is your area of expertise?

My main area of expertise lies with the SAP Crystal Dashboard Design software, formerly known as ‘Xcelsius 2008'.  I got started with the software shortly after BusinessObjects acquired it from a small company called Infommersion and have not put it down since. 

 

Q: How did you get started with SAP BusinessObjects?

I was fresh out of college and decided that instead of taking up any of my corporate offers, I would take a shot at doing what I enjoyed (definitely not for the weak at heart!).  So with a Computer Engineering degree from the University of Miami, and no solid experience, I decided to start working as an independent contractor.  About 6 months later I received a call from one of the biggest Supply Chain companies in the nation, who was eyeing my Excel skills. They asked me if I was willing to learn Xcelsius and help them build the visual side of their Lean Six Sigma practice.  At that point I had never heard about BusinessObjects, but was immediately drawn to the pretty dashboards on the website, and decided to give it a shot. The rest is history. J

 

Q: How do you manage to make the time to fit a full time job and active community participation into your schedule?

That is a good question, though I will admit it is becoming more and more difficult these days to get all that I want to get done!  Outside of being a GTDer (David Allen, Getting Things Done), I can't say enough thanks to Steve Jobs for the Iphone and the many apps that allow me to socially network on the go.  That is key!  Really though, I just see it as a part of my responsibility as a leader in the BusinessObjects community. Not participating is not an option.

 

Q: What are some things you've done well in your career and/or professional strengths?

I would have to say, starting the Xcelsius Gurus Network is definitely one of my favorite accomplishments, it has led the way to more opportunities and opened more doors than I could ever imagine.  Outside of that, I am also well known in the BusinessObjects world for successfully completing a number of enterprise implementations for clients such as McKesson, US Airforce, St. Jude Medical, SAP, Pfizer and much more.  One of my most noted strengths is my ability to communicate and my never ending enthusiastic spirit.  I love to motivate and encourage people to push the envelope on all levels, both personally and professionally!

 

Q: What are your favorite sources for information to do your job?

To keep up to date I follow a number of blogs on a regular basis along with twitter and other websites. Below is a summarized blog list:

Blogs:

 

Q: If you could focus on learning one new technology (better), what would it be and why?

That's easy.  RoamBi!  As many are aware, this company was founded by the same people as Xcelsius and it's the closest we have right now to seeing what Xcelsius looks like on the Iphone and Ipad, so I am excited!

 

Q: Who are three people you would like to meet in the social media/community space?

  • 1. David Rathburn - Founder of BOB Forums and also my mentor as an SAP Mentor
  • 2. Mark Finnern - Founder of the SAP Mentors. I actually spent some time with him at Sapphire and he is amazing!
  • 3. Marilynn Pratt - Great to meet such evangelistic females. Got a warm welcome at SAPPHIRE and looking forward to the future!

 

Q: What are some of your recent contributions to the community?

I recently did a post entitled Mico's 2010 Update (where I announced my SAP mentorship) and asked if anyone would be interestedin being a part of an SAP book club?  We also started a new LinkedIn group, dedicated to the Xcelsius SDK, FleXcelsius. Honestly, I spend so much time answering emails that we now have a full time person on board, Soo, who manages a lot of the external community activities.  I also kept up to date via my twitter account @micoyuk which, I used during the SAPPHIRE 2010 conference to let everyone be a part of my first experience there.

 

Q: What are some of the feedback you have received from the community? Do you find out about the business impact of your community engagement (how have you helped others in the community)?

Oh yes!  This is perhaps the most rewarding part of what we do.  We get thank you emails from across the world with people thanking us for the community and free information.  In addition, we have heard from folks in and outside of SAP BusinessObjects about how much they appreciate and enjoy the community. I think the community has become a home for not only Xcelsius, but also the other BOE software. The best part is that we now have a ton of SAP consultants and customers who are joining us.  I love it!

 

Q: Have you turned to the community for help yourself?

Of course! Who does not?  If you are not using the community you are certainly not only spending too much time solving issues that others have already resolved, but you are missing out big time. I keep an RSS with certain search words for twitter and SCN and other social networks that I check daily. I keep up to date with what is new, what is coming up, and I continue to find ways to engage and participate.  In my opinion, it's impossible to keep up with the evolution of software in this day and age without the social element.

 

Q: How to do you plan to leverage the SAP Mentor title you've been given?

I've already started!  I got a warm welcome at SAPPHIRE 2010 in Orlando.  The other SAP mentors are so passionate and dedicated. I felt right at home.  As a mentor I plan to use my extended visibility and voice in the community to encourage other folks to join and participate in the SCN BOC community. I also want create awareness on other topics that are ongoing discussions for the mentors such as certification and community enhancements, from the BusinessObjects point of view.  I also hope to bring some fresh ideas and perspectives on how we can make the community better! Being an SAP Mentor is like being a part of SAP Hollywood.

 

Q: What's in-stored for you for the rest of 2010, and in the near future?

I look forward to 2010 because of all the great opportunities available. Attending SAPPHIRE 2010 in Orlando was definitely rewarding because of all the great people I networked with. I also look forward to attending the SAP TechEd and SAP BusinessObjects User Conference in October and meeting up with my fellow colleagues and clients; Who knows we may even do another Xcelsius Gurus party with SAP again! Most exciting for me this year is the launch of our new commercial website where I get the chance to display what we have been and continue to do for our customers. Along with this, are the new partnerships with some of the Xcelsius custom component companies and other vendors such as RoamBI, to take data visualization to another level! I will also be working on building my personal brand socially as a mentor, right now everything I do is under the Xcelsius Gurus flag. I would like to possibly write a book and team up with my other colleagues to continue to serve the community by making SCN BOC the number one place to be for SAP BusinessObjects related information. 

One more thing, I just wanted to thank everyone for the nominations and ongoing support that it took to make me an SAP mentor.  I am so humbled.  This mentorship is not just a big move for me, but I see it as big move for the BusinessObjects community and I want to get everyone involved.  I cannot accomplish the goals described above without the input of the community. In addition I want to thank some specific people who continue to be instrumental and supportive with everything that I do, namely Ryan Goodman , Rick Montgomery, Clifford Alper, Soo Yuk, Darren Isaacs, Saskia Battersby, Takin Babaei, Emily Mui, Jason Cao, and Kirby Leong. It would be impossible without you guys!

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