Podcasts about microsoft fabric

Mike & Tommy tackle the growing tension between individual and team-owned Microsoft Fabric Agent Skills, exploring how BI teams should organize, govern, and promote skills without killing innovation or creating shadow BI.They break down the full skill lifecycle — from personal experiments to certified team assets — and land on practical governance guardrails that are lightweight enough to actually stick.Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

Build production-ready enterprise apps in hours, not months. Describe the app you want using Rayfin's open-source SDK with GitHub Copilot, and generate your full backend in code — schemas, relationships, and access policies included. Deploy to Microsoft Fabric with a single CLI command and immediately inherit enterprise data security, identity controls, and audit compliance already in place across your data estate. Connect your app's live operational data to years of historical records in Fabric from the moment you deploy, no pipelines, no data movement. Query across both datasets using a Fabric data agent you spin up directly on your app's data.  Will Thompson, Microsoft Fabric Principal Product Manager, shares how to take an app from idea to governed production deployment in a single session.  ► QUICK LINKS:  00:00 - Simplify backend complexity 01:20 - Home delivery service app 01:48 - Data analysis app 02:26 - See the build experience 03:08 - Copilot Generates Full Backend 03:47 - Authorization defined alongside schema 05:06 - One CLI Command Deploys to Fabric 05:21 - Create analytics app & add pages 06:31 - App Data Connects to Fabric Data Estate 06:55 - Conversational Data Agent on App Data 08:13 - Wrap up ► Link References Get started at https://aka.ms/rayfin ► Unfamiliar with Microsoft Mechanics? As Microsoft's official video series for IT, you can watch and share valuable content and demos of current and upcoming tech from the people who build it at Microsoft. • Subscribe to our YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MicrosoftMechanicsSeries • Talk with other IT Pros, join us on the Microsoft Tech Community: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/microsoft-mechanics-blog/bg-p/MicrosoftMechanicsBlog • Watch or listen from anywhere, subscribe to our podcast: https://microsoftmechanics.libsyn.com/podcast ► Keep getting this insider knowledge, join us on social: • Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MSFTMechanics • Share knowledge on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/microsoft-mechanics/ • Enjoy us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/msftmechanics/ • Loosen up with us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@msftmechanics

This episode starts with a recap of the biggest

Regelmäßig fragen wir unsere Kunden, wie sie die Zusammenarbeit mit ATVISIO wirklich erleben. Die Antworten sind ehrlich – manchmal bestätigend, manchmal unbequem. In dieser Episode sprechen wir offen über die Ergebnisse der Kundenzufriedenheitsbefragung 2026. Was läuft gut. Wo wir selbstkritisch sind. Und was wir konkret besser machen wollen. In dieser Folge: Warum 87 % unserer Kunden ausschließlich mit uns arbeiten – und was das bedeutet  Was unsere Kunden an der Zusammenarbeit schätzen  Drei Bereiche, in denen wir unseren eigenen Anspruch noch nicht vollständig erfüllen  Welche Zukunftsthemen unsere Kunden beschäftigen – von Microsoft Fabric bis KI im BI-Kontext  Transparenz ist für uns keine Marketingstrategie. Es ist eine Haltung.

In today's Cloud Wars Minute, I break down how DynaTech Systems enabled Solmax to turn operational complexity into global efficiency with D365, Power BI, and Microsoft Fabric. Highlights 00:03 — Today I want to take a bit of a dive into a specific case study: the story about the impact of digital transformation enabled by one company on the business outcomes of another. I love having the opportunity to explore stories like this because, as important as it is to discuss the technology itself, how it's implemented and what that implementation can lead to is just as critical. 00:41 — Solmax is a leading geosynthetics manufacturer focused on civil and environmental infrastructure, operating across four continents through 32 legal entities. This broad reach, although great from a growth perspective, was creating challenges such as data silos, inconsistent processes, and a lack of standardized reporting, which affected financial and operational insights. 01:08 — Beyond this, manual processes led to inefficiencies. Complex sales price calculations hindered productivity, and reliance on outdated Microsoft systems resulted in slower Power BI report refresh times. To address these challenges, Solmax had a core goal: the One Organization, One Data, One Reporting initiative. 01:52 — DynaTech has a number of solutions it will tailor to suit the outcomes of an individual client. In the case of Solmax, the company opted for its finance optimization solution. After process consulting, DynaTech enabled a greenfield implementation of D365 Finance and Supply Chain Management with unified processes across 32 entities. 03:17 — Beyond this, unified real-time dashboards enhanced global reporting, supported faster decision-making, and improved the company's audit readiness. Solmax was able to reduce freight costs, accelerate delivery cycles, improve truck utilization, minimize penalties, and shorten accounts payable and receivable processing times. Less manual intervention meant fewer errors. Visit Cloud Wars for more.

In episode 293 of our SAP on Azure video podcast we talk about data integration with our partner ASAPIO.As we had discussed in the past, connecting Fabric with SAP data is something that is used by lots of our joint customers. We have talked about the different options from SAP, from Microsoft and also from partners. Today we do another deep dive with our partner ASAPIO. Last year we had them already on our show and a lot of things have changed since then. Asapio was very busiy and they have been doing several integration projects with customers and today Jakob Vogelsang is here with us to share more. Find all the links mentioned here: https://www.saponazurepodcast.de/episode293Reach out to us for any feedback / questions:* Goran Condric: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gorancondric/* Holger Bruchelt: https://www.linkedin.com/in/holger-bruchelt/ #Microsoft #SAP #Azure #SAPonAzure #Data #MSFabric #asapio #SAPBDC

Mike & Tommy dive into RayFin, Microsoft's new AI-first product for building, deploying, and governing agents inside Microsoft Fabric, exploring whether this is a true shift in how BI teams work or just another layer of hype on day one.They break down what RayFin actually changes for semantic models, reports, and pipelines, tackle the real governance risks when AI can build and deploy at platform speed, and land on the practical first steps a Fabric team should take before turning it loose in their tenant.https://community.fabric.microsoft.com/t5/Fabric-Updates-Blog/Introducing-Rayfin-A-new-AI-first-way-to-build-deploy-and-govern/ba-p/5191676https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/microsoft-build-2026-building-agentic-apps-with-microsoft-fabric-and-microsoft-databases/Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

Mike & Tommy dive into CI/CD automation with agents in Microsoft Fabric, exploring how agentic workflows are reshaping deployment pipelines, whether AI-driven deployments introduce more speed or more risk, and what guardrails teams need before letting agents touch production workspaces.https://github.com/microsoft/fabric-task-flowshttps://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/fabric/cicd/deployment-pipelines/get-started-with-deployment-pipelines?tabs=from-fabric%2Cnew-uihttps://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/fabric/cicd/variable-library/get-started-variable-libraries?tabs=home-pagehttps://github.com/mattpocock/skills/blob/main/skills/productivity/handoff/SKILL.mdGet in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

Mike & Tommy tackle Microsoft Fabric hints to work faster, exploring whether teams are wasting time due to self-inflicted bad workflows, poor reuse, and confusing busy work with shipping value. They break down which repeatable tasks should be standardized first, when "just build it" becomes technical debt, and what practical Fabric habits listeners can adopt this week to stop the waste and start delivering faster.Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

This is episode 326, recorded on May 7th, 2026, where John and Jason break down the Power BI & Fabric April 2026 Feature Summaries — DAX user-defined functions are here in preview, Direct Lake is flexing new modeling muscles, the Dataflows Gen1 community drama has a plot twist, Fabric Data Warehouse finally gets true transactional DDL, and VS Code integration in Fabric notebooks keeps leveling up. It's the April feature summary double-header. For show notes please visit www.bifocal.show

In episode 288 of our SAP on Azure video podcast we talk about Real-Time Intelligence integration with SAP Datasphere.We have spoken already about  the combination for SAP data with Microsoft Fabric. We have partner solutions, native solutions from Microsoft and we also work very closely with SAP. One of these integration is with SAP Datasphare. When you connect Datasphere with Fabric Real-Time Intelligence, a low-code platform that enables you to ingest, transform, visualize and act on data as its generated you can now capture operational data the moment it's generated.Find all the links mentioned here: https://www.saponazurepodcast.de/episode288Reach out to us for any feedback / questions:* Goran Condric: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gorancondric/* Holger Bruchelt: https://www.linkedin.com/in/holger-bruchelt/ #Microsoft #SAP #Azure #SAPonAzure #Data #Datasphere #Fabric

Mike & Tommy dive into Building Agentic Tools for Microsoft Fabric With Alex Powers, exploring Microsoft's Alex Powers' new tool 'Taskflow Assistant' for Microsoft Fabric and how AI is transforming the way professionals work with Fabric workflows, discussing whether we're helping users master the platform or avoid learning it altogether.https://github.com/microsoft/fabric-task-flowshttps://community.fabric.microsoft.com/t5/Fabric-Updates-Blogs/Discover-items-across-workspaces-with-the-OneLake-Catalog-Search/ba-p/5176768https://community.fabric.microsoft.com/t5/Fabric-Updates-Blogs/Pipelines-are-evolving-beyond-ETL/ba-p/5177527Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

This is episode 325, recorded April 17th, 2026, where John and Jason dig into the Real-Time Intelligence section of the Microsoft Fabric March 2026 Feature Summary covering topics such as Business Events, DeltaFlow for CDC, real-time processing with Spark notebooks, and some welcome quality-of-life updates across Event House and workspace monitoring. For show notes please visit www.bifocal.show

Ryan MacDonald, country leader for SAS Canada Recorded on site at SAS Innovate 2026 in Grapevine, Texas, today’s In The Channel features Ryan MacDonald, country leader at SAS Canada, in a wide-ranging conversation about what the week’s major announcements mean for Canadian organizations – and where SAS sees its channel and partner opportunity growing. The conversation opens on the energy at SAS Innovate, which marks the company’s fiftieth anniversary, and what the announcement lineup – including the new SAS AI Navigator for AI governance and the expansion of agentic AI capabilities across the Viya platform – means for the Canadian market specifically. MacDonald describes Canadian enterprise AI maturity as strong in intellectual capital but still building toward consistent economic output, with the governance and trust framework a necessary foundation before organizations can scale. He draws a direct line between Canada’s regulatory environment – OSFI E-21 in particular – and the practical operational pressure organizations are feeling as model validation volumes have grown from two a week to multiple per day. On the competitive landscape, MacDonald addresses the challenge from Microsoft Fabric and Databricks with an argument about SAS’s existing footprint in business-critical decisioning layers – often invisible infrastructure organizations don’t always realize they’re sitting on, and an upgrade path through Viya designed to deliver incremental value rather than a rip-and-replace. The conversation also covers the evolution of SAS’s channel strategy, the managed services opportunity in a data sovereignty environment, and the MCP-based openness that is letting external AI agents call SAS analytics directly. Read Full Transcript Robert Dutt: Hello, and welcome to In The Channel from ChannelBuzz.ca, bringing news and information to the Canadian IT channel for the last 16 years. I’m Robert Dutt, editor of ChannelBuzz.ca, and your host for the show. This week, I’m coming to you from Grapevine, Texas, where I’ve been on the ground at SAS Innovate 2026. It’s a significant week for SAS Institute on a couple of fronts. The company is marking its 50th anniversary this year, and the announcement lineup has been one of the more substantive in recent memory, with major moves in AI governance, agentic AI across the Viya platform, and a meaningful shift in how the platform opens up to external AI agents and frameworks. My guest today is Ryan Macdonald, country manager [CHECK: title recorded as “country manager” – should be “managing director” if you want to punch in] for SAS Canada. Ryan’s been with SAS Canada for about a decade, and has just stepped into a role leading the country this year. He has a front row seat to some significant strategic changes – the move to Viya, the expansion of the partner and channel program, and now what I think is a genuinely important moment as AI governance moves from theoretical concern to practical operational requirement, particularly in Canada’s regulated industries. We cover a lot of ground – what this week’s announcements mean for Canadian organizations, where Canadian enterprise stands on AI maturity right now, the OSFI E-21 story, how SAS is thinking about its channel ecosystem and the mid-market opportunity, and a candid conversation about managed services and data sovereignty. Let’s get right into it. My chat with Ryan Macdonald. [MUSIC] Robert Dutt: Ryan, thanks for taking the time, and what I’m sure is a busy week for you. Ryan MacDonald: Yes, of course. Thanks for having me, Robert. Robert Dutt: You guys turned 50 this year, and it feels like one of the bigger product lineup announcements at Innovate in a while. Curious what you felt from the room. What’s the energy, what’s the vibe that you’re getting from this year at Innovate, especially given that 50 years of SAS framing? Ryan MacDonald: I agree with the energy you’re feeling. Certainly a ton of energy around our 50th and just what we’re seeing in terms of AI tooling and where we fit into that ecosystem. So lots of conversations about the data estate, how that’s evolving, and then just really looking for the reality check on where practical value lives in the new AI ecosystem that’s being framed around, especially for enterprise technology stacks. Robert Dutt: Look at the announcement stack this week. You’ve got Navigator for AI governance. You’ve got the agentic AI expansion in Viya, the various industry solutions. Curious – and I’m sure you’ve seen some of these before they were announced to the public and been following their development – what is kind of activating your Spidey senses in terms of, “ooh, that’s going to play well at home right now.” What are we seeing as sort of the big early day opportunities out of those innovations? Ryan MacDonald: Certainly in Canada, the regulatory domain around model risk management and model management and lineage and explainability is front of mind for everybody. I think that’s the major limiting factor in terms of proliferating cost of AI, in terms of actually calculating a per unit cost of running a model or introducing intelligence to something that was maybe traditionally rules-based. And so I think not only is there a regulatory driver, but people are seeing that as a practical constraint. So a lot in the governance and trust domain is certainly a hot topic. Robert Dutt: And that kind of speaks to where I wanted to go next, actually, which is you guys have been in Canada across verticals for a long time, obviously. Curious how you would describe the overall kind of AI maturity of the Canadian market right now. Are we kind of leading, lagging? Or is there something distinctly Canadian to it? Ryan MacDonald: Yeah, great question. This is close to home. We have the benefit of working with thought leaders in AI, folks like Ajay Agrawal. And just knowing the pedigree of intellectual property around this conversation in Canada, we have so much there. Of course, Geoffrey Hinton and Ilya Sutskever and the folks at U of T have just delivered so much to this community. I think that said, enterprise adoption and converting this into economic output is still something that we’re figuring out. So I think our investments generally, relative to peer groups around the world, we’re still a little behind. I think we’re doing some advanced things. There are some exceptions to this, where use cases are at the forefront of what’s being delivered globally. But generally, I think the data estate and this trust dynamic and the need for establishing a scalable framework for trust and governance – it’s a responsible thing to do. But relative to other geographies, it’s setting a foundation before we really run away with some use cases and deliver. Robert Dutt: One thing we’re tracking – I’m sure a lot of people are – is the idea of AI initiatives that get a start and a lot of fanfare and then fizzle out before hitting production or certainly proving their worth. I’ve heard a lot of the framing of the idea of trust and governance as kind of the growth driver, rather than the compliance tax. How is that hitting in Canada? And is that any different than what you’ve seen in terms of reactions and feeling and overall motion in the states or elsewhere? Ryan MacDonald: I think there are certainly differences in the tone of this conversation. For me, the purview is mostly north and south of the border – the US and Canada. But I think in Canada, we have a regulatory domain that is really prioritizing these things. So it’s not optional for a lot of – especially in a regulated market, this isn’t really a luxury you’d have to say, do I comply with this or not? But I think it’s also putting a per unit cost parameter on this for folks that is important. We’re seeing a huge proliferation of AI. Everything – your microwave, your lawnmower, everything has some sort of AI enablement component to it. Is it necessary? Are you getting the appropriate uplift? And these teams that are validating and pushing these models through the organization – what we’re hearing from them – this went from two a week, to a month, to two a day, five a day, ten a day. And so the systems – it’s not just a luxury or a question really of the ethics. Are we doing the right thing? Is this responsible? It’s a framework that’s required for the validation process, even just table stakes, to really scale through the organization. Robert Dutt: To that point, in Canada we’ve got financial services, and particularly we’ve got OSFI E-21 coming up. That’s pretty scary – things attached to it if you’re not hitting the bar. Are you seeing that create urgency? Or are customers still in a wait and see kind of space around that? Ryan MacDonald: I think the regulatory conversations there are interesting. There’s a lot of assessment of what peers are doing. And I think OSFI, to their credit, really listens to the community. Rather than setting a standard blind lead, just based on their intellectual property and what they see as being a requirement, they really listen to the community and measure from where everybody is, taking stock of that. So I don’t believe there’s a lot of fear and panic. I think organizations – as we did a lot of work around E-21 [CHECK: transcript rendered as “E23” – confirm on playback] specifically in this space – they were really well prepared. They had some ideas on how to make this more efficient, really focus on the materiality of where the risk lives and develop a framework that’s consistent with the risk posture in other domains. And I think that’s really – nobody was suggesting, “hey, this isn’t a good idea. This is too much pressure. This is putting a cost burden on us.” That wasn’t really the dialogue. Robert Dutt: Beyond financial services and other regulated industries especially, what are you seeing in terms of how customers are wrestling with AI governance right now? Ryan MacDonald: I think the scale of maturity across industries just varies so greatly. You have some organizations that are really just getting started, and they’re acknowledging that. In some of the roundtables we’ve had the benefit of participating in, some folks are trying to find their first step in AI. What does this even mean? They’re trying to find the right resources that can guide them. They’re still building their technology estate. And then, conversely, you have folks that are, as we spoke about earlier, leading the world – the global community – in terms of things like automated decisioning frameworks and integrating what were previously siloed processes. We see this in risk and fraud domains merging together. So I think we’re seeing both ends of that spectrum in Canada, certainly. Robert Dutt: Analytics has become a crowded space lately – with Databricks, with Snowflake, with Microsoft Fabric getting in there, all in territory that you guys have been in for a long time. How do you make the case to Canadian organizations that have been told, especially by Microsoft, “hey, you can just have analytics as part of what you already have?” What’s the competitive message there? Ryan MacDonald: Yeah, that’s a regular conversation for us, of course. I think what we really offer institutions, especially given the scale of the organizations we support – and we work in almost every major industry, every major enterprise in Canada – we offer a very different risk posture in moving through this process. So they may have what were traditional analytics with SAS. Maybe we had dabbled in what was previously BI, something like that. But for a lot of institutions, we support business-critical payload. There is a core application to their business that’s being delivered with a component of SAS. And oftentimes, as our relationships diversify across the organization, maybe we have a specific technology sponsor that helped build this alongside their business counterpart. Maybe they’ve moved on. And that decisioning layer is sort of obfuscated. So we spend a lot of time identifying – hey, is this what looks like ETL work potentially, in a report or an assessment that’s performed? Is this really a decisioning layer in your organization? And that’s what we’re really finding is there. And what folks are really interested in is taking that framework – what was previously identified as legacy SAS – and seeing what we offer in terms of Viya. It’s scaling far beyond what the competition can offer in terms of decisioning frameworks and automating process and delivering core value. A lot of the AI discussion is focused now on where are you seeing ROI? How long do we have to wait? What is the roadmap to finally get something out of this? And I think that’s really the core difference. Yes, there’s a lot of tools. It’s a crowded space. The competition is fierce and they can do some very exciting things. I think what we offer organizations is really the opportunity to do those same things and more, and to take your current investments, your current intellectual property, through that framework – which delivers value incrementally rather than a build within a complete new paradigm. Robert Dutt: One of the announcements that really caught my eye this week was the addition of the MCP – in that essentially you guys are opening up the analytics engine to external AI agents like Claude to call it directly. It seems like a pretty significant shift in terms of thinking about openness, thinking about consuming SAS from wherever folks want to consume it. What does that motion mean for the Canadian organization and for your Canadian customers? Ryan MacDonald: I think this is an extrapolation of what we spoke about earlier, in the sense of we are providing these deterministic decision frameworks to these organizations today. And so we talk about this almost in the sense of the Apple/Android paradigm. This was a previously closed ecosystem. The SAS code base was proprietary. The compute infrastructure was proprietary. And the open source motion was the first move here – running Python and R and other code frameworks natively within SAS is something that we’ve supported now for years within Viya. And it’s an extrapolation of this – meeting our customers where they are. SAS did not endeavor to compete directly with the frontier labs and build LLM models. But we certainly see the benefit – this is providing the market the productivity increase, the creativity of use cases, and what this adds to decisioning frameworks. I think the shortcoming is still the deterministic component, where something can be built in a hard and trusted capacity, presented to a regulator with the appropriate lineage. That’s really where we see these worlds coming together. So I don’t think it’s a great strategic decision if SAS were to impose, “we have one specific framework, one partner in this space.” We’re seeing, in addition to the frontier labs, a lot of custom work in this space as well – enterprises that are building more small language models around their data sets. So imposing this integration framework, I think, allows us to really meet customers where they are. Robert Dutt: A few years ago there was a flurry of things going on on the channel side for you guys. You brought on TD SYNNEX as a distributor. I believe it was a worldwide, not Canadian-specific figure that you were going for – 30% of contribution through partners. Where’s the channel scene at for you today? How would you characterize where you’re at against those goals and others? Ryan MacDonald: I think we’re still making progress in that domain. The channel business is still growing very aggressively. It’s a big shift to turn, frankly, in terms of getting the allotment of customers we had when we segmented what work was going to the channel, how that was going to be developed. And we compare ourselves to our peers in the industry – they’ve been at this for a lot longer. So just the maturity continues to develop. I think we’re seeing great progress, great feedback from customers in terms of the way that the channel is able to support them. And we see proliferation of niche players here that have come out of the woodwork that are very industry-specific. So I think that’s really the opportunity – where we had a general technology-based approach for certain industry segments, what we’re seeing is these channel partners can really tie together these business outcome-driven discussions in a way that was much more expensive and difficult for SAS to scale to. Robert Dutt: What does the community look like today in terms of scale, profile of partners, what they’re doing, and where do you see that evolving over the near future? Ryan MacDonald: I think we’re seeing this change very quickly with the advent of AI in terms of what use cases are being prioritized. I think in Canada, a lot of organizations have hit a wall in terms of understanding their data foundations – they’re not necessarily ready to scale them towards all the outcomes they’re seeking to deliver. And so channel partners are that domain. What are our peers doing? And this is GSIs and niche consulting firms and everybody in between. So we’re really seeing those conversations take shape of almost a reset of the roadmap, a reprioritization of how they’re building out their target state ecosystem. And that industry expertise is, I believe, the real differentiator. There’s a lot of competition. It’s a crowded space in that sense. So having an outcomes-focused point of view, whether that’s from SAS directly or a channel partner, is really important. Robert Dutt: Is the changing nature of what you guys are focused on in terms of AI governance and all those kinds of things that we’ve been talking about changing the definition of who you’re working with as a partner? Or is that something that’s likely to happen in the near future? Ryan MacDonald: I don’t think it’ll necessarily change. We might add some things to it, but they’re really part of the same conversation. I don’t think you can have a conversation about scaling AI without a discussion about the governance framework. And in a lot of cases, model inventory work, and just being the core platform of delivering models in this decisioning layer, is something that SAS had a lot of experience and an existing footprint within. So I think it’s really germane to the way we’ve been working with these customers today. Robert Dutt: How does the service mix – how they actually bring this all to market as partners – change as kind of what you’re going after changes? Ryan MacDonald: I think there’s a lot more consultative work right now around these outcome-focused and prioritization discussions. So I think it certainly is changing. And if you’re seeing this sort of increased competition in the technology domain and more commoditization of certain tool sets, it just puts more weight on – how do I really navigate? It crowds the pathway and creates more obstacles in terms of delivering outcomes. And so I think just refocusing on outcome-oriented discussion – and a lot of times these are deep partnerships between a niche consulting vendor, or somebody that now is a channel partner to SAS, and these firms in sectors across Canada. So it’s not necessarily changing the way we’re working with them. It’s changing the prioritization of the discussion, putting consulting maybe ahead of technology. Robert Dutt: Before we sat down to record, just as we were getting to know each other, you mentioned that part of your path through SAS Canada was you had managed services, at least for a while – and I believe that to be internally. How has that shaped, and how does this moment shape, how you think about working with partners who are in that managed services kind of motion? Ryan MacDonald: Yeah, that conversation is changing everywhere in the world. The political landscape, of course, is relevant here – in terms of we’re seeing some location dictate where customers are willing to send or host data. We’re seeing geo-repatriation in that sense. We’re seeing movement to the cloud change the dynamics of the cost model, what folks are seeing in terms of stable applications that don’t necessarily need the scalability or proximity to data. We’re seeing them pull some things back on premises and build clouds internally with OpenShift and other technologies. So I think it’s a cycle like most things in technology, where we’ve had the gold rush of moving everything to the cloud. And I think especially enterprise customers are now deciding not only how do they divide that workload amongst hyperscaler partners, but what is appropriate for internal clouds, which are now growing in popularity. And I think in Canada, we’re not seeing a huge disruption in this space, but we’re seeing a lot more of our business grow in terms of managed services. And as we talk about more outcome-driven engagements – less just providing raw access to the technology – the managed service really bridges the gap in terms of the various integration points that need to be managed along the way. And so it’s not just simply providing the infrastructure and application support. We’re seeing the managed service domain, especially around SAS – where this is not a one-size-fits-all approach – really extrapolate into “can we help you really derive your outcome” with expertise in either transformations of data, or we’re providing models now in terms of a service offering, in addition to consulting work of building models custom to each application. So that’s really evolving quickly. Robert Dutt: One of the trends that we follow a lot is this move across the industry to look at partners less as a direct, straight-through channel and more as an ecosystem – a lot more multi-partner engagements, especially given where you guys sit in the complexity and custom nature of a lot of what customers are asking of you. How are you guys thinking about that ecosystem, multi-partner play? Ryan MacDonald: I think the list of partners is generally growing as we talk about extrapolating into channel and SAS’s ambition to have, as you stated, 30% of our revenue flowing through the channel in Canada. I think the customer really dictates the specific mix. And so customers in large enterprise have a preference of GSI and specific domains. And what we’re seeing more is the introduction of niche players alongside GSIs, where typically that was binary previously. They would typically – let’s say they work with Deloitte or EY, for example – that would be their preference to continue in that direction. And now we’re seeing them want to leverage the scale those organizations offer, but really like the thought leadership and expertise delivered by a niche partner, and want to bring us all together. So we’re seeing a lot more partners enter the conversation, which I think is very healthy for the competitive domain and just in terms of getting to specific outcomes very quickly. Robert Dutt: The traditional sweet spot for SAS has been clearly enterprise, and Canada’s a very SMB-heavy nation, obviously. But a lot of the stuff that’s going on right now between the Viya SaaS model and the stuff going up on GitHub and the move towards managed services suggests that there might be even more of a mid-market play than before. I’m curious what you see in terms of what a Canadian reseller can realistically and credibly pursue right now. Ryan MacDonald: That has been the way the economy has been structured in Canada for decades, of course, and something that I think our channel strategy really celebrates and prioritizes. SAS – it’s hard to work both ends of the spectrum. And so our legacy of working with enterprise customers, to explore some of the topics we’ve covered in the regulatory domain and how that takes shape, the reach to SMB customers has been something that we’ve candidly struggled with at times. The channel is really the resolution to that. So we’re seeing, as we talk about more entities in this space, the mix of consulting partners or partners in general proliferating – that’s really where we’re seeing it, down more towards the SMB segments, less on the enterprise side. Robert Dutt: Acknowledging that there’s going to be a wide range of things here, and it may even depend partner to partner, but looking at the channel as an aggregate – what do you need more of from your partners right now in terms of areas of focus, in terms of opportunities to be going at, in terms of skillsets? Ryan MacDonald: I think because we are trying to aggressively pursue this market in Canada and service this customer base – which, again, the channel is just better suited for, all around – to me, it’s the feedback loop. That’s something that we challenge, of course, our frontline in an enterprise setting. You have a consistent flow of communication that’s bidirectional. We’re getting feedback on what’s important to them, what they are doing with the platform at times in our tool sets. And having that flow through an additional intermediary is an additional step in the process in the channel segment. But I think that’s really important – just to make sure we’re collecting feedback not just from channel partners, but direct from customers – their experience with SAS, how our channel partners feel in terms of support and enablement, pricing and mechanics and the rest of it as well. Robert Dutt: Curious what you see success at SAS Canada looking like over the next 12 to 18 months. What are the conversations you want to be having that you aren’t yet? What are the measurements that you’re looking at? Ryan MacDonald: We have been growing the business – in terms of revenue, of course, is always important to us – but influence in the market, I think, is something else. SAS, having such a – as we celebrate 50 years – our legacy is something we’re incredibly proud of. It’s afforded us the opportunity to build these great partnerships in Canada, all across the country, various enterprises. I think at times the double-edged sword there is they may equate us to the way they had built with SAS previously and don’t necessarily take stock of some of the things you’re seeing us bring to market today and announcing here at Innovate. So I think that is really what we look for – not just in terms of revenue growth and are we delivering more outcomes and scaling the progress with these customers. Are we really – are they delivering within the new framework? Are we changing the narrative in terms of what they see from SAS and who we are to them? Robert Dutt: My last and definitely most important question – how many dinners did you have last night? Ryan MacDonald: I had one dinner. Robert Dutt: One? One dinner. Oh, that’s an accomplishment. I appreciate you taking the time, Ryan. Thanks. Ryan MacDonald: Thank you, Robert. Really, really nice to meet you here today. Thank you, I appreciate your time. Robert Dutt: There you have it – Ryan Macdonald from SAS Canada. I’d like to thank Ryan for his time. This was our first in-person recording with the new setup, and I think you can hear the difference. And thank you for listening. A few things I’m taking away from this one. First – the AI governance story in Canada is moving faster than it might look from the outside. Ryan’s framing stuck with me: the volume of models organizations are pushing through validation has gone from two a week to five to ten a day. The governance framework isn’t a compliance tax – it’s the operational infrastructure that makes any of this scalable. And for Canadian financial services firms, OSFI E-21 isn’t on the horizon anymore – it’s here. Second – SAS’s competitive argument is more interesting than the standard “we’ve been around longer” play. The pitch is that there’s already a business-critical decisioning layer in your organization that’s been built on SAS. And the real question is whether you’re going to upgrade and grow from that investment, or build something new from scratch alongside it. For a lot of Canadian enterprises, that’s a conversation worth having. And third – Ryan was candid that the direct sales model doesn’t reach the SMB, and the channel is the answer. What’s interesting is where the growth is coming from – niche, industry-specific partners alongside the big GSIs, with customers already wanting both in the room. If you’re a Canadian reseller or systems integrator with deep vertical expertise, SAS is worth a conversation. We’ll be back tomorrow with more from on the ground here at SAS Innovate 2026, as we chat with the global channel chief at SAS Institute, John Carey [CHECK: transcript rendered as “John Kerry” – confirm on playback before publishing]. If you found this one useful, follow or subscribe to In The Channel from ChannelBuzz.ca. We’re on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and most of the major directories. Ratings and reviews are always appreciated and genuinely help other people in the channel find the show. Until next time, I’m Robert Dutt for ChannelBuzz.ca, and I’ll see you in the channel.

Mike & Tommy weigh in on whether Databricks and Microsoft Fabric are converging into direct competitors, exploring how Databricks' push into BI with Genie and AI capabilities is closing the gap on Power BI's presentation layer. They question whether "end-to-end" platforms are the future or just feature bloat, discuss where semantic models should live in a modern data stack, and help teams decide when to bet on one platform versus embracing the dual-stack reality.Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

This is episode 324, recorded on April 17th, 2026, where John and Jason continue through the Microsoft Fabric March 2026 Feature Summary — the Data Science & AI rebrand with Fabric Data Agents reaching GA, AutoML going GA, multimodal support for AI functions, the Data Warehouse section covering Fabric Data Warehouse recovery, Activator support, T-SQL AI functions, ANY_VALUE aggregate, Custom SQL Pools, SQL audit logs GA, outbound access protection, and the big one — the Database Hub, Fabric's new unified control plane for databases across edge, on-prem, cloud and Fabric. For show notes please visit www.bifocal.show

This is episode 323, recorded on April 16th, 2026, where John and Jason dig into part one of the Microsoft Fabric March 2026 Feature Summary — including the GA of OneLake Catalog Govern for admins, the OneLake Catalog Search API as an MCP tool, workspace tags going GA, DLP policies extending to structured data in OneLake, branched workspace with Git integration and selective branching, the new connection reference variable type, Fabric CLI v1.5 with one-command deployments, the Fabric Remote MCP server, OneLake File Explorer reaching GA, and the preview of Fabric Runtime 2.0 with Spark 4 and Delta Lake 4. For show notes please visit www.bifocal.show

Rachini Moosavi is the Chief Analytics Officer at UNC Health, an 18-hospital system serving the state of North Carolina. She's a first-generation American whose parents moved from Sri Lanka to Illinois. It took her until her late thirties to feel comfortable knowing exactly who she was, and that journey shaped how she leads today. Rachini started in consulting, fell into revenue cycle, and found her love of analytics there. She never planned to be a chief anything. Her career was a series of open doors she chose to walk through, and sometimes doors she had to make for herself by raising her hand and asking to be in the room. In this episode, Rachini talks about the Disney movie line that became her life mantra, leading UNC Health's sixth-largest Microsoft Fabric implementation worldwide, why vulnerability is a leadership superpower, and the advice she'd give every graduating class: it's perfectly okay to say "I don't know" when asked where you'll be in five years.     https://marxadvisory.com

In this episode, learn how to migrate on-premises Oracle Database workloads to Oracle AI Database@Azure, where Oracle database services run on Oracle Exadata infrastructure located inside Azure datacenters. Then see how, once your database is in place, you can modernize faster by connecting Oracle data to Microsoft Fabric for analytics and building AI experiences with Foundry, Copilot Studio—using familiar Azure tools. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:58 - What is Oracle AI Database@Azure 05:33 - Azure Portal experience 11:30 - Microsoft integrations (Fabric, Foundry) 14:00 - Agentic experience 15:54 - Wrap up & close Recommended resources Learn Docs Azure Product Page Connect Scott Hanselman | Twitter/X: @SHanselman Oracle AI Database@Azure | LinkedIn: linkedin.com/groups/14707004 Azure Friday | Twitter/X: @AzureFriday Azure | Twitter/X: @Azure

In this episode, learn how to migrate on-premises Oracle Database workloads to Oracle AI Database@Azure, where Oracle database services run on Oracle Exadata infrastructure located inside Azure datacenters. Then see how, once your database is in place, you can modernize faster by connecting Oracle data to Microsoft Fabric for analytics and building AI experiences with Foundry, Copilot Studio—using familiar Azure tools. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:58 - What is Oracle AI Database@Azure 05:33 - Azure Portal experience 11:30 - Microsoft integrations (Fabric, Foundry) 14:00 - Agentic experience 15:54 - Wrap up & close Recommended resources Learn Docs Azure Product Page Connect Scott Hanselman | Twitter/X: @SHanselman Oracle AI Database@Azure | LinkedIn: linkedin.com/groups/14707004 Azure Friday | Twitter/X: @AzureFriday Azure | Twitter/X: @Azure

En este episodio de Hablamos de SAP, Antonio de Ancos Cid conversa con Unai Pinadero, profesional de Enagás y actual tesorero y vocal de formación en AUSAPE. Unai comparte su trayectoria desde la logística en McDonald's hasta su rol actual como "funambulista" de SAP, manejando retos que van desde la gestión técnica hasta la arquitectura de soluciones.Exploramos temas técnicos de actualidad como la migración a S/4HANA 2023, la estrategia para disponibilizar datos en Microsoft Fabric y una visión crítica sobre la IA generativa, Joule y el concepto de Clean Core. Además, Unai ofrece consejos fundamentales para quienes desean iniciarse en el sector, destacando la importancia de la certificación, la necesidad de contar con una formación guiada y la valentía de "tirarse a la piscina" para aprovechar las oportunidades laborales. Una charla imprescindible para entender el equilibrio entre la evolución tecnológica y la realidad del mercado del empleo en SAP.Más info...

This is episode 321 recorded on March 3rd, 2026, where John and Jason break down the Microsoft Fabric February 2026 Feature Summary — including expanded workspace identity limits, notebook and Dataflow Gen2 improvements, new Data Factory capabilities, and enhancements across Real-Time Intelligence and the Fabric VS Code tooling. For show notes please visit www.bifocal.show

Send a textWhy Should You Listen? FABCON is where Microsoft Fabric conversations stop being theoretical and start getting real. This year in Atlanta, Hitachi Solutions is on the ground at Booth 545, focused on one thing: helping organizations turn Fabric potential into practical, measurable outcomes.To kick things off, we recorded a special, on‑site episode of Exchanges with Hitachi Solutions, bringing together a few of the experts you can meet at the booth—and giving you a preview of the conversations we're having all week at FABCON.Meet the voices behind the conversationIn this episode, host Matt Volke is joined by:Sree Reddy, Senior Data & Analytics Architect, who's working hands‑on with customers adopting Microsoft Fabric and demonstrating our Empower Data Platform—showing how organizations can simplify architecture, strengthen governance, and move faster with analytics and AI.Philip Rainsberger, Solution Sales Professional for Azure Solutions, who brings a business‑first perspective to Fabric adoption—helping teams prioritize initiatives, align stakeholders, and turn capability into real value.Carrie Smedira, Solution Sales Professional, who specializes in bridging the gap between AI ambition and business‑ready outcomes. At FABCON, Carrie is focused on helping organizations cut through the hype and zero in on where Microsoft Fabric and AI can drive measurable impact—quickly and responsibly.global.hitachi-solutions.com

SQL Server 2025 is released - what's in it, and what happens next? Richard chats with Bob Ward about the huge array of announcements coming out of Ignite around SQL Server 2025, including AI-related features, new reliability and performance options, engine improvements, and more! The tooling for SQL Server also continues to evolve, including making Copilot available through SSMS and as part of the SQL extension to Visual Studio Code. And there's more to come - have a listen!LinksSQL Server 2025SQL Server 2025 UnveiledSSMS with Erin StellatoSQL Server Management StudioJSON Data in SQL ServerManaged Identity for SQL ServerSQL Server in Microsoft FabricMirroring SQL Server in FabricNext-Generation SQL Managed InstanceMSSQL Extension for Visual Studio CodeRecorded January 5, 2026

This is episode 318 recorded on February 6th, 2026, where John and Jason break down the Power BI January 2026 Feature Update — covering the key report, model, and service changes, what's actually impactful, and how it fits into the broader Microsoft Fabric roadmap. For show notes please visit www.bifocal.show

Send a textThis episode sets the stage for Microsoft FABCON 2026 by spotlighting the people, perspectives, and practical guidance attendees can expect at Booth 545. Host Matt Volke is joined by Philip Rainsberger and Mark Shoesmith of Hitachi Solutions to discuss how organizations are approaching Microsoft Fabric today—what's driving adoption, where teams get stuck, and how to move from exploration to execution with confidence.Highlights:FABCON is where Microsoft Fabric conversations become practical—shifting from “what's possible” to “how do we implement and scale this responsibly?”Successful Fabric initiatives start with the business problem, not the technology, ensuring data and AI investments are tied to real outcomes.Hitachi Solutions' “thin slice” approach delivers production-ready wins early, avoiding proof-of-concept efforts that never make it to value.Common Fabric adoption paths include migrations from on‑prem SQL Server, SSIS, and Synapse Analytics into a unified Fabric architecture.Fabric is increasingly the analytics and AI foundation for Dynamics 365 customers, supporting both Finance & Operations and Customer Engagement workloads.FABCON attendees are encouraged to come prepared with their current data landscape, top Fabric goals, and key blockers to make booth conversations immediately actionable.global.hitachi-solutions.com

In episode 279 of our SAP on Azure video podcast we talk about SAP Business Data Cloud, Datasphere and Microsoft Fabric.With all the excitment about the SAP Business Data Cloud, I recently searched for the Microsoft Fabric and SAP integraton and found several older blog posts from Ulrich Christ, with 90.000, 115.000 and almost 200.000 views. So there is definetly an interest in integrating SAP data with Fabric. Because of that I am really happy to have Ulrich with us again to provide us with an update on the latest SAP integration with SAP Business Data Cloud, Datasphere and Fabric. Want to register for the planned preview for SAP Business Data Cloud Connect for Microsoft Fabric: http://aka.ms/SAPinFabricPrprFind all the links mentioned here: https://www.saponazurepodcast.de/episode279Reach out to us for any feedback / questions:* Goran Condric: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gorancondric/* Holger Bruchelt: https://www.linkedin.com/in/holger-bruchelt/ #Microsoft #SAP #Azure #SAPonAzure #Fabric #Datasphere #OneLake- 0:00 Intro- 1:45 SAP Data in Mircosoft Fabric- 2:00 Unifying data in OneLake - Shortcuts- 3:30 Cross-cloud mirroring- 5:00 Petabyte scale data movement- 6:25 SAP Connectivity Options- 10:25 SAP Business Data Cloud Connect for Microsoft Fabric- 12:25 What is SAP Business Data Cloud?- 16:00 SAP BDC Connect for Fabric - Bi-directional zero-copy sharing- 18:30 Mirroring for SAP via SAP Datasphere- 21:15 High-level Architecture - Mirroring for SAP- 22:50 Demo - Starting with Datasphere- 24:50 Demo - Looking at the Fabric side- 32:25 Business Process Solutions (Enterprise Insights)- 33:00 Introducing Business Process Solutions- 33:35 BPS Architecture overview and scope

In this episode, Mike and Tommy explore whether the traditional "Report Developer" role still exists in the age of AI and Microsoft Fabric. They discuss what skills organizations should actually be hiring for, how the role has evolved from pixel-perfect report building to semantic modeling and data architecture, and whether AI tools like Copilot are changing what we expect from BI professionals. The conversation challenges conventional hiring practices and offers practical guidance on future-proofing BI teams.Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

Mike & Tommy weigh in on whether Microsoft Fabric has earned the same trust as Power BI, exploring if it's truly dependable for small businesses and enterprises alike, and examining what trust even means for an all-in-one platform that's still rapidly evolving.https://x.com/gothburz/status/2019539563027247147?s=46&t=A8umCvjDNrtK_1gwT1T7qQhttps://hbr.org/2026/02/ai-doesnt-reduce-work-it-intensifies-ithttps://blog.fabric.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/supercharge-ai-bi-and-data-engineering-with-semantic-link-generally-available/https://powerbi.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/deprecation-of-old-excel-and-csv-import-experience-in-power-bi-service/Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

Mike & Tommy explore how central BI teams should structure Microsoft Fabric workspaces, weighing medallion architecture patterns against deployment complexity, and debating whether centralized control helps or hinders self-service at scale—while unpacking why AI adoption intensifies workspace governance instead of simplifying it.Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

This is episode 317 recorded on January 21st, 2026, where John & Jason talk about news that came out in January 2026 for Power BI & Microsoft Fabric in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center and some interesting articles on the Fabric Blog. For show notes please visit www.bifocal.show

Send us a textIn this episode of Exchanges with Hitachi Solutions, host Ginny Lebeck joins Matt Volke, Chris Satterly, and Mark Shoesmith to preview FabCon 2026 in Atlanta. The conversation explores why FabCon has become a must-attend event for data and AI professionals, how customer expectations around data have evolved, and what organizations need to succeed on their AI journey. Drawing from real-world client conversations and healthcare use cases, the panel discusses Microsoft Fabric as a unifying data platform, the importance of strong data foundations and governance, and how emerging capabilities—from low-code tools to advanced analytics—are enabling teams to move faster and unlock more value from their data. You can find Hitachi Solutions at Fabcoon Booth #545 March 18-20.Highlights:FabCon brings together customers, partners, and Microsoft experts to share practical insights on data management, analytics, and AI, with a strong emphasis on real-world business challenges.Organizations are increasingly treating data as a strategic asset rather than a byproduct, focusing on real-time insights, advanced analytics, and AI readiness.Microsoft Fabric is emerging as a key enabler, simplifying data ingestion, modeling, and curation while supporting both self-service analytics and advanced data science workloads.Healthcare organizations are adopting Fabric to modernize legacy, on-premises data platforms, reduce manual ETL effort, and better handle diverse and high-volume data sources.Tools like pipelines, copy jobs, mirroring, and Copilot-assisted development help small data teams work more efficiently and respond faster to analytics demands.Strong data models, governance, and curated information are essential prerequisites for successful AI and advanced analytics initiatives.Hitachi Solutions' presence at FabCon focuses on connecting customers with experienced data engineers, data scientists, and industry experts to help translate technology into outcomes.global.hitachi-solutions.com

This is episode 316 recorded on December 19th, 2025, where John & Jason talk about their predictions about 2024 & how they aged into 2025 and make their predictions for 2026 for Power BI & Microsoft Fabric. For show notes please visit www.bifocal.show

Mike & Tommy dive into Microsoft Fabric licensing strategy, questioning whether organizations actually need Fabric or are falling into the same over-provisioning trap as Power BI Premium. Drawing on Blake Edwards' client savings case studies, they explore F64 thresholds, hidden costs, and practical optimization tactics that separate smart capacity decisions from expensive assumptions.Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

Mike & Tommy dive into whether Microsoft Fabric's success is driven by AI innovation or if it would thrive on its own merits, exploring how AI investments reshape organizational data strategies and examining what "AI-ready Fabric" truly requires in practice.https://www.fintechbrainfood.com/p/ai-is-rewiring-the-economyNews from Today:https://www.linkedin.com/posts/josuebogran_i-have-an-nda-with-databricks-i-also-have-ugcPost-7415405540886908929-sJzF?utm_medium=ios_app&rcm=ACoAAAMKO8ABddLqKcwl4TmVJ-OO0d5Qdf3jSHQ&utm_source=social_share_send&utm_campaign=copy_linkhttps://www.linkedin.com/posts/marc-j-schmidt-957875110_all-my-new-code-will-be-closed-source-from-activity-7415115103953477632-rahG?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios&rcm=ACoAAAMKO8ABddLqKcwl4TmVJ-OO0d5Qdf3jSHQhttps://support.claude.com/en/articles/13345190-getting-started-with-coworkGet in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips](https://twitter.com/PowerBITips">@PowerBITips) with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips](https://powerbi.tips/explicit-measures-power-bi-podcast/">PowerBI.tips) Podcast Page.Visit [PowerBI.tips](http://PowerBI.tips): https://powerbi.tips/](https://powerbi.tips/">https://powerbi.tips/)Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: [https://www.youtube.com/powerbitips](https://www.youtube.com/powerbitips)Subscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVv](https://spoti.fi/3pyzcbJ">https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVv)Subscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎](http://bit.ly/applepbiemp">https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎)Check Out Community Jam: [https://jam.powerbi.tips](https://jam.powerbi.tips)Follow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/](https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/">https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/)Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/](https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/">https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/)

In today's show, BAILeY, your semi-sentient hostess with the mostest metadata, teams up with Frank La Vigne to welcome the ever-insightful Andrew Brust for a deep dive into the evolving Microsoft data ecosystem. From nostalgic tales of Windows history and scoring elusive Clippy swag at Ignite, to unraveling what makes Microsoft Fabric a game-changer for data integration, AI, and governance, this episode covers it all.You'll hear firsthand how Microsoft's innovation goes far beyond the tech itself—focusing on seamless integration, unified billing, and organizational synergy. Andrew Brust sheds light on the journey from fragmented Azure services to the unified vision of Fabric, the rise of generative AI and “agentic” intelligence, and the increasingly important role of data sovereignty and governance in today's regulatory landscape.Whether you're a data enthusiast, an AI tinkerer, or just in it for the nostalgia, grab your headphones and get ready for insights, laughs, and more acronyms than you can shake a dataset at. Stay curious and caffeinated—this episode has something for everyone!Time Stamps00:00 Microsoft Expertise and Industry Analysis03:18 "Big Data and Analytics Insights"08:31 Power BI's Rise in Azure12:26 "Unified Fabric-Based Data Platform"14:01 "Fabric IQ Powers AI Integration"17:24 "Achieving Synergy Against Odds"23:32 "Unified Compute for Seamless Integration"24:41 "Overwhelmed by AWS Complexity"28:21 "Microsoft Research Powers Azure Fabric"34:20 "Azure Foundry and Tools"37:33 "Flexibility Beyond Major Cloud Providers"41:33 Global Data Privacy Trends45:13 "Governance for Agentic AI"47:29 "Azure Stack and Local Clouds"50:13 "Kubernetes: The Cloud Caveat"53:40 "Let's Reconnect and Reminisce"

I came across a post recently on the Microsoft Fabric blog about the evolution of SSIS 2025..I hadn't heard much about SSIS in SQL Server 2025, so I thought this might provide some info on the investments that Microsoft is still making in Integration Services. I've run into a few people in the past year who are still heavily invested in SSIS and run packages daily. SSIS seems to be a technology that isn't even close to dying for many organizations. The blog starts well, delving into the security investments with the change to the SqlClient and TLS 1.3, as well as supporting Strict Encryption. I don't know many people using this level of security, but it's good to have SSIS support stronger security. There is also an upgrade for SSIS packages targeting Fabric Data Warehouses if they modify their approach. Read the rest of An SSIS Upgrade

Microsoft has announced significant changes to its Teams platform, set to take effect on January 12, 2026. The platform will automatically enhance messaging security by blocking risky files and scanning shared links for potential phishing threats. This proactive measure aims to protect organizations, particularly smaller ones without dedicated security teams, from increasingly sophisticated cyber threats. IT administrators will have the opportunity to review and adjust these settings prior to implementation, ensuring a smoother transition to the new security measures.In addition to the Teams update, Microsoft has decided to retract its previously announced limit on bulk email recipients for Exchange Online, following customer feedback indicating that such restrictions would create operational challenges. The company will maintain existing limits while seeking less disruptive solutions to enhance email security. Furthermore, Microsoft has acquired the startup Osmos to bolster its Microsoft Fabric platform with autonomous data engineering capabilities, aiming to automate data preparation and reduce the manual workload for IT teams.The episode also highlights the rapid growth of Ninja One, which reported a 70% year-over-year increase in annual recurring revenue, surpassing $500 million. This growth positions Ninja One as a strong competitor in the remote monitoring and management market, particularly as managed service providers (MSPs) seek to consolidate tools to improve operational efficiency. The discussion emphasizes the importance of accountability and risk management as MSPs navigate the complexities of tool consolidation and automation.For MSPs and IT service leaders, these developments underscore the need for clear communication and governance in the face of increasing automation and vendor-driven changes. As Microsoft centralizes control over security and data management, MSPs must adapt by managing client expectations and pricing for the support burden that comes with these automated solutions. The evolving landscape necessitates a proactive approach to risk management, ensuring that MSPs are prepared to address client concerns and operational challenges effectively. Four things to know today 00:00 CompTIA Signals Confidence for 2026 as NinjaOne's Growth Highlights MSP Push to Simplify Operations05:12 Microsoft Tightens Defaults and Expands Automation Across Teams, Exchange, and Fabric09:22 Dell Reverses Course on Laptop Branding, Reintroducing XPS to Reduce Confusion and Reset Its AI PC Strategy11:53 Artificial Analysis Overhauls AI Benchmarks to Focus on Real-World Work, Lowering Scores and Raising Enterprise Expectations This is the Business of Tech.     Supported by:  https://timezest.com/mspradio/https://scalepad.com/dave/

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L'IA conversationnelle, l'arrivée des agents intelligents et leur intégration profonde dans Windows 11 transforment l'usage du PC, entre gain de productivité, sécurité renforcée et protection des données personnelles.Interview : Xavier Perret, Directeur Cloud Azure & IA, Microsoft FranceL'IA devient la nouvelle interface : qu'est-ce que cela change pour les utilisateurs ?L'IA transforme profondément la manière dont on interagit avec nos appareils. Comme le dit Satya Nadella, AI is the new UI. Concrètement, sous Windows 11, la barre de tâches devient un point d'entrée intelligent : plus besoin d'ouvrir l'application adéquate, je lui parle directement. Je peux lui demander de configurer mon PC, diagnostiquer un souci, lancer un agent de recherche ou créer un document. Et avec les nouveaux PC équipés de NPU, l'IA peut travailler en tâche de fond : je délègue une synthèse, une enquête documentaire, et pendant ce temps je fais autre chose. On entre dans un modèle beaucoup plus naturel et productif, pour les particuliers comme pour les entreprises.Pourquoi cette nouvelle génération d'agents IA est-elle plus pertinente ?Nous sommes arrivés à un stade de maturité où les agents ne se contentent plus de converser : ils agissent. Ce qui manquait auparavant, c'était l'ancrage dans le contexte. Aujourd'hui, grâce à des technologies comme Microsoft Fabric ou WorkIQ, on réconcilie données structurées et non structurées pour offrir une compréhension beaucoup plus fine. Les agents deviennent spécialisés et adaptés aux usages réels. Je me suis par exemple créé un agent dédié à la randonnée sur plusieurs jours : il calcule mes itinéraires, dénivelés, temps de marche… un vrai assistant expert. Cette pertinence change tout dans l'adoption.Comment garantir la sécurité, la confidentialité et éviter les dérives ?La confiance repose sur plusieurs piliers. D'abord, la sobriété des données : n'utiliser que ce qui est nécessaire. Ensuite, un cadre clair : les données des clients restent leurs données et restent en Europe, dans des infrastructures conformes comme Azure avec ses régions européennes. Mais l'enjeu majeur d'aujourd'hui, c'est l'observabilité : s'assurer que les agents font bien ce qu'on leur demande, pouvoir vérifier, auditer, détecter un jailbreak, ou une tentative malveillante. Nous intégrons désormais des gardes-fous natifs, y compris des IA qui surveillent les IA, au sein de plateformes comme Foundry. Et nous insistons sur un point : ne pas tomber dans la surconfiance. Un agent reste faillible ; il aide, mais il ne remplace pas le jugement humain, surtout dans les décisions à impact.Ces évolutions sont-elles déjà accessibles ?Pour beaucoup, oui. Certaines capacités de Windows 11 sont déjà disponibles, et les nouveaux PC avec NPU débloquent encore plus de scénarios. Les outils liés à Fabric ou à WorkIQ existent déjà dans les entreprises. Nous ne parlons pas d'une technologie futuriste à 5 ans : c'est un mouvement en cours, que chacun peut commencer à explorer dès maintenant à travers Copilot et les nouveaux agents IA.-----------♥️ Soutien : https://mondenumerique.info/don

SQL Server 2025 was released this week. The announcement came at Ignite and the PASS Data Community Summit with keynotes on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. While there are some things to look forward to in the release (What's New) and some highlights from T-SQL Tuesday this week, it seems that this release wasn't a very exciting one. On one hand, I blame all the Microsoft Fabric focus, which seems to distract from the core product that powers the databases at many organizations.  The SQL Server blog from Microsoft has had relatively few posts this year, highlighting a few things. The Fabric blog gets more posts, which is something I've seen at Database Weekly as well. As I curate the content during my week, I find a lot more Fabric-focused content than SQL Server-specific posts. That contributes to a lack of excitement for a new version of SQL Server. Read the reset of An Unexciting Exciting Release

Unlocking Healthcare Data: Expert Insights from Jason Bryll of Parable AssociatesIn this episode, host Josh Elledge interviews Jason Bryll, Founder and CEO of Parable Associates, a company helping healthcare organizations harness their data for growth, efficiency, and better patient outcomes. Jason discusses how healthcare's complex data systems—spanning patients, payers, and providers—can be transformed into powerful strategic assets. The conversation explores modern data infrastructure, AI adoption, and how healthcare leaders can turn information into action.Turning Healthcare Data into a Strategic AdvantageJason explains that healthcare organizations deal with some of the most fragmented and regulated data ecosystems of any industry. With multiple payment sources, strict HIPAA compliance, and disconnected systems, many practices struggle to translate data into actionable insights. Through Parable Associates, Jason helps clients design robust, scalable data infrastructures that unify information from EHRs, practice management tools, and claims systems to create real-time visibility into operations.He highlights how modern tools like Microsoft Fabric, Databricks, and Snowflake are transforming how providers process and analyze information. By automating data pipelines, implementing AI-driven analytics, and empowering teams with dashboards, healthcare organizations can reduce claim denials, improve revenue cycles, and accelerate cash flow. Jason emphasizes that true transformation begins with data governance—ensuring clean, accessible, and secure data before layering on advanced analytics.Ultimately, Parable's approach is rooted in measurable ROI. From reducing days sales outstanding (DSO) to uncovering revenue bottlenecks, their systems deliver tangible results. Jason advises healthcare executives to start with a specific business problem—such as cash flow or patient scheduling—and build data strategies around it. “Better reporting is like giving staff a utility belt,” he says. “It equips them to solve problems faster and with more confidence.”About Jason BryllJason Bryll is the Founder and CEO of Parable Associates, where he helps large healthcare organizations transform fragmented data into operational insights. With deep experience in analytics, systems design, and healthcare finance, Jason has worked with providers nationwide to improve data quality, cash flow, and performance through tailored, scalable solutions.About Parable AssociatesParable Associates specializes in healthcare analytics and data engineering, helping medical groups, hospitals, and specialty providers build scalable data ecosystems. The firm designs client-owned systems that unify data across clinical, operational, and financial functions, delivering clear insights and measurable ROI. Learn more at parableassociates.com.Links Mentioned in This EpisodeParable AssociatesConnect with Jason Bryll on LinkedInKey Episode HighlightsWhy healthcare data is uniquely complex and siloedHow to build scalable, secure data infrastructureUsing analytics to improve cash flow and reduce claim delaysPractical applications of AI and modern BI platformsHow Parable Associates delivers measurable ROI through dataActionable advice for healthcare leaders and data teamsConclusionJason Bryll's insights...

Mike & Tommy dive into Data Modeling in Event-Driven Architectures, exploring how Power BI skills apply to Real-Time Analytics in Microsoft Fabric, and provide practical approaches for transitioning from traditional modeling to handling streaming data effectively.Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

Mike & Tommy are joined by Microsoft's Chris Schimdt on utilizing real time with actual applications in and outside Microsoft Fabric.Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

Mike & Tommy explore Real-Time Intelligence in Microsoft Fabric, questioning whether event-driven analytics is a genuine business need or just technical hype, and discussing how organizations can move beyond real-time dashboards to embed streaming intelligence into their Power BI adoption strategy.Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

This is episode 308 recorded on September 22nd, 2025, where John & Jason finish talking about the Microsoft Fabric September 2025 Feature Summary including the DataFlows Gen 2 Engine Overhaul and all that it entails, Connectivity updates, and Mirroring changes. For show notes please visit www.bifocal.show

Wow! we have a doozy of an episode today. Mike & Tommy ask the question if Microsoft Fabric the evolution of business intelligence or something different altogether. How should one position the themselves in the industry?Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

This is episode 307 recorded on September 19th, 2025, where John & Jason continue talking about the Microsoft Fabric September 2025 Feature Summary including the Data Agent improvements, Merge Transact SQL in Data Warehouse, new Real-Time Intelligence Features, and much more. For show notes please visit www.bifocal.show

Mike & Tommy rank the BEST features in the Microsoft Data Platform, from level 1 the TOP to what is essential to what they do. Get in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/

Mike & Tommy dive into the major updates from FabCon Vienna and what it means for Power BI & Microsoft Fabric users alike.https://blog.fabric.microsoft.com/en-US/blog/september-2025-fabric-feature-summaryGet in touch:Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitipsSubscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVvSubscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tipsFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/Follow Seth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seth-bauer/Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/