About
Articles by Heather
Activity
22K followers
-
Heather Cook shared thisI’ve always loved public speaking and interviewing people. In high school, I competed in Original Oratory on the speech team. I wrote seven-minute speeches about subjects that mattered to me, including censorship and reproductive rights, then delivered them as monologues. Years later, podcasts gave me a new way to have those conversations. Andrew Connell and Chris Johnson ’s MS Cloud Show stood out in our community. When I asked AC and CJ what equipment they used, they generously walked me through it. Christian Buckley shared advice, too. I bought a Zoom handheld recorder, and off I went. I recorded my first interview at ESPC in November 2017 with the brilliant producer Tracy O'Connell. I barely knew what I was doing, and I was nervous I hadn’t pressed the right buttons to capture it! That first recording grew into three seasons and more than 100 episodes of Mavens Do It Better. All episode are up on Apple, Spotify and https://lnkd.in/gjXg2P3k Now I co-host Mondays at Microsoft, with Karuana Gatimu every Monday at 8am PT and I’ve had the pleasure of being a guest on many podcasts. I still love the moment an interview reveals a story I never could have scripted. Happy International Podcast Day to everyone who has shared a story, asked a question, or helped someone find the courage to press record. (Obligatory guitar on wall) photo circa 2019 pre Covid #podcasts
-
Heather Cook shared thisJust a friendly reminder to #slay 💅 Here's the full episode: my cameo is around 1:10 🤩 this was from the one season of Ru's talk show back in Summer 2019. https://lnkd.in/gmWuJ4Sq
-
Heather Cook reposted thisHeather Cook reposted thisIt's that time of year again! The call for proposals is now open for The Microsoft 365 Community Conference. Submit your impactful, actionable, and battle-tested topics for a chance to present to a world-class gathering of the #Microsoft365 community. Next year in Las Vegas in May. Submissions close Oct 13. 🎰🎲 #M365CON https://lnkd.in/gVdAyhSr2027 Microsoft 365 Community Conference: Call for Sessions2027 Microsoft 365 Community Conference: Call for Sessions
-
Heather Cook reposted thisHeather Cook reposted this💎💎💎 A few hidden gems that I thought might have gotten lost in the flurry of product news today: - Copilot Search is coming inside SharePoint and OneDrive UX. This means the biggest refresh for content search we've done in years - with a focus on site owner search analytics & respect for search customizations alongside the AI-powered search experiences. (In Frontier Preview). - OneDrive is getting the same AI enrichment and workflows as SharePoint: Copilot in OneDrive also GA's on Sept 30th. - New in Copilot in OneDrive/SharePoint: site analytics reports, image generation right inline in libraries, and real-time metadata autofill (these available with Copilot Credits for Copilot licensed users). Check em out and give us feedback.
-
Heather Cook shared thisMy job title says one thing. The actual work is something nobody put on my business card. This week's Curler Report is about the part of the job nobody trains you for. #CurlerReport #Maven #BecomeTheExpertOfYourself
-
Heather Cook shared thisI expected 50 people. I got almost 400 people standing in the aisles. Eight years ago, I wrote a workplace culture presentation because I was angry, not because I wanted another conference session. This week's newsletter is the part of that story I've never told publicly: what happened when I actually walked into that room, and what it taught me about psychological safety, toxic workplace culture, and why "How do I navigate this?" is the question hiding under almost every leadership conversation I've had since. #WorkplaceCulture #Leadership #PsychologicalSafety #RespectAtWork #Maven #BecomeTheExpertOfYourself
-
Heather Cook shared thisBook two (well, three, since these are actually a trilogy) in the series: bell hooks' All About Love, Salvation: Black People and Love, and Communion. 💜❤️ I've read All About Love and Communion, about two years apart, and I'm circling back to complete the set with Salvation next. All About Love first, because you have to understand her definition before anything else makes sense: love is not a feeling, but an act of will. Intention and action, both, every time. That single reframe undid about a decade of things I thought I understood about love and clearly did not. Then Communion, because bell hooks was never going to stop at "here's what love is" and leave women out of the harder question: why is the search for it so much more complicated for us? She writes about women taught to over-give, under-ask, and call the exhaustion devotion. I emptied out my highlighter on these books. Sometimes you want to lay back with a book and be transported to comfort. These are not those books. These are books you read for accountability. For deeper understanding. Of the world. Of yourself. Buy the paperbacks. Underline them. Then pass them to a woman in your life who is doing the over-giving thing and calling it love. She'll know exactly what I mean. For more, I've written a personal essay about this, with a link to the Substack: https://lnkd.in/epvHAu8W What's the book that made you rethink what love actually requires of you? 👇 #BecomeTheExpertOfYourself #Maven #WomenWhoRead #bellhooks #AllAboutLove #Communion #Salvation
-
Heather Cook shared thisLearn about how to best brand your community event - excellent guidance and lessons learned from experts in event logistics, production and planning. 8am Thurs 9/24/2026 or anytime on demand on our Microsoft Community Learning YouTube Channel!Heather Cook shared thisTomorrow! Wes Preston and I will be chatting about all things Community event branding. Join us bright and early at 8 am PT. Find the meeting link at https://lnkd.in/gCmpFZ3U. #MGCI #MicrosoftCommunity #MicrosoftEvents
-
Heather Cook reacted on thisHeather Cook reacted on this𝗔 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹-𝗰𝗶𝗿𝗰𝗹𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁. 💙 A few years ago, I started my journey with Microsoft Student Ambassador. Today, I got the opportunity to share that journey on 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝗠𝗶𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝗼𝗳𝘁 from Student Ambassador to Microsoft Most Valuable Professional MVP. It was really special to look back at all the small opportunities, experiences, and people that shaped the journey along the way. Grateful to Heather Cook, Jonathan Jones, and Aaron Bode for having me and for such a lovely conversation. And a big thank you to everyone who has been part of my journey so far. 𝗦𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗦𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗦𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴. #MondaysAtMicrosoft #MicrosoftMVP #MicrosoftCommunity #MicrosoftStudentAmbassador #M365
-
Heather Cook reacted on thisHeather Cook reacted on thisSunny Days ahead! So thrilled to share the exciting news that we will be developing a feature film with Netflix AND four new seasons!
-
Heather Cook reacted on thisHeather Cook reacted on thisStage 1 of project retirement income 80% complete. Anyone for a cold plunge and log fired sauna? 😀
-
Heather Cook reacted on thisHeather Cook reacted on thisThis is Under the Sisterhood. An incredibly intimate and powerful stop on our Under the Sisterhood DocuArt™️ Tour, gathered in the home of our dear sister, Seema Vaidyanathan, MS, CSAP, last week. We watched. We listened. We talked. We shared. And we enjoyed quality time with each other. I left with a very full cup and so much gratitude. Seema, thank you for opening your beautiful home and your heart to us, and for bringing in your friends and for creating such a warm space to experience the Under the Sisterhood DocuArt™️ film and Under the Hood of Breast Health together. To my family, Georgia Blatchford, Dr. Chris Bastl, Rachel Elfenbein, Ph.D., Max Elfenbein, CFP®, and Sam Elfenbein, having you there meant more than you know. And to Dixie Lincoln-Nichols, MSEd, and Wendy Battles, SSAP, thank you for continuing to show up for this work, and for me, with so much heart. As we move from city to city, I keep witnessing something I never could have fully imagined when we began. The ripple effect. One woman shares her story. Someone else recognizes herself in it. A conversation begins. A connection is made. Someone else feels permission to use her voice. And the circle keeps growing. It doesn��t matter whether there are 15 people in a living room or hundreds in a room. What matters is what happens when we come together and truly listen to one another. My heart is very, very full. ❤️ #underthesisterhood #docuart
-
Heather Cook reacted on thisHeather Cook reacted on thisMissed my #MGCI Community Builders Network Call session on how we built momentum for M365 NYC before the event even started? From speaker videos and interviews to sponsor content and social media, we put a lot of thought into building community well before anyone walked through the doors. The companion post is now live on the MGCI blog, so check it out: https://lnkd.in/ebvtsNWg CC: Microsoft Community #CommunityLuv #CommunityRocks #MicrosoftCommunity #CommunityEvents #MVPBuzz #M365NYCCreating community before the event: Lessons from M365 NYC | Microsoft Community HubCreating community before the event: Lessons from M365 NYC | Microsoft Community Hub
Experience & Education
Licenses & Certifications
-
Power Platform Classmates 2025 Participation
Power Platform Classmates
-
Enterprise OKR Leadership
Ally.io, a Microsoft Company
Publications
-
Improve It!: Using Analytics To Accomplish More With SharePoint
Webtrends
Improve It! is a collection of essays from SharePoint community thought leaders about how to get the most out of SharePoint. It shares the latest thoughts on SharePoint’s continual evolution and how organizations can improve the value and impact of their intranet. With multiple perspectives from Microsoft insiders, leading SharePoint consulting firms, and industry luminaries, find out how using analytics to measure SharePoint for social, collaborative, and engagement enables improved ROI.
Other authorsSee publication -
The Yellow Wallpaper an adaptation of Charlotte Perkins Gilman novella
Rain City Publishing
See publicationA successful 19th century writer suffers from post-partum depression after her first child and is sent to a country house to recuperate from a "nervous condition". Charlotte develops an unhealthy relationship with the decorative wallpaper of her "rest cure" room. Despite her well meaning, yet controlling, husband's attempts to cure her, she spirals downward into madness. Based on the novella by Charlotte Perkins Gilman.
Projects
-
One Stop Shop Hip Hop Conference & Beat Battle
Experiential Manager of the Microsoft Technology Suite/Panel, live streaming of entire event (Beat Battle) and VIP experience for Microsoft client Arif Gursel. Hundreds of established and upcoming producers came to Phoenix, Arizona, to attend the annual One Stop Shop producer’s conference, masterminded by Sha Money XL‘s production and artist management company, Money Management Group.
The conference featured top industry professionals, platinum track making producers, and new…Experiential Manager of the Microsoft Technology Suite/Panel, live streaming of entire event (Beat Battle) and VIP experience for Microsoft client Arif Gursel. Hundreds of established and upcoming producers came to Phoenix, Arizona, to attend the annual One Stop Shop producer’s conference, masterminded by Sha Money XL‘s production and artist management company, Money Management Group.
The conference featured top industry professionals, platinum track making producers, and new technology trends and the infamous One Stop Shop Beat Battle and most importantly the industry workshops/panels. The Microsoft Technology Panel was hosted by Arif Gursel, a software test engineer in the Microsoft XBOX team. The producer panel lineup included DJ Toomp, Swizz Beats, the legendary DJ Premier, Hi-Tek, DJ Quik, 9th Wonder, No ID, Trackboyz, and Nottz. The work of Swizz Beats was honored during the event, famed for his unique production and his continuous ability to produce number one hits and Atlanta based Grammy winner DJ Toomp, known for his work with T.I and Kanye West.
Other panelists included; Shalik Berry (Def Jam), Conrad Dimanche (Bad Boy), Jean Nelson (Atlantic), Lenny S., (Def Jam), Wendy Day, Chuck Creekmur (Allhiphop), Bonsu Thompson, Julia Beverly (Ozone), Juan Madrid (Sony ATV), Maani Edwards (Universal Publishing) and more. Young Buck, Lil Scrappy, Kurupt, Outlawz, Talib Kweli, and Riz made appearances throughout the weekend. Worked directly with ShaMoneyXL, Kisha Scott and Arif Gürsel.
-
Cakewalk Exhibit - NAMM Show
See projectThe NAMM Show - Experiential Manager for Cakewalk (Microsoft music and entertainment partner) Management of Cakewalk's exhibit hall live theater, panel discussions and live streaming production to Cakewalk.com site. Client - Carl Jacobsen-Cakewalk, Dan Moore and Arif Gürsel, Microsoft.
Cakewalk hosted a week long live theater panel discussions, demos and presentations from artists, producers and tastemakers that we live streamed out from the NAMM Conference. Speakers included: DJ…The NAMM Show - Experiential Manager for Cakewalk (Microsoft music and entertainment partner) Management of Cakewalk's exhibit hall live theater, panel discussions and live streaming production to Cakewalk.com site. Client - Carl Jacobsen-Cakewalk, Dan Moore and Arif Gürsel, Microsoft.
Cakewalk hosted a week long live theater panel discussions, demos and presentations from artists, producers and tastemakers that we live streamed out from the NAMM Conference. Speakers included: DJ Johnny Juice, Producer, Turntablist, Grammy Winner, Public Enemy - 2013 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee, Martin Atkins, drummer and session musician for post-punk and industrial groups including Public Image Ltd (PiL), Ministry, Nine Inch Nails, Pigface, and Killing Joke.
Critical listening panel: Elliot Scheiner (5-time Grammy, Emmy, and TEC award winning producer/engineer), Terry Howard (3-time Grammy-winning producer/engineer for Ray Charles), Benjamin Wright (Arranger: Michael Jackson, OutKast, Jamiroquai, Justin Timberlake), Rory Kaplan (Executive Producer over 180 titles including for Queen & Sheryl Crow, keyboardist for Michael Jackson).
-
SharePoint User Conference 2013
-
Host event
Capacity: 1,000(JP)
Target: IT Pros, Developers, Project Managers from SharePoint Using or Deploying enterprisesOther creatorsSee project -
Worldwide Partner Conference- Content Manager
-
Managed content logistics for over 34 business tracks, including over 375 breakout sessions, interactive sessions and Value Keynotes. Developed content timeline, conference agenda and construct, space planning and content tools build specifications. Primary point of contact for over 60 virtual teams, led bi-weekly stakeholder meetings driving critical milestones, and liaison between the business owner team and vendor teams.
Other creatorsSee project
Honors & Awards
-
Top 25 International SharePoint Influencers 2019
Harmon.ie
Every year Harmon.ie recognize influencers and thought leaders in the community who share their expertise and help companies make the most of SharePoint. The 2019 top 25 international SharePoint influencers of 2019 were announced at The SharePoint Conference in Las Vegas in May 2019. https://harmon.ie/blog/announcing-the-top-25-international-sharepoint-influencers
-
Microsoft MVP - 2018-2019
Microsoft MVP Award Program
The MVP award recognizes outstanding community contributions in the Office Servers and Services technical community.
-
The CMO Club Presidents Circle Award - Marketing
The CMO Club
Heather was awarded The CMO Club President’s Circle Award based her demonstrated dedication to the mission of the CMO Club by building relationships with peer members, collaborating and sharing with members and helping new CMOs to benefit from the peer-based community conversations.
-
The CMO Club Rising Star Award - Marketing
The CMO Club
Heather received the Rising Star Award for her work on Microsoft Partner, AvePoint’s core message, brand and website and is based on her demonstrated capabilities in leading an organization, fostering marketing innovation and spearheading the growth agenda.
Organizations
-
IAMCP - Northern California
Member
- Present -
American Marketing Association
-
- Present -
The CMO Club
Member
- PresentCMO Rising Star Award - 2013 CMO Presidents Circle Award - 2014
-
PCMA
Member
- Present
Recommendations received
65 people have recommended Heather
Join now to viewExplore top content on LinkedIn
Find curated posts and insights for relevant topics all in one place.
View top content