You might think that over time, you get used to it. That after two years, opening the email announcing the results becomes a mere administrative formality. Well, I must confess: not at all.
It is with immense pride – and undisguised relief – that I announce my nomination as a Nutanix Technology Champion (NTC) for the year 2026. This is the third consecutive year that I have the honor of joining this group of passionate experts.
To be completely transparent, I never take this distinction for granted. In the IT world, technologies evolve fast, and so do we. Staying relevant requires work, curiosity, and above all, the desire to share. Seeing my name once again on the official NTC 2026 list is a beautiful validation of the efforts put into the blog throughout the year.
What is an “NTC”? (Spoiler: It’s not just a LinkedIn badge)
I am often asked if it is an exam I passed, like an NCP-MCI certification. The answer is no, and that is precisely the beauty of this program.
The Nutanix Technology Champion program does not just reward passing a technical multiple-choice quiz. It is a distinction that recognizes community engagement. Basically, Nutanix spots those who spend their free time testing, breaking, fixing, and above all explaining their technologies to others. Whether through blog posts (like here), forum contributions, or talks at events.
For the purists, it is the equivalent of the vExpert at VMware or the MVP at Microsoft. It is the validation of what we call technical “Soft Skills”: the ability to evangelize a solution not because we are paid to do so, but because we master its intricacies and we love it. It is a recognition by peers and by the vendor, and that is what makes it so rewarding.
Under the Hood: Why this nomination matters for the blog
Beyond the shiny logo to put in a signature, being an NTC has a direct impact on the quality of what I can offer you on juliendumur.fr. It is not an honorary title devoid of meaning; it is a key that opens interesting doors.
Concretely, this status gives me privileged access behind the scenes. I have the opportunity to exchange directly with Product Managers and Nutanix engineering teams. This means that when I write a technical article, I can validate my hypotheses at the source, avoiding approximations.
Furthermore, we have access to roadmap briefings and Beta versions. Even if this information is often under NDA (I can’t reveal everything to you in advance!), it allows me to understand the direction the technology is taking. I can thus better anticipate topics to cover and offer you more relevant analyses as soon as features reach General Availability (GA). It is the assurance for you to read content that is not only technically accurate but also in phase with market reality.
Retrospective and 2026 Goals: Full Steam Ahead
This third nomination is the fruit of consistency. But above all, it marks the beginning of a new year of “lab”. The goal is not to collect stars, but to continue exploring the Nutanix Cloud Platform from every angle.
For 2026, I intend to keep offering practical tutorials and field feedback. While the AHV hypervisor remains the unavoidable foundation, I really want to move up the software stack a bit more this year. Expect to see topics covering container orchestration with NKP (Nutanix Kubernetes Platform), automation, and probably a stronger focus on security with Flow. The objective remains the same: dissecting the tech to make it accessible.
A huge thank you to the community for the daily exchanges, and of course to the NTC program team (shout out to Angelo Luciani) for their renewed trust. It is a pleasure to be part of this virtual family.
Now, the ball is also in your court: are there specific topics or features of the Nutanix ecosystem that you would like to see me cover this year? The comments are open!
