The Biz Apps Classroom welcomes its first guest on this episode, Microsoft MVP and partner executive Vlad Sarov joins us to talk about the work he, podcast co-host Julie Yack, and others have been doing on a project to bring Microsoft Business Applications skills to adults in Ukraine through an ongoing series of training cohorts. The program follows Microsoft's prescribed Business Application professional skilling collection, but the team have taken the extra effort to translate the learning materials, adapt the guidance to allow for online interaction, and develop automated translation capabilities to allow trainers who don't speak Ukrainian to still help educate the students. Vlad and Julie share the program's history, the team effort that was required to launch it and keep it running, the outcomes for graduates, and how they hope to expand the training to more cohorts in Ukraine and perhaps in other parts of the world. Show Notes: 1:30 – Vlad's impressions of last year's MVP Summit 3:45 – Hatching a plan to create learning cohorts in Ukraine 6:45 – Translation technology that enables a multi-language program 9:30 – Why a program from Microsoft offered a good starting point for translation and adapting to a Ukrainian cohort 12:30 – Stories of some of the students 14:30 – The typical student experience each week 18:15 – Signups available for spring and summery 2024 cohorts – how to get accepted, what is expected of students, and how the trainers adapt to student needs like difficult circumstances 23:00 – Hiring people who complete these training cohorts – what Microsoft partners can do to help 26:30 – Industries that the students are coming from, and why industry knowledge helps 28:00 – How students are learning about the program and gaining the trust to join it 31:00 – What's next for this training approach – reaching more translations and languages Links & Resources: Ukraine training signup: https://365l.ink/UkraineSignUp Feedback and testimonials of students: https://www.bap-ua.sarov.plus/ Contact Vlad: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/vladsarov For more information about learning course, contact Dima Kudin Telegram: @DmytroKudin Mail: dima.kudin@dynamicalabs.com Linkedin: https://ua.linkedin.com/in/dmytro-kudin-0abb88239 Support the podcast and get a discount on an annual plan for 365.training by visiting https://365l.ink/MSDW. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=851G9NzHfaQ

This episode is sponsored by Vertex. Tax engines have a unique role to play in the performance of mid-market businesses. Our guest on this episode, Pete Olanday, Director of Consulting, Vertical Solutions: Retail, Leasing, Telecommunications, at Vertex discusses how implementing a tax engine can help mid-market companies streamline processes, enhance scalability, and ensure compliance in the face of evolving regulations. Pete discusses some of the biggest challenges that mid-market firms face related to sales tax and how those tie into other strategic initiatives like process automation, business expansion, and managing operational costs. Pete also offers context for how he sees Vertex clients aligning tax automation with their other ERP initiatives. He offers guidance for tax executives and IT decision-makers on what to expect from an investment in a tax engine and make suggestions about how to avoid common pitfalls that companies experience when trying to scale their tax solutions. From Vertex: Vertex integrates with Dynamics 365 Finance, Supply Chain, Business Central, Sales, and Commerce. To learn more about Vertex’s tax solutions for Dynamics 365, visit https://www.vertexinc.com/partners/microsoft-dynamics-365 or email us at microsoftdynamics@vertexinc.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zR8Uz_90NLE

When Dynamics 365 Business Central and Microsoft 365 work together, small and medium-sized businesses can boost productivity and redefine how work gets done. With data delivered directly to familiar apps like Excel, Outlook, and Teams, employees get the information they need without switching between applications. Leveraging next-generation AI with Microsoft Copilot, employees can further streamline routine tasks like drafting content, summarizing meetings, providing email follow up, and quickly finding answers to questions—all within the tools where they work best. Learn more: https://www.microsoft.com/dynamics-365/products/business-central #Microsoft #Dynamics365 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hU5-p6MHT2o