Why Estimate Power Platform or Dynamics 365 Apps At All? – YouTube
Get a sneak peek into section 1 of my free Estimating Business Apps mini-course. Join Estimating Business Apps here: https://customery.academy/courses/estimating MY ONLINE COURSES 🚀 Agile Foundations for Microsoft Business Apps – learn the basics and benefits about adopting agile approach to building business applications https://customery.academy/courses/foundations 🏉 Scrum for Microsoft Business Apps – learn the Scrum...
Estimating Requirements for Your Microsoft Business App
129. Learn how to use story point estimation to estimate the relative size of your Dynamics 365 or Power Platform application's requirements.You'll also learn: How to slice user stories into the right size for estimation and developmentHow to decide on a standard user story for comparing other stories against when estimatingHow to use affinity estimation or planning poker to estimate the… Continue Reading Neil...
Using Story Points to Estimate Power Platform and Dynamics 365 Apps
128. My wife, Natascha, is a faster trail runner than I am. Find out why estimating trail runs in units of time leads to misaligned expectations about how long it'll take for us to run the same trail together. You'll also learn: What story points areThree factor's affecting the size of a requirementHow to account for Hick's Law and Weber's Law when choosing an estimation scaleThe two… Continue Reading...
127 Why Estimate Business Apps At All?
127. Do you really have to estimate the effort of building the Dynamics 365 or Power Platform apps you've been asked to build? If you work for a Microsoft partner, you probably do — unless you work for a customer who doesn't care how much it costs or how long it takes. Find out how I approach estimation: How much and how long?Why estimates are notoriously inaccurateEstimating time doesn't… Continue Reading...
Advanced Estimating Q&A
126. Thanks for all your questions about estimating business applications. In this episode, I tackle four tricky situations when it comes to estimating Dynamics 365 and Power Platform applications. Should we re-estimate items in our backlog after we’re done because they were easier or harder than originally expected? — TanikaIf we don’t complete a story by the end of the sprint, should we… Continue Reading ‘s Article on...
EY's PowerPost reduces lead times by 95%
#125. In this episode of Amazing Applications, Emil Hovgaard and Sheelan Bhana of EY Nordic Tech Hub share the story behind EY's PowerPost application and how it has made the General Ledger posting process easier and faster for the EY organization. Emil’s background and his role at the EY organizationSheelan’s background and his role at the EY organizationEmil’s favorite Microsoft… Continue Reading ‘s Article on...
Documenting Your Agile Applications
#124. When you're using an agile approach, like Scrum, how and when should you document your Dynamics 365 or Power Platform applications? After all, the Agile Manifesto says, "We value working software over comprehensive documentation", right?Before projects start, my teams document requirements in a product backlog, visualise the backlog in a user story map, and discuss the project during a… Continue Reading Neil...
“We’ve already changed the way that we’re pitching our solutions” – Conal Campbell, ITK Consulting – YouTube
Winning Agile Projects No Description Conal Campbell is the Director of Sales at Dynamics 365 consultancy, ITK Consulting, in western Canada. He was a student in the private preview of my Winning Agile Projects masterclass in March 2022. Learn what Conal had to say about his experience in this 5-week program. MY ONLINE COURSES 🏎️ Winning Agile Projects – my masterclass for Microsoft partners who want to qualify, pitch, propose,...
Sprint Goals for Microsoft Business Apps
#123. Learn how to use sprint goals to communicate to your stakeholders what your team has committed to building this sprint. If you can write your sprint goal in the subject line of the sprint review invitation to your stakeholders, and they stampede to accept your invite and beat down the door at sprint review, that's a great sprint goal.This episode includes examples of sprint goals for… Continue Reading Neil...
Can You Build an App Without a Product Owner?
Ethan is a scrum master for a Power Platform team and his team is trying to build an app but the customer's product owner hasn't shown up yet! What should he do?If your team's product owner is missing in action, in this episode you'll learn how to prevent this situation from happening, what to do to recover, and what could happen if you don't. Estimating Business ApplicationsI’m about to… Continue...
Stephen Price on his “Winning Agile Projects” masterclass experience – YouTube
MY ONLINE COURSES 🚀 Agile Foundations for Microsoft Business Apps – learn the basics and benefits about adopting agile approach to building business applications https://customery.com/foundations 🏉 Scrum for Microsoft Business Apps – learn the Scrum framework, get certified, adopt proven practices for using Scrum to build agile business apps https://customery.com/scrum MY PODCAST 🎧 Amazing Applications – interviews...
Power Platform governance at a global scale with Rene Modery
121. What's it like trying to manage 10 Microsoft 365 tenants with hundreds of environments, apps and citizen developers. Rene Modery, Power Platform Technical Lead shares his journey at global advertising company, WPP. Managing ten Microsoft 365 tenants for a global company with hundreds of subsidiaries.Power Platform environment policies and other guard rails to help makers.How do you know… Continue Reading Rene...
Defining requirements for complex Power Platform apps with Hamish Sheild
120. Hamish Sheild describes his five step Solution Mapping framework for using design thinking principles to define the requirements for complex Power Platform applications. Hamish has discovered Outlook's Board View and Neil is evaluating Motion for improving productivity.AppRising's Solution Mapping FrameworkWhat is a complex application?Observing users in their environmentCustomer journey… Continue Reading Hamish...
Hamish Sheild, AppRising – Winning Agile Projects testimonial – YouTube
Winning Agile Projects Welcome to Customery. My mission is to help everyone use the Scrum framework to successfully implement Microsoft Business Applications. That’s why I created the Scrum for Microsoft Business Apps course, as well as my blog and podcast. I started using the Scrum framework to implement Microsoft Dynamics CRM in 2008. Hamish Shield is a Microsoft Business Apps MVP and director of Power Platform consultancy,...
Power Portals and beyond with Ulrikke Akerbæk
118. Ulrikke Akerbæk joins to discuss what's new with Power Apps Portals (if that's what they're still called by the time you're listening!). Discover some of the goodies Microsoft has been releasing for professional developers building portal apps and which portal template Ulrikke uses for almost every portals project.Ulrikke is the Low Code Platform Lead at Itera in Norway and has been a… Continue Reading...
Hamish Shield – Winning Agile Projects testimonial – YouTube
Winning Agile Projects Welcome to Customery. My mission is to help everyone use the Scrum framework to successfully implement Microsoft Business Applications. That’s why I created the Scrum for Microsoft Business Apps course, as well as my blog and podcast. I started using the Scrum framework to implement Microsoft Dynamics CRM in 2008. Hamish Shield is a Microsoft Business Apps MVP and director of Power Platform consultancy,...
Answer These Five Questions Before You Build Anything with Chike Eduputa
117. Chike Eduputa challenges citizen developers (and professional developers) to ask themselves five critical questions before building their next Power Platform or Dynamics 365 app. Chike Eduputa is a senior manager at Capgemini Invent in London where he specialises in digital strategy and transformation. He's presenting at Scottish Summit on 9 June with the topic "Build what matters:… Continue Reading Chike...
Six challenges of enterprise Dynamics 365 projects with Andrew Bibby and Dani Kahil
#116. Dani Kahil interviews Andrew Bibby about a pivotal, multi-year Dynamics 365 business transformation project in financial services. Dani Kahil and Andrew Bibby are both Microsoft Business Applications MVPs. Dani is an independent consultant and online trainer specialising in requirements analysis and solution envisioning. Andrew Bibby is a founder of Proximo 3, a Microsoft training and… Continue Reading Andrew Bibby, Dani...
Application Eggs and Change Chickens with Angeliki Patsiavou
#115. Angeliki Patsiavou is on a mission to help Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Power Platform application development teams introduce professional change managers to their projects from inception instead of deferring it until near the end.Angeliki is a senior consultant at Avanade, specialising in change management, and has a background as a change manager at HSBC and a digital marketer.Join us… Continue Reading Neil Benson’s...
Personalise Your Customer Experience with Dynamics 365 with Guro Faller and Tricia Sinclair
I'm joined by Microsoft MVPs Guro Faller and Tricia Sinclair. Guro and Tricia are presenting at Scottish Summit in Glasgow in June. Their presentation is "Personalize Your Customer Experience with Dynamics 365". It's going to be a showcase of the art of the possible with Dynamics 365 Marketing, Customer Insights, and Omni-channel for Customer Service. GuestsTricia Sinclair is a customer… Continue Reading Guro...
From the Basement to the Cloud with Vivian Voss
#113. Vivian Voss joins me to discuss her upcoming Scottish Summit session, From the Basement to the Cloud – Your Journey from CRM on-premises to Dynamics 365 CE.Register today for Scottish Summit.Congratulations to Yacob Shenkute from Power Platform School for achieving his Scrum.org PSM1 certification.Resources Vivian Voss on LinkedIn Vivian Voss on TwitterVivian's blogCustomer Experience… Continue Reading Vivian...
Power Platform at the heart of Scotland’s new recycling scheme
#112. Dani Kahil interviews Paddy Byrne about the Power Platform's role in enabling Scotland's new recycling scheme for single-use drinking containers.Scots people are famous for being careful with their money so I imagine any program to pay them for recycling containers was always going to be a big hit.Learn about Paddy's Power Platform team: Meeting public-sector's accessibility and security… Continue...
How many teams can a Scrum Master master? – YouTube
Imagine going for a job interview with a Microsoft partner, and the hiring manager asks, “How many Dynamics 365 or Power Platform scrum teams could you coach at once?” How would you answer that? Or what follow-up questions would you ask? Find out how I’d answer that with three possible responses: the sports analogy response, the calendar logistics response, and the blunt — you can stick you scrum master job...
Start Here: How to Build Amazing Apps
#111. Start here to learn why, when and how to use an agile approach to build Dynamics 365 and Power Platform applications.In this episode, you'll learn: Why I use an agile approach building Dynamics 365 and Power AppWhen an agile approach is suitable and when it's notThe benefits that Microsoft customers and partners experience using an agile approachWhat agile actually means, the history of… Continue Reading Neil...
Welcome to Winning Agile Projects – YouTube
Apply today: https://customery.academy/courses/winning Winning Agile Projects is my masterclass for sales, pre-sales and discovery teams with Microsoft partners that want to learn how to pitch, propose and close more agile Dynamics 365 and Power Platform projects. Winning Agile Projects is a five-week masterclass that uses a combination of pre-recorded video lessons, coursework and live workshops to help you: 1. Learn how to quality...
Welcome to Scrum for Microsoft Business Apps – YouTube
Join today: https://customery.com/scrum Scrum for Microsoft Business Apps is my online course for Microsoft partners and customers building Dynamics 365 and Power Platform applications that want to learn the Scrum framework. Using Scrum, your teams will be able to slash their project budgets, shrink their delivery timelines, mitigate technical risks and have a lot more fun building business apps that everyone will love. Scrum for...
Welcome to Agile Foundations for Microsoft Business Apps – YouTube
Join here for free: https://customery.com/foundations One thing I’ve learned after coaching thousands of Dynamics 365 and Power Platform app builders: those looking for an agile approach, all have a different definition of what AGILE is and means. What is agile? How can we build Dynamics 365, Power Apps and Power BI using an agile approach? That’s why I created a free mini-course, Agile Foundations for Microsoft Business...
Testing Heaven: When should we test agile apps?
#110. My current team is stuck in Limbo. We've finished development of a Dynamics 365 application for a local government department and we're tapping our fingers waiting for acceptance testing to start. What should agile testing look like on a Dynamics 365 or Power Platform project? I describe my agile testing Heaven, and the next best thing, Elysium. And what it's like to be stuck in Limbo.<br… Continue...
Use this technique to manage scrum team dependencies – from Nexus scaling framework – YouTube
Have you ever struggled with cross-team dependencies when multiple teams are working on a Dynamics 365 or Power Apps application? Find out how I use a cross-team refinement board (a technique from the Nexus scaling framework for Scrum) to visualise dependent features and help my product owner keep her sanity. RESOURCES (these may include affiliates links) âžż Nexus Guide from Scrum.org |...
Use this technique to manage scrum team dependencies – from Nexus scaling framework – YouTube
Have you ever struggled with cross-team dependencies when multiple teams are working on a Dynamics 365 or Power Apps application? Find out how I use a cross-team refinement board (a technique from the Nexus scaling framework for Scrum) to visualise dependent features and help my product owner keep her sanity. MY ONLINE COURSES 🚀 Agile Foundations for Microsoft Business Apps – learn the basics and benefits about adopting agile...
Is this the most beautiful sit-stand desk for a home studio ever designed? – YouTube
What do you think of my sit-stand spider desk home studio? The spider desk, designed by Pete Coombes, comprises of twelve plywood sections that slot together without screws, nails or glue to form what I think is the most beautiful desk in the world. I’ve been on a mission for the past five years to build my perfect home studio around it. The Spider Desk Designer Pete Coombes https://www.linkedin.com/in/pete-coombes-0506781a/...
Enterprise CRM with scaled Scrum at RACQ
#109. In this special episode, I'm interviewed by Dani Kahil about my experience delivering an enterprise CRM project at RACQ (the Royal Automobile Club of Queensland). RACQ is a membership organisation serving two million people in Queensland with roadside assistance, insurance and banking services. In 2018, they set out to replace two legacy systems with Dynamics 365 Customer Service and… Continue Reading Neil Benson and...
Can you combine Product Owner-Scrum Master or Product Owner-Developer roles in a Business Apps team? – YouTube
Can you be the product owner and scrum master or product owner and developer at the same time when you’re building Dynamics 365 or Power Platform applications? 00:00 Can you be the product owner and scrum master or developer? 00:39 Why I don’t recommend product owner combo roles 02:33 Tension between a home owner, architect, builder MY ONLINE COURSES 🚀 Agile Foundations for Microsoft Business Apps – learn the basics...
Behind the scenes of Amazing Applications
108. If you're considering starting a Dynamics 365 or Power Platform podcast in 2022, or just wonder what's involved in producing a podcast episode, join me for a behind the scenes look at my four step episode production process.If you have any questions about starting a business apps podcast, I'd love to do my best to help. Email me at amazingapps@customery.com. ResourcesSome of these… Continue Reading Neil...
Should Microsoft partners include customer developers in their teams? – YouTube
If you’re a Microsoft partner, is it a good idea to include your customer’s developers in your Scrum team? Will it increase your velocity or drag it down? What if your customer insists on a joint development team? 00:00 Can a Microsoft partner’s scrum team work with customer’s developers? 00:45 Story of a partner that refused to work with her customers developers 03:04 Why did this partner refuse to work with...
Product Backlog Refinement: Who's Involved? (And Why!)
#106. You and the Microsoft Business Apps product owner are on Teams going through the product backlog. You two are working on it together because that’s how it has always been done. And yet, when you look back at the last few sprints, you realize that is not getting the desired results. It’s not your fault; it’s a systemic problem. The problem is that it is incredibly common for only… Continue Reading Neil Benson’s...
Try these proven practices in your next Sprint Planning event – YouTube
Familiar with the fundamentals of sprint planning but want to learn how to apply proven practices to your Dynamics 365 or Power Platform team’s sprint planning events? 0:00 Get ready for sprint planning 2:00 Agree your definition of ready 3:36 How to determine your team’s capacity this sprint 6:22 Three steps in a sprint planning workshop 7:34 FAQ: When should we run sprint planning? 8:04 FAQ: Should we use tasks? 9:04...
How did you get scrum master training?
#105. Dan Foster, a senior consultant and solutions architect at CRM Dynamics, asks, "Have you found much benefit from your being a scrum master? If so, how did you get that training?"I've taken the Scrum Alliance Certified ScrumMaster training and certification and the Scrum.org Professional Scrum Master training and certification. Find out which one I recommend for Dynamics 365 and Power… Continue Reading Neil...
How Did You Get Scrum Master Training? – YouTube
Dan Foster asks, “Have you found much benefit from your being a scrum master? If so, how did you get that training?” Thanks to Dan for posing the question. Watch to the end for the special offer. 0:00 Have you benefited from being a scrum master? 0:37 My first Scrum project 03:04 Benefits I’ve enjoyed applying Scrum 04:04 Scrum training and certification options 06:25 My Scrum for Microsoft Business Apps course If...
Welcome to Customery Academy – YouTube
G’day, I’m Neil Benson, welcome to the Customery Academy channel. My mission is to help Microsoft customers and partners like you build amazing, agile Dynamics 365 and Power Platform applications that everyone one loves. You can join my free mini-course at: https://customery.com/foundations You can prepare for Scrum certification at: https://customery.com/scrum If you like my videos, you’ll love my podcast:...
Should you assign stories to developers in sprint planning? – YouTube
Should we assign items to our developers during sprint planning? Some of my scrum teams building Dynamics 365 and Power Platform applications assign sprint backlog items to a named developer during the sprint planning event. Is that a good idea or not? That’s the question we’re going to be answering in this video. 0:32 Dynamics 365 for drink driving program 1:05 Dynamics 365 for membership organisation 1:23 Assigning items in sprint...
Should You Assign Stories to Developers in Sprint Planning?
#104. Should we assign items to a developer during sprint planning?Some of my scrum teams building Dynamics 365 and Power Platform applications assign sprint backlog items to a named developer during the sprint planning event. Is that a good idea or not? That’s the question we’re going to be answering in this episode of Amazing Applications.Resources "The New New Product Development Game",… Continue Reading Neil...
Customery Academy – YouTube
G’day, I’m Neil Benson, welcome to the Customery Academy channel. My mission is to help Microsoft customers and partners like you build amazing, agile Dynamics 365 and Power Platform applications that everyone one loves. In 2008, my project sponsor Debbie rejected my requirements specification because it was too ambiguous, too long and too technical. She couldn’t wait 18 months to see working software. We switched to...
Microsoft FastTrack Success by Design with Seth Kircher
The Microsoft FastTrack Success by Design implementation guide was first published in May 2021 and has refreshed this month (October 2021) in the 2021 Wave 2 update .What is Success by Design? Is it the latest incarnation of the Dynamics SureStep methodology or is it a new framework that all Dynamics 365 partners should consider adopting for their enterprise projects?To find out, I'm joined by… Continue Reading Neil Benson...
"OMG, I love your new system. It's so easy to use!" with Bruce Sithole, 365 Mechanix
#102. Bruce Sithole's team at 265 Mechanix built a Power Portal application for a business to business lender that earned some serious kudos for his customer. Find out how in this episode of Amazing Applications.We also cover: Starting your own Microsoft partner businessWhat is takes to achieve FastTrack Recognized Solution ArchitectWhich is better: FTRSA award or MVP award?Building amazing… Continue Reading Neil Benson and...
How can Microsoft partners PRICE Scrum projects to build Dynamics 365 or Power Platform apps? – YouTube
Here’s my 8-step formula for working with your Microsoft customer’s product owner to build a user story map that will help you propose a compelling price for your project to build a Dynamics 365 or Power Platform application. Find out more at Customery Academy: https://customery.academy source
Business Transformation with Microsoft Business Apps with Lipi Sarkar
#101. DynamicsCon starts next week. Lipi Sarkar is presenting two sessions at DynamicsCon and joins me to share the highlights from her presentations as well as her book, Build a Digital Future.Resources Register for DynamicsConLipi Sarkar on LinkedInSamit Saini and Eric McKinney on LinkedInBuilding a Digital Future by Lipi Sarkar and Vinny (Amazing affiliate link)South Coast Summit conference
Mastering Dynamics 365 Requirements in Azure DevOps with Dani Kahil
#100. Are you looking for better ways to manage your Dynamics 365 and Power Platfom requirements in Azure DevOps? Join me and Dani Kahil as we explore what it takes to master your requirements. Why use Azure DevOps to manage requirements?Structuring requirements into epics, features and user storiesUsing a definition of ready to manage your backlogIs requirements approval an anti-pattern?Using… Continue Reading Neil Benson and...
How to Design Forms for Amazing User Experiences with Mary Ann Castro
#99. We all know that good form design is important especially when we're building model-driven Power Apps and Dynamics 365 apps. But what actually makes a good form design?Join me as Mary Ann Castro shares her secrets of effective form design from her upcoming presentation at DynamicsCon.ResourcesMary Ann Castro on LinkedInRegister for DynamicsConSpecial mention to Andrew Butenko, Amey Holden… Continue Reading Mary Ann...
Hello, My Sweet Chatbot 🥰 with Dian Taylor
Hey everyone, Dian Taylor is here! Dian is a two-time MVP and a director of pre-sales at RSM US. She's presenting, 'Getting Started with Power Virtual Agents' at DynamicsCon on 20 September. So I invited Dian onto the Amazing Apps show to tells us all about Power Virtual Agents and give us a sneak peek into her presentation.We discuss the summer weather in Florida and the easy life of… Continue Reading Dian...