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I have mixed emotions about codes of conduct. I respect the right of any organization – public or private, for-profit or not – to create, maintain, and enforce codes of conduct. At the same time, I find the need for such standards depressing… especially in professional organizations. I am and have been a member of …
Continue reading On Codes of Conduct

I am honored to welcome Tim Mitchell (blog | @Tim_Mitchell) to Linchpin People! Tim brings years of experience consulting  with SQL Server, Integration Services, and Business Intelligence to our growing organization. I am overjoyed to be able to work with my friend! Rather than babble on about Linchpin People (using words like "synergy" and "world …
Continue reading Welcome to Linchpin People, Tim Mitchell!

An Overview of SSIS Variables – Step 13 of the Stairway to Integration Services is up and available at SQL Server Central! :{>

Brian Kelley (blog | @kbriankelley) delivered an awesome and at times scary – no offense, Grant Fritchey (blog | @GFritchey) – presentation today on Security and SSIS. The recording is now available here. Enjoy! :{>

Red Gate rocks. If you didn’t know that already, you know it now. The latest evidence to support this claim is the publication of the schedule for US SQL in the City events. They are: 9 Oct – Pasadena 11 Oct – Atlanta 14 Oct – Charlotte Registration for these events opens 24 May. :{>

When: October 15, 2013 8:45 am – 4:45 pm Charlotte, NC Where: Wake Forest University Charlotte Center 200 North College Street Charlotte, NC 28202 What: Business Intelligence Markup Language (Biml) automates your BI patterns and eliminates the manual repetition that consumes most of your time. Come see why BI professionals around the world think Biml …
Continue reading Announcing the 2013 Biml Workshop 15 Oct 2013 in Charlotte NC!

Matt Masson and I are co-presenting Developing Extensions for SSIS 22 May 2013 at 11:00 AM EDT. If you’ve never heard Matt present, you are in for a treat. Matt is knowledgeable (he helped build Integration Services 2012!) and entertaining. This is going to be a good one, folks! Abstract Join Matt Masson and Andy …
Continue reading Join Matt Masson and I for Developing Extensions for SSIS 22 May at 11:00 AM EDT

Let’s begin with an assertion: “People are more important than process.” – Andy, circa 2008 Whenever an enterprise or institution adopts a new process or policy, that policy should serve people and not shackle them. The nicest thing that can be said about a policy that binds people is, “It wasn’t well thought out.” It’s …
Continue reading Performance-Based Management and Andy’s Law

In his article Healthcare’s Big Problem With Little Data, author Dan Munro raises salient points about the state of health-related data. Electronic Health Records (EHR) were promoted as the end-all-be-all solution for the industry – a standardization that, I suppose, many thought would organically and naturally occur, stabilize, and be maintained. It hasn’t. At least …
Continue reading Little Data Remains Important in Healthcare IT

Join SQL Server MVP Tim Mitchell (blog | @Tim_Mitchell) and I as we demonstrate and discuss the many uses of scripting in SQL Server 2012 Integration Services 8 May 2013 at 11:00 AM EDT! In this demo-packed session, two co-authors of the book SSIS Design Patterns share their experience using the Script Task and Script …
Continue reading Scripting and SSIS – Free Webinar!