FAQ on the Fabric User Groups

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We’re excited about the launch of Fabric user groups!  Our goal is to help you achieve more with your community through these Microsoft empowered user groups.  

Below are the most common questions we’ve heard from the community: 

What has Microsoft launched? 

New online tools to help you find, join, start, and run local user groups.  We are supporting the user groups with an administrative team and connection to local Microsoft employees around the world.

User groups are currently in public preview. They are free and everyone is welcome. You can join a user group or create your own by visiting Fabric User Groups.

What about user groups that already exist? 

User groups can operate on the Microsoft ecosystem and their current platform(s) to organize and host events. We believe the new Fabric community experience will offer you unparalleled features that will enable you to create and grow your user groups like never before. Our Fabric community team has user group coordinators who will be dedicated to assisting leaders and ensuring members have a great experience in group and event creation as well as other logistical tasks.   

Our Microsoft Community Program Managers will also be working more closely with our user group leaders supporting requests for speakers, topics, content, and more.

How is this related to Microsoft’s other user group offerings on Microsoft Tech Community (MTC) or Azure Tech Groups?  

Unlike MTC, this new offering solely focuses on the Fabric user group experience.  Microsoft Tech Community is a partner just like Microsoft Answers and Microsoft Azure Tech Groups.

Will you support user groups for all regions?  

Yes.  Our vision is to enable a thriving local community of users across the world so community members can network, learn, and support each other.  

What support will you provide for user group leaders?  

Our vision is a user group experience that empowers you to create and grow your community together with Microsoft, enabling you to:  

• Attract new members through exposure within the products that alert customers to local groups and events, on Microsoft community sites, and at Microsoft events. 
• Manage membership and events with easy-to-use tools and support from Microsoft product teams.
• Enjoy leadership rewards and connections with Microsoft.   

We will have dedicated user group administrators available via in-community private messaging and email for your questions and feedback. 

Additionally, we’ve developed a user group playbook (available via the Community Tenant - learn how to sign up below) and learning series with veteran user group leaders and our community teams to share best practices, templates, and how-to's.  

Access our User Group Leader Functionality support article for more information about being a User Group Leader. 

Can you provide customer lists so leaders can invite them to participate in our local chapter?  

Due to data privacy reasons, we can’t share customer lists. However, we plan to enable in-product notifications to help users find local user groups and events.  Leaders will be able to contact their members via private message in-community and on the discussion area of the user group page.  

Will leaders have access to Microsoft Teams to host virtual user group meetings? 

Yes, Microsoft Teams is provided as part of the Community Tenant offering from the Microsoft Teams Engineering team.  Register for your free Community Tenant today by following our "Accessing the Microsoft Community Tenant" support article.

Can my user group continue to receive sponsorship from ISVs/SIs partners?  

Absolutely. Continue with your partnerships as you’ve always done. We view each user group as an independent organization that can manage sponsorships as they see fit. 

I am a partner, can I have a user group?  

Yes, however, our code of conduct has language regarding using user groups as a recruiting tool or vendor sales presentations area. 

Will you support national or other “collections” of user groups (e.g., a top-level community with chapters)? 

Yes. Our focus is on empowering a large number of individual user groups. We hope leaders organize and collaborate with each other to encourage their members to succeed and do more at work. We will support leaders and identify the best ways to support them and their members.  

Will the User Group Administrator have resources for in-person meetings (i.e. booking conference rooms/meeting sites and hosting virtual meetings)?  

Our User Group Administrators will have access to resources, but we’re still working on the details. Our team will also be providing all user group leaders with a best practices playbook, templates, how-to's, and demos on how to best utilize the user group experience in our communities and also on Microsoft Teams.

Is there a Code of Conduct for user group participation?  

Yes. Microsoft wants the user group experience to be a respectful, friendly, fun, and inclusive experience for all participants. As part of the user group sign-up process, participants are asked to agree to the Code of Conduct.

Microsoft will not tolerate harassment or discrimination based on age, ancestry, color, gender identity or expression, national origin, physical or mental disability, religion, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations, and ordinances.  

If you have a concern or complaint related to your user group, first talk to your user group leader.  If that is not practical or does not resolve your concern, please contact Microsoft directly at fbccommunity@microsoft.com, which goes to our User Group Coordinator. You can also report concerns directly to Microsoft’s Business Conduct Hotline (1-877-320-MSFT or buscond@microsoft.com).

What can I create a user group for?  

User groups can be created for any of the following: 

Microsoft Fabric	Power BI	Data Engineering
Data Warehouse	Data Science	Data Factory
Real-Time Intelligence	Data Development	Databases
Fabric platform

If you need additional guidance on your naming structure, always feel free to reach out to your user group administrator.  

If you need user group related support, please submit your support request via our community support form: aka.ms/FabricCommSupport 

Launching the new user group experience is part of a long-term investment we’re making into our communities, and it is with your collaboration that we will create and grow together.