The geek in question: Mario Guzzi

The job title: Senior Test Lead, Microsoft Expression Blend

Tell me a bit about what you’re working on. I work on Microsoft Expression Blend, which is a tool that enables designers to build rich user experiences on top of different platforms such as Silverlight and Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF). It is Microsoft's first attempt to engage seriously with the designers of the world.

People haven’t always had nice things to say about Microsoft’s design values. Do you feel like your team is changing that?This is what gets me out of bed in the morning: the opportunity to actually give designers a new kind of opportunity. In the software development cycle, designers aren’t necessarily first class citizens, and our tools, paired up with the platform, enables them to become an active participant in the development process.

I want designers to be able to do the creative work that they want to on user experiences, and not be tied to the hands of a developer interpreting their work and trying to understand why different color schemas or fonts are important. I’ve started to see new jobs appearing — like a new set of skill sets for designers, new roles being developed that involve Expression. It’s super exciting to feel that you have an opportunity to build tools that will enable other people to do their jobs.

When you were nominated to be Microspotting, a team member described you as a rock star. What’s up with that? Well, I have two passions. One is software, and second is music, and I play in a band. So, we've been playing live lately. I play rock, but I’m not a star.

How do you integrate your musician side into your tester job? There are a whole bunch of musicians in the team, and we actually have this thing where on Fridays we get together in someone's office with a pretty good setup of mixers and mics, and we drink martinis and play cover songs.

So, you're telling me if I come by this Friday tomorrow there would be martinis and cover songs? Officially I could not reveal the undisclosed location, but yes somewhere here. Just follow the music.

How long have you been at Microsoft, and how did you get here? I've been at Microsoft almost 10 years. It's going to be 10 years in October. I got hired back in '99 from Argentina, which is where I'm originally from. I was just about to graduate, and I never imagined that I could get a job like this. I would have come even if it was to park cars; it didn't matter for me. An opportunity like this was not to be passed.

What’s kept you here all these years? The culture allows you not to be defined by your title. The impact you have is not defined by the level or the stage in your career. That's just kick-ass.

What’s your favorite little-known benefit? The Prime Card. You get lots of discounts, but one hidden gem is all the super fancy restaurants where you can get an entree for free. Every Friday is Prime night, and I go tasting all the different restaurants. Yeah, it's awesome.

What’s surprised you about working for Microsoft? The opportunities. When I look back, I could have never imagined that a South American kid that didn't go to like a big university could end up having a somewhat important job and the opportunity to make a change on a product that's making a difference. It’s just mind-boggling for me. And I think what I love about this company is that you have the opportunity to have an impact. And that surprised me, and continues to do so. As you change roles or you change teams or products, there are different opportunities, but the opportunity is always there, and that's something that I value.

Rock star links:

Product website: microsoft.com/expression

Team blog: expression.microsoft.com

Mario’s band: yetanotherenemy.com