This guide is a collection of learning & training links, resources, and videos for consultants who build & run Business Application solutions using the Microsoft Power Platform and Dynamics 365.
I believe that right now, in 2022, the Microsoft Power Platform is everything. This is where it’s happening, and it’s time to double down and get those Power Platform skills solidified. It should be a top priority for all professional consultants in this space. We have seen how Microsoft brings each release of Dynamics 365 closer into the Power Platform stable, and I reckon in the next two years, mostly everything on Dynamics 365 will run natively on the Power Platform.
I put together this detailed article to help you find learning and training opportunities for Microsoft Power Platform and Dynamics 365 so that you can set new training goals for 2022. This article has the following main sections:
Table of Contents
- Your Microsoft Partner Network Association
- Discover & Explore
- Learn New Skills
- Prove Your Skills
- Microsoft Communities
- Other Learning Platforms
- Blogs
This article has many links to resources, and I don’t earn a commission if you click on them. I’m just sharing what I’ve found useful.
Your Microsoft Partner Network Association
Some of the links below are only available to Microsoft Partners. Please make sure your login account is connected to a Microsoft Partner before clicking on some of the links below. If you work for a Microsoft Partner, here are the steps:
- Log in to https://partner.microsoft.com/en-us/dashboard/mpn/overview using your work account (e.g., myname@company.com)
- Once logged in, click on your account icon on the top right part of the dashboard, then click the “My Profile” link.
- On the “My Profile” page, check the “Your learning” section and link your Microsoft Account (or Live ID) to both the Partner University section as well as the Microsoft Learning account. This is typically not your company email address. It would be a personal Microsoft Account such as myname@outlook.com. The Microsoft Account used here must be the same as your Microsoft Exam Transcript.
- You will be routed to another login page to enter the Microsoft Account login credentials you used to take an exam in the Learning Portal. Your Microsoft ID will now be linked to your organisation.
Discover & Explore
The resources below are relatively “high-level” introductory information. I call it Microsoft Marketing ?. It’s the 101 basics to get a foundation and broader understanding of all the technologies. The section that follows later in “Learn new skills” starts to go deeper into the nuts & bolts.
Here we go, here you can find new ways to give value to your clients and connect with the community:
- Microsoft Learn TV – This consists of a broad spectrum of technical topics. Stay up to date on the latest Microsoft news, features, and products by watching and reading digital content and reading blogs and news stories.
- Microsoft Build May 2021 Dynamics 365 On-Demand – A bit on the older side (what’s one year?), but some good content here before Microsoft Build 2022 arrives. Learn how to adapt and innovate with the only set of business applications to help your company achieve operational excellence and make every client happy.
- Microsoft Build May 2021 Power Platform On-Demand – Same as above, but this time learn how to work with the Microsoft Power Platform to solve problems, automate processes, and make virtual agents.
- Virtual Workshops and Training – Learn something new or improve your skills in these free, interactive workshops and training that you perform together in a group with other students. Click the “Search by topic” dropdown for Power BI and Power Apps topics. Remember to click “Apply filters”. ?
- Microsoft Transform – In this toolkit, you can demonstrate to your clients the value of Microsoft solutions. This set of tools helps with sales guidance, product information, demos, workshops, and even value calculators.
- Learning Journeys – To learn about upcoming training opportunities for Microsoft partners, check out these learning journeys to improve your skills and abilities. Check back often because new resources are added and made available regularly.
- Partner University – As they say, “A whole new kind of learning. It goes where you go.” You must be linked to a Microsoft Partner to access this training library. I found a catalogue of 30+ courses on Dynamics Online and Dynamics On-premises solutions.
Microsoft Business Applications Events and Webinars
- Microsoft Business Applications Summit – Explore the technology that will move your business forward, improve your skills, and connect with other people in the Business Applications field. Missed the last MBAS? Take a look at the on-demand content from the previous event.
- Microsoft Inspire – This is Microsoft’s biggest partner event of the year, where we “see how to do things you never thought possible”. Missed the last event? Take a look at the on-demand content from the previous event.
- Partner Network Events – When I checked, there were 711 Microsoft Dynamics events with 343 in the Business Applications area! Wow. Just filter for what’s coming up in the next 30 days!
Learn New Skills
Alright, now it’s time to dig a bit deeper and become more confident and better at what you do.
Make new friends with Microsoft and other companies by going to events, training, and workshops that happen online or near you. You can always use Microsoft Learn to learn job skills at your own pace with online step-by-step lessons.
- Webinars – Here are loads of webinars where you can learn about the technology that will move your business forward, improve your skills, and connect with other people who use Business Applications. Check back often for on-demand videos and information about upcoming events.
- Microsoft Learn – To learn at your own pace: Microsoft Learn lets you learn job skills with online step-by-step lessons.
- Microsoft Dynamics 365 FastTrack TechTalks – FastTrack TechTalks give technical and functional best practices and advice for people who want to use Dynamics 365.
- Cloud Skills Challenge: 30 Days to Learn It – The goal is to finish a challenge in 30 days while learning cloud development skills and preparing to earn a Microsoft certification. For 30 Days, you’ll learn AI, DevOps, Microsoft 365, *low code*, IoT, data science, cloud development and more. Then, choose your challenge, work through the learning modules, and talk with other people from all over the world in a community forum.
- Microsoft Official Courses with a Learning Partner – This depends on your learning style, but I know that some people prefer to get structured, high-quality learning from an instructor. Get in-depth, structured training with Business Applications experts. Find a learning partner or browse all instructor-led courses to get started.
- Microsoft Success by Design – I recently wrote a primer on the Microsoft FastTrack team’s excellent guided prescriptive guidance. See below:
- How “Success by Design” can help your project implementations – Check this primer blog on using Success by Design on your next Power Platform or Dynamics 365 project! There is nothing like benefitting from Microsoft’s collective experience of implementing thousands of real-world client projects!
- Microsoft Learn – Use Success by Design for Dynamics 365 solutions – Designed to help clients and partners get the most out of Dynamics 365 solutions. Success by Design is a prescriptive framework that solution architects should use during projects.
- Microsoft Catalyst – With Microsoft Catalyst, you can build, plan, and implement business transformation strategies with a proven, cutting-edge method. This planning and envisioning program uses Microsoft Dynamics 365, the Microsoft Power Platform, and the Microsoft Cloud.
- Microsoft Learn – Becoming a solution architect for Dynamics 365 and Microsoft Power Platform – The Solution Architect is in charge of ensuring that projects go well and meet the needs of businesses and technology. Here, you’ll learn about what it takes to start working as a solution architect and as an essential member of the project team. You will learn what a solution architect should do and how to help with the project at different stages.
Microsoft Business Applications Events and Webinars
- Virtual Training Series – Filter “Business Applications” results and I got 35 training sessions! These live, interactive webinars will help you improve your technical skills. They will show you how to solve common client technical problems. Attend a live session or watch a recorded one.
- FastTrack for Dynamics 365 – Partner with the FastTrack team to help clients get Dynamics 365 up and running and get business value more quickly. This Microsoft Docs article has a lot of information about talking to engineers and what to expect.
Prove Your Skills
Now it is time to study, apply your learnings and take the certification exams. The best way to show off your skills is to get a Microsoft Certification and study for your exam with help from these preparation materials.
- Microsoft Certification Poster – Ah man, this is an excellent overview of the certification paths, prerequisites, and exam requirements, all in one page. I love this poster! It is regularly updated, so check back often.
- Renew your Microsoft Certifications; they expire! – Microsoft’s role-based and speciality certifications expire if they are not renewed! To learn how to renew your certification, watch this video. It shows you how to do it in three simple steps. Pass an unsupervised, online test on Microsoft Learn to get a free renewal. The test measures the skills you need to stay up to date in your job, so it’s shorter than the original exam. Keep learning throughout your career, stay updated on technology changes, and stay Microsoft Certified.
- Microsoft Virtual Training Days – To get the most out of your time, go to an in-depth training event that will show you how to use Microsoft Power Platform and Dynamics 365 to better your career and organisation.
- Power Platform “In a Day” Workshops – You’ll build a functional Power App from beginning to end in this workshop. Learn how Microsoft’s Power Platform can help your business quickly and effectively by taking a one-day virtual class covering different workloads.
- Training Center – Microsoft products and solutions can help you improve what you do. You can take role-specific learning paths to learn more about them.
- Microsoft Official Practice Tests – Alright, so these cost $$$, but it’s not so bad. You get incredibly high-quality simulated exam questions, with detailed explanations of why each specific answer is correct or incorrect, with references to Microsoft Learn articles to dig deeper. They can be pricy, but I’ve found them valuable to build confidence and prepare for certification success.
- PRO TIP: Subscribe to the newsletter. The MeasureUp team runs regular specials to get huge discounts if you act fast!
- Exam Prep sessions – It’s back to the Partner University, but this time search “Exam Prep” to identify essential knowledge requirements and get suggestions on allocating study time with instructor-led sessions.
- Microsoft Certification: Fundamentals – These certification exams mix concepts and real-world learning that prove you have a good foundation in Microsoft technologies. If you get lost, refer to the Microsoft Certification Poster. Prove your knowledge in
- Microsoft Certification: Role-based and Specialty – Validate that you have the technical skills to do jobs that use Microsoft platforms and technologies and manage these solutions. Again, refer to the Microsoft Certification Poster.
- Certification Week for Partners – Certification Week is a virtual event for Microsoft Partners who want to show off their skills by getting a Microsoft certification. Certification also shows that you’re willing to use new technology, giving you an advantage when competing with other businesses. This is a free, first-of-its-kind, four-day event that brings together free training resources, expert-led study groups, exam prep sessions, and knowledge checks to help you get ready for your certification exam. Participants who finish the course and take the exam within 30 days will get a practice test and a free voucher for the exam!
Microsoft Communities
Get help from experts and your friends and develop your creative solutions. Grow your network of people who use the Microsoft Power Platform and Dynamics 365, just like you!
Dynamics 365 Communities:
Power Platform Communities
- Microsoft Power Apps Community
- Microsoft Power Automate Community
- Microsoft Power BI Community
- Microsoft Power Virtual Agents Community
- Microsoft Power Platform Communities
- Power Platform User Groups
Microsoft Communities
Other Learning Platforms
Take advantage of other resources to improve your soft skills and learn about Microsoft technologies. Build your Microsoft Power Platform and Dynamics 365 skills through these excellent learning platforms.
- LinkedIn Learning – Develop your leadership and business skills through self-paced learning. No matter where you are in your career or where you want to go, keep learning in moments that matter.
- Udacity – Here is a *free* Microsoft Power Platform Course built in collaboration with Microsoft. This course will teach you to make robust solutions that work quickly and easily with the Microsoft Power Platform. This course was created with help from the Microsoft Power Platform team. It will show you how to use low-code solutions for data analytics, app development, and artificial intelligence. You’ll learn many things about how to make a fully functional Android or iOS app in this course. You’ll learn how to make an app with a good user interface, use a data store to make it work, make a workflow with Power Automate, and use Azure AI Builder.
- PluralSight
- Udemy
- Microsoft Learn for GitHub – Fun, interactive modules and paths show how to learn about GitHub in a fun way.
Blogs
Below find a core group of bloggers that I follow. It’s not an exhaustive list, but please share in the comments of any great bloggers and community members to follow.
- Microsoft Dynamics 365 Blog – Filter blog posts for “IT Professionals” to get to the more exciting content, in my opinion! ?
- CRM Chart Guy by Ulrik B. Carlsson
- D365 Goddess by Dian Taylor
- Gill Walker
- Kurt Hatlevik
- Neil Parkhurst
- nz365guy by Mark Smith
- The CRM Chap by Joe Griffin
- Vicky Rodgers
Some portions of these resources were shared in various emails from Microsoft Learning. I’ve collected them all here in one place and added several from my own experience. I hope you found them helpful.