Rui Maximo is a Senior Technical Writer in the Office Communications Group. He has worked on different aspects of the product (management, migration, topology, Voice over Internet Protocol [VoIP], Communicator Web Access), and shipped Live Communications Server 2003, 2005, Service Pack 1 (SP1), and Office Communications Server 2007 as a lead program manager and program manager. With 12 years of experience at Microsoft, Rui has been fortunate to work in diverse roles (program manager, software design engineer, software design engineer in test) and various products (including Windows NT 4.0 Option Pack, Windows 2000, Windows XP, Smartphone 2002, Pocket PC 2002, and Microsoft Information Server 2002), primarily focused on security. Rui holds a master’s degree in mathematics, specializing in abstract algebra and cryptography. Prior to Microsoft, Rui worked at IBM as a software tester and at Brigham Young University as a UNIX administrator.
Rick Kingslan is a Senior Technical Writer in the Office Communications Group. Rick worked as both contributing author and technical reviewer for the Office Communications Server 2007 Resource Kit book. Prior to joining the Office Communications Server product group, he worked as a Consultant in U.S. Services, Microsoft Consulting Services (MCS) delivering solutions to enterprise customers by assisting them with the process and project management of implementing infrastructure services in their environment. Specifically, Rick worked with Windows Server, Exchange Server, Internet Security and Acceleration Server, desktop deployment and maintenance, and Office Communications Server /Live Communications Server. Rick is also versed in security practices, holds the Certified Information Security Systems Professional (CISSP) credential, and has helped enterprises attain higher levels of security with smarter implementations of security processes. In the year prior to leaving MCS (June 2007 to July 2008), Rick worked with the Windows Server 2008 and Vista SWAT Team as a subject matter expert on solving application compatibility issues with both operating systems and customer applications. He also delivered 20+ workshops in 12 countries to independent software vendors (ISVs) and enterprise customers on how to adapt their software to work with Windows Server 2008 and Vista. Rick has been with Microsoft since 2005 and has worked in various areas of information technology for nearly 25 years.
Rajesh Ramanathan is a Lead Program Manager on the Microsoft Office Communicator product team. His team shipped VoIP, instant messaging (IM), and Conferencing for Communicator 2007, and currently owns the Communicator 2007 Remote Call Control/Computer Supported Telephony Applications (CSTA) protocol, Microsoft Office Communicator Phone Edition Remote Call Control, existing VoIP/video and conferencing features, as well as new features, such as Boss/Admin, Team Call, and Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Response Group service support. Previously, Rajesh worked in the telecommunications arena for several years, designing protocols in the satellite communication/ Global System for Mobile (GSM)/Integrated Services Distributed Network (ISDN) areas, before joining Microsoft in 2001 as a program manager for the release of Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 and Outlook 2007. He has 15 years experience in technology communications, protocols, and applications.
Nirav Kamdar is a Development Lead on the Microsoft Office Communications Server team. Nirav Kamdar joined Microsoft in 1999. Since then, he has worked on various Microsoft products, including Microsoft Exchange, Office, and Windows as a software design engineer and development lead. Nirav has worked on Office Communications Server since the Live Communications Server 2003 release. Currently, Nirav is working on the manageability aspects of Office Communications Server.
Amaresh Bikki has worked for the Microsoft Unified Communications Media team since joining Microsoft in 2005. During this time, he worked for specific product components, such as Audio/Video Conferencing Server and Conferencing Attendant. He holds a masters degree in computer science from the University of Texas at Dallas and previously wrote a book chapter, "Mobile Adhoc Networking," which was based on his master’s thesis.
Brad Joseph is a Content Publishing Manager on the Microsoft Unified Communications team. Brad has worked in the software industry for more than 16 years as a software test engineer, network engineer, and technical writer. Brad joined Microsoft in 1995 as a technical writer working on the first version of Microsoft Exchange Server and remained with the Exchange Server group for more than 8 years. Additionally, he has worked with Windows CE, Microsoft Systems Management Server (SMS), Windows Media Server, and most recently with Microsoft Office Communicator, Microsoft Office Live Meeting, Microsoft RoundTable, and a variety of hardware telephony devices designed for Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007.
Byron Spurlock works in the U.S. Services division as a Unified Communications Consultant within Microsoft Consulting Services (MCS) and has been with Microsoft for four years. Byron’s primary function for the past several years has been working with customers and partners designing and deploying Office Communication Server 2007 and Office Communication Server 2007 R2 within the TAP/RDP group. Byron also contributed in the previous edition of the Office Communications Server 2007 Resource Kit and has delivered training to partners around the globe with Voice Ignite, which is a specialized training on the voice aspects of Office Communications Server.
Francois Doremieux is Director for Engineering Strategic Customers Engagements in the Office Communications Product Group at Microsoft. Since joining Microsoft five years ago, Francois has been part of the Office Communications Group and instrumental in driving strategy and implementation for Microsoft’s voice and telephony capabilities. Francois has been involved with VoIP and connected technologies for many years, working with companies such as Comcast, AT&T, and Level(3) Communications, where he was responsible for the VoIP offerings. He is a frequent speaker at international events on VoIP and Unified Communications. Francois’ current role involves working closely alongside Microsoft’s leading customers during their deployment of Microsoft Unified Communications solutions, formulating technical strategy, and supporting execution. His role also involves working collaboratively with the product teams, helping frame specifications on the basis of customer experience. In addition, his primary technical domain of expertise is interoperability with IP PBX. Francois holds advanced engineering and business degrees from the Ecole Centrale in Paris, the University of Paris, the University of Tokyo, and Stanford University.
James O’Neill was born in 1965 and started using Microsoft products in 1979. Being something of a slow developer, it took him until 2000 to join Microsoft. His career has been spent working on operating system and messaging technologies, and passing on his knowledge of them to others, first in support, then as a trainer. He became an IT Pro Evangelist in March 2006 after six years working for Microsoft Consulting Services on a variety of projects for several well-known, large organizations. He has been a Microsoft Certified Professional since 1993, holding MCSE from NT 3.1 to Windows 2003.
Jay Carnley is the Unified Communications Technology Specialist for the Heartland District. Jay covers the states of Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee and is responsible for delivering technical expertise for the Microsoft Communication and Collaboration Platform. Jay has worked at Microsoft in the collaboration space since 1999, in both Microsoft Consulting Services (MCS) and Technical Sales. He started with Exchange IM, then worked on Live Communications Server 2003, Live Communications Server 2005, Office Communications Server 2007, and now Office Communications Server 2007 R2. Prior to working at Microsoft, Jay worked as a fiber optic engineer and technical consultant.
Jérôme Bernière is a Senior Program Manager in the Microsoft Office Communications Group. He works on large Office Communications Server topologies and deployments, with particular expertise in Voice over IP technologies. Prior to working in Redmond, Washington, Jérôme worked for Microsoft France, where he was in charge of developing the adoption of Microsoft Unified Communications. Prior to working for Microsoft, which he joined 3 years ago, Jérôme worked for Newbridge Networks, Cisco Systems, and Alcatel Reseaux d’Entreprise (Nextiraone). He has 10 years experience in telecommunications, including Unified Communications, unified messaging, contacts centers, interoperability, and data networking. He holds a master’s degree in telecommunication and computer sciences.
Michael Trommsdorff is a Principal Group Manager in the Microsoft Zurich Development Center in charge of the development projects in that center. Since moving to Zurich in January 2007, he has focused on the delivery of the Response Group Service functionality as part of Office Communications Server 2007 R2. Prior to moving to Zurich, Michael worked in the Office Communications Server team as Lead Program Manager in charge of federation, outside user access, and presence. He joined the team in November 2000 as a Program Manager and was responsible for a number of different features, such as Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI), Microsoft Management Console (MMC), Active Directory, and setup and content archiving in the first releases of Office Communications Server. Before joining the Office Communications Group, Michael worked on an in-car computing project with Microsoft and also spent time at Hewlett-Packard working on Intelligent Networks in their telecom division. Michael Trommsdorff holds a master’s degree in theoretical physics and in telecommunications.
Michele Martin is a Senior Technical Writer with the Unified Communications team. Michele has worked in the technical communications field since 1992, developing and managing documentation within the medical device, Web development, and computer software industries. She joined Microsoft in 2000 with the Exchange team, where she created documentation and tools for Microsoft Exchange 2000 planning and deployment. For the past three years, Michele has worked with Office Communications Server clients, including Communicator, Live Meeting, and Communicator Web Access.
Radu Constantinescu is a Senior Lead Software Development Engineer in Test on the Audio/Video Edge Server team. He has been a software engineer for more than 15 years, working on radio-telecommunication applications, Geographic Information Systems, smart card applications, online games, legal practice management software, Application Service Provider software, grid computing, and VoIP systems. He joined Microsoft in 2006 and became a Subject Matter Expert in Office Communications Server protocols MS-TURN and MS-AVEDGEA used in conjunction with Audio/Video Edge Server.
Rajmohan Rajagopalan is a Lead SDET in the Microsoft Office Communications Group. Rajmohan joined Microsoft in 2004 and has been working on various Live Communications Server/Office Communications Server projects, responsible for quality aspects of Office Communications Server deployment, Archiving and Call Detail Record (CDR), IIMF-CVC for Office Communications Server 2007 and R2 release, and the Archiving/Monitoring Server roles for R2 release.
Sasa Juratovic is a Senior Program Manager in the Unified Communications Group. He is part of a globally dispersed team ensuring that customers have the best possible experience when deploying and working with Microsoft Unified Communications technologies. Sasa is also principal author of Office Communications Server 2007 Best Practices Analyzer. Previously, Sasa worked as a consultant and trainer for a number of Microsoft Partner companies before joining Microsoft in 2001 as a consultant in Microsoft Consulting Services in the United Kingdom. He has more than 15 years experience in program management, consultancy, technical training, user support, and system administration.
Shahzaib Younis, Software Development Engineer, joined Microsoft three years ago upon completing a B.S in computer science from Iowa State University. He has worked on Microsoft Office Communication products since joining. In his latest endeavors, he has been working on designing and implementing protocols to enable rich voice experiences on mobile platforms. Prior to that, he worked on delivering VoIP functionality for Microsoft Office Live Meeting 2007.
Shawn Mahan, Program Manager, joined Microsoft in 2005 as a Support Escalation Engineer supporting Live Communications Server and Office Communications Server. In June 2008, Shawn joined the Office Communications Group’s Technology Adoption Program team, as a Project Manager, working to help enterprises deploy and validate future versions of Office Communication Server products. Prior to joining Microsoft, Shawn spent 10 years in various roles and endeavors supporting enterprises across the United States.
Stephanie Pierce is a Senior Technical Writer on the Microsoft Office Communications Server User Assistance team. Stephanie has been with Microsoft for 8 years. She worked as a program manager in the Unified Communications Group for five years and was responsible for various aspects of Office Communications Server and Live Communications Server, including MMC, Windows Messenger, Real-time Collaboration 1.3 APIs, as well as integrating presence and real-time collaboration into Office 2003 SP2 and Office 2007. Stephanie transitioned to the User Assistance group as a Senior Technical writer 2 years ago, and is the principal developer of the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Planning Tool.
Tina Fan is a Test Lead on the Microsoft Office Communications Server team. Tina joined Microsoft in 2000. Since then, she has worked on various Microsoft products, including Microsoft Exchange, Office, and Windows as a software design engineer in test and test lead. Tina has worked on Office Communications Server since the Live Communications Server 2003 release. Currently, Tina is working on the manageability aspects of Office Communications Server.
Vlad Eminovici is a Senior Development Lead in the Microsoft Zurich Development Center. Since moving to Zurich in November 2007, he has focused on leading the development team that delivered the Response Group Service as part of Office Communications Server 2007 R2. Prior to moving to Zurich, Vlad worked on the Office Communications Server team, joining the team in 2000. In the first releases of Office Communications Server, he contributed to the implementation of a number of features, such as federation, outside user access, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) authentication, and Web conferencing. Vlad Eminovici holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and computer science.