Get to know the Elastic Community series: Meet Manuel Alba

Manuel Alba is the organizer of the Elastic^® community in Chile. He is a civil engineer in Computer Science and Telecommunication. He earned a postgraduate degree in artificial intelligence and software engineering and a Master's degree in information technology. He is a lecturer and head of software development and architecture in the Vice-rector's Office for Information Technology at the University of Chile.

When did you first embrace Elastic as a technology?

I remember my first job after completing my undergraduate studies. I was hired by the telecommunications company, Entel, which was migrating from Splunk to Elastic, and I had the opportunity to be part of this project. In the beginning, Elastic was completely unknown to me, but from the first contact, I realized that this was the set of tools I needed, and I found it to be a system with great potential.

When I moved on to my next job, the first thing I felt was the lack of observability, a tool that had already become essential for me. Being able to have control of the observability of your applications 24/7 in a simple way is truly a triumph for quality service management.

Finally, when I started my career in university teaching, I felt that Elastic and its functionality were indispensable aspects to impart to students. I firmly believe that this was knowledge that should be taught.

Why did you decide to become a community organizer?

It was the year 2020, amid the pandemic, when I organized the first meetup with university students because I believed they should learn about Elastic. We managed to gather 122 attendees virtually, exceeding all our expectations. Back then, I was convinced that only Elastic staff could speak about these tools, and I couldn't imagine that just anyone could do it.

Ully (Elastic Community Program Manager) and Isaac (Elastic Sr. Technical Consultant) motivated me to create and lead a community dedicated to explaining how we can make our work simpler and more efficient with these tools. This set the groundwork for organizing a series of meetups and conferences held in Chile, Argentina, and Colombia, creating an invaluable learning and knowledge exchange space. This experience motivated me to continue with the Elasticsearch^® community in Chile, leading to my winning the Bronze Contributor award in 2022.

What is your most memorable moment from being part of the Elastic community? 

My most rewarding moments happen right after presenting at a meetup or conference. It is that moment in which the audience experiences a revelation, a kind of "Wow!" moment, understanding how easily their job can be done when using Elastic tools. At those times, various people come up to share their impressions and express what they would like to do and how they could achieve it with Elastic. Each of these encounters remains etched in my memory.

I remember, for example, my first conference in Nerdearla (virtual Conference in Argentina), which had an audience of 550 people; the JSConf (in-person event in Chile) with a packed auditorium; and the DevOps Confs (Colombia), where I did a live demo for 300 people. Each of those moments has become an unforgettable memory for me, fulfilling the purpose of the community, which is to be able to share knowledge with the community.

Why did you decide to join the Elastic Contributor Program? What were the most significant benefits you reaped from it?

Often, at meetups, attendees would ask about the next steps to take, what else they could do, and where they could find more examples. This constant interest encouraged me to create the community's GitHub. Here, people worldwide have contributed their projects, centralizing beneficial information for getting started with Elastic Cloud to how to get tactical. It was a great help during the DevOpsConf in Medellín. When attendees approached to ask how to perform certain tasks in Golang or Node.js, or how to install it on their infrastructure, I could show them practical examples and how to solve their specific needs. The Contributor Program is fantastic because it supports you and makes you feel that you have the backing of the company in your work as content creators for the community, and you get the recognition that you are doing a good job.

What are your favorite things about the Elastic community?

It is essential to emphasize that the community is built by and for developers. There is no underlying sales intention, and that's something people perceive when they attend our meetups or conferences. Often, participants arrive a bit shy to these events, but in the end, they leave impressed, having discovered that our goal is not to sell you software but to accompany you on the path to a simpler, more efficient, and high-quality job.

In our community, the focus is on sharing knowledge, experiences, and resources. It is a space where everyone has the opportunity to learn and contribute. Each question asked, each problem solved, and each new member makes the community grow and strengthen. It's gratifying to see how people, after learning something new, are willing to share that knowledge with others, contributing to the expansion and enrichment of the community.

Therefore, our community is more than just a group of people interested in the same tools. It is a constantly growing and learning ecosystem where every member can find support, inspiration, and the opportunity to contribute to one of Elastic's pillars: search, observability, and security.

Any final thoughts you'd like to share?

None of what we have achieved would be possible without the invaluable support of the Latam Community team, such as Ully, Gabi, and Alex. These individuals have been instrumental in our mission, providing all the necessary backing so that any community member can contribute with their experiences, teachings, and learnings.

Ully, Gabi, and Alex are fundamental in providing guidance and support to community members. Their dedication and commitment to the community are reflected in their efforts to ensure that anyone can share and talk about their experiences with Elastic.