Brian Groth's Life at Microsoft

For the analysts out there who haven’t embraced PowerPivot and Power View in Excel, there is a great tutorial to help you get started: PivotTable data analysis using a Data Model in Excel 2013 . However, if you just want the finished spreadsheet, I have...

In the past, I have blogged on my 10-year , 15-year , and 17-year anniversaries at Microsoft. I just recently passed the 19-year mark and decided to share a picture of some of the stuff I’ve kept over the years that now clutter my desk. I’ve tossed much...

This is the time of year at Microsoft when employees put a bit of focus on where they want their career to go. For me, I’ve been thinking quite a bit about my career in sales enablement. I have to admit that I didn’t plan on this as a career, and I’ve...

Going back to the idea of Technopology , I’ve started thinking about how the idea of “Big Data” comes into play, because analyzing large sets of data about your customers and your industry can create useful insights for sales and marketing. There are...

In 2005, I received a patent cube , which is what Microsoft gives an employee for having a patent submitted. Now, I am proud to say that patent number 8243897, “Automatic Detection and Notification of Proximity of Persons of Interest” is now an official...

What strategy do you have to leverage Windows 8 applications for your brand? A few ideas include: A news reader related to your industry, which updates the live tile with the latest news that your consumers would care about. Think of baby-related news...

Microsoft has been busy releasing new technologies that a marketing technopologist should be interested in. Remember, I roughly define “marketing technopology” as tech+social for marketing purposes. Or to put another way, the technology and social capabilities...

I have been thinking about how to update my previous infographic resume and I’ve finally put the finishing touches on it. Introducing… the April 2012 version of my Infographic Resume:  

I have been doing quite a bit of cross-organizational work lately, and very much at a grass-roots level. I just ran across a book that summarizes the tactics I’ve been using, which all seem to be working well for me, so I’m sharing them here with you...

I often discuss brand strategy with people and since I also focus on social media, I usually end up explaining my point of view regarding how social media can be used as part of an overall brand strategy. I’m happy to say that we (Microsoft) are now going...

I write this blog post to share my experiences to curate content for my Tumblr account with the “ If This, Then That ” service. I use the service to repost items from Twitter, Google Reader and the Microsoft Advertising blog. However, I apply some logic...

Checking out the latest and greatest technologies is one of the coolest things I get to do at Microsoft. Not that it’s really part of my job, but since I love new tech, I make a point to try and keep up. One of the great ways to keep up is by attending...

Earlier today, Jennifer Creegan introduced People Powered Stories , which is something I’m proud to have been a part of the effort to bring it to market. It’s a new way for advertisers to incorporate real peoples’ ratings and reviews about their products...

At work, I focus on Microsoft Advertising. We sell ads that appear on MSN, Hotmail, Messenger, Skype, Xbox LIVE and so on. Anand Babu just posted a blog about using SkyDrive , which has all sorts of interesting bits of information and pointers to get...

Steven Sinofsky just blogged about Windows for the ARM processor architecture , but there are bits of the article that apply to any Windows 8 device. While I know that Windows 8 will run on every Windows 7 logo PC, I’m looking forward to new hardware...

I’ve been thinking about content, advertising and social media recently and have shared the following guidance verbally with a few people, so it’s time I write it down and share it. My guidance to get the most out of your content, especially if you are...

A favorite topic of mine is creative (and fun or useful) marketing solutions that are built on the latest and greatest technologies. Related to this, my colleague at Microsoft, Adee Wada, just posted a blog entry about how marketers need to create or...

Chevrolet and Microsoft Advertising (where I work) have created a great example of putting technology and social media to work together for a marketing campaign. The highlights for me include: Tech: The site has a nice design with integrated video as...

Microsoft (where I work) and our partner Shoothill just released a great example of bringing content to life with technology, while also promoting a product (a movie in this case). To see ‘The War Horse TimeMap Journey’ and follow the fictional horse...

Recently, I’ve been focused on looking into Social Advertising , which I define as advertising that helps an advertiser’s social media marketing efforts. Please let me know if you have some great examples of paid advertising that used social media in...

It’s May again, which means I’ve reached another anniversary at Microsoft. I’ve been working here for 17 years and I’m still having a great time! Two years ago, I explained some of the skills I’ve gained and roles I’ve had after 15 years at Microsoft...

What new technologies can you use for your marketing efforts or business solutions? That’s a big question, but one that the MIX conference is good at covering. I’ll be there learning about the latest and greatest technologies, so if anyone wants to meet...

(I am reposting this from my main blog since it is relevant to Microsoft technologies) While there’s an endless supply of technologies that can be used to engage and entertain your target audience with your online marketing, there are a few that are more...

Demystifying Technology (aka, you’re in marketing and not a geek) My day job at Microsoft is to roughly solve business and marketing needs with technology. Since I often add advertising, branding, and social media blog entries, I wanted to highlight the...

Microsoft SharePoint 2010 makes it easier to work together and  Eweek.com has a great summary of SharePoint 2010 , which is an important product for marketers for the following high-level reasons: Make Better Decisions: Connect it to your line-of...