Partner Case Study | Appfie and Plopsa
What does it take to keep a theme park running smoothly when thousands of guests are buying tickets, moving through gates, and making purchases every hour? While visitors experience the rides and attractions, a different kind of choreography is happening behind the scenes—one where finance teams work to keep every transaction accurate, aligned, and moving at speed. For teams smoothing out these back-end operations, having the option to deploy AI-powered, no-code or low-code solutions can be a game changer. And for Microsoft partner Appfie, this kind of operational challenge is an opportunity to rethink how work gets done. With their focus on no-code and low-code solutions, Appfie helps organizations replace fragmented processes with centralized, scalable systems built on Microsoft Power Platform. To support this work, Appfie taps into the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program for access to funding, tools, and direct collaboration with Microsoft experts to accelerate early-stage prototyping and align stakeholders faster. In addition, they highlight their Solutions Partner designations to establish credibility with customers and stand out from the competition in Microsoft Marketplace. By combining these program benefits with a mentorship-led delivery approach, Appfie empowers their customers to move quickly from idea to implementation while building internal capability along the way. This model proved especially effective when Studio Plopsa NV, the amusement park company, sought a faster, more consistent way to manage their core financial processes. Keeping every transaction on track across multiple parks Based in Belgium, Plopsa operates eight amusement parks across Europe, including in Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands. The company is owned by family entertainment giant Studio 100, and their parks feature characters and locales from Studio 100 properties. Naturally, tracking financial transactions across ticket sales, events, souvenirs, food, and more is a monumental task. At the center of this effort was Plopsa’s main cash register process, a critical function that supports daily operations across all parks. As the business grew, managing this process in a consistent way became increasingly complex. This was especially true as the company was working with legacy technology—including, in some instances, pen and paper. Each location contributed to a shared financial picture, but without a centralized system, maintaining alignment across parks required additional effort and coordination. The lack of centralized data management also meant processes could vary from one park to another, creating inconsistencies in how data was handled and limiting visibility for the finance team. This fragmentation introduced friction into an otherwise smooth operational environment. Plopsa needed a solution that could be delivered quickly and that avoided disruptions to their fast-moving business. They weren’t looking for a lengthy transformation, but rather a way to modernize a core process and create a system that could deliver consistency, centralization, and speed. Their search for a solution led them to Appfie. Continue reading here
In a Day (XIAD) Partner Events Program - Train the Trainer Events (AgIAD, AIAD, AuIAD, PPIAD)
We invite you to attend an upcoming Train the Trainer session for Microsoft Partners to learn more about the In a Day (XIAD) Partner Events Program and how to lead workshops that empower customers to use and adopt Microsoft products. Our Train the Trainer events are designed to provide you with the knowledge and tools necessary to deliver successful Microsoft In a Day (XIAD) sessions. *Please note, participation is restricted to individuals representing a Microsoft Partner organization. You must register using your corporate email address that is associated with your Partner ID. Personal emails will not be approved. ✨ Why Attend? Expert Guidance: Learn from experienced trainers and get your questions answered. Comprehensive Resources: Access all the content and support you need to succeed. 📅 Upcoming Events: Agent in a Day Discover the basics of building agents with Microsoft Copilot Studio, including generative AI orchestration and integrating external data sources. Full day session (8 hours): Thursday, June 25 | 09:00–17:00 GMT+2 (Central European Summer Time) Trainer ready session (1.5 hours): Tuesday, June 30 | 09:00–10:30 GMT-5 (Central Daylight Time) Recordings available on-demand. Inquire at xiadevents@microsoft.com App in a Day Explore the fundamentals of building apps with Microsoft Power Apps, including creating custom business applications without writing code. Full day session (8 hours): Tuesday, June 23 | 09:00–17:00 GMT+2 (Central European Summer Time) Trainer ready session (1.5 hours): Tuesday, June 30 | 11:00–12:30 GMT-5 (Central Daylight Time) Recordings available on-demand. Inquire at xiadevents@microsoft.com Automation in a Day Explore automation solutions with Power Automate, including creating workflows and automating business processes. Trainer ready session (1.5 hours): Tuesday, June 30 | 14:00–15:30 GMT-5 (Central Daylight Time) Recordings available on-demand. Inquire at xiadevents@microsoft.com Power Pages in a Day Get hands-on building simple, secure business websites with Microsoft Power Pages. More sessions coming soon! Recordings available on-demand. Inquire at xiadevents@microsoft.com 👉 Register for all upcoming sessions at https://aka.ms/xiadTTT/pp Partner with us! Are you a Microsoft Partner interested in the opportunity to join the program and deliver In a Day (XIAD) events? 🔍 Learn more about the program and review partner eligibility criteria: https://aka.ms/xiadpartneropportunity. 📧 Contact the XIAD Program team: xiadevents@microsoft.com 🚀 Get started today: https://aka.ms/XIADGetStarted 📤 Submit requests to deliver events: https://aka.ms/xIAD/PartnerEventsThree Tiers, One Platform: Building Agents Together with the Build-Along Series
The Agentic Opportunity Every partner has agent ambition, but a single workshop format cannot serve every builder. Business makers want a fast win without writing code. Citizen developers want to orchestrate real processes across enterprise systems. Pro developers want a code-first surface with evaluations, tracing, and managed identity. Run the wrong session for the wrong audience, and engagement collapses - too abstract for one group, too constrained for another. The Agent Build-Along Series solves that by meeting builders exactly where they are, across three tiers of the Microsoft platform stack. Behind the series sits a self-serve GitHub repository - a curated library of build-along sessions with easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions, scoped to specific industry scenarios and business functions. Partners pick the scenario that fits the room, clone the assets, and run the session. No bespoke content build, no facilitator guesswork. A Self-Serve Repository for Build-Along Sessions Diagram illustrating three tiers of agent building The repo at Agent Build-Along Github is a self-serve catalog of ready-to-run workshops. Every session is curated for a specific industry and business function, with easy-to-follow instructions a facilitator can pick up and deliver. Pick the combination that matches the room and run the session - the content, scenario, and assets are already there. Sessions are organised across three axes so partners can find the right fit fast: Industry - Financial Services, Healthcare, Retail, Manufacturing, Public Sector, Energy, Professional Services Business function - Sales, Marketing, Finance, HR, Operations, IT, Customer Service Workload - Agent Builder, Copilot Studio and Azure AI Foundry Each session in the repo includes a real-world scenario, step-by-step build instructions, sample data, prompts and configuration, and a facilitator narrative. Clone, brief the room, build the agent - that is the loop. Three Tiers - Meet Builders Where They Are The pyramid is intentional. Builders start where their skills are today and move up as confidence grows. The tier defines platform, audience, duration, and approach - content stays consistent. Tier Platform Audience Duration Approach 1 - Foundation Microsoft 365 Copilot Agent Builder Business makers, end users, departmental teams 60 min No-code 2 - Extend Copilot Studio Citizen developers, power users, ops teams 90 min Low-code 3 - Pro-Code Azure AI Foundry Pro developers, architects, AI engineers 180+ min Code-first Tier 1 - M365 Copilot Agent Builder Author your first agent - no code required. Microsoft 365 Copilot Agent Builder virtual workshop overview, What your customers will build A custom agent scoped to a real workplace scenario Grounded with knowledge sources (SharePoint sites, files, web URLs) Configured with custom instructions and conversation starters Tested in the preview pane and shared with a team Session flow Define → Ground → Refine → Test & Share Prerequisites Microsoft 365 Copilot licence (or Copilot Chat free) Modern browser (Edge / Chrome) A workplace scenario in mind, or use our template Outcome Attendees leave with a working agent they can use immediately, plus a repeatable pattern for future use cases. This is the right entry point for departmental teams who want to operationalise Copilot without engineering involvement. Tier 2 - Copilot Studio Orchestrate multi-step agents across enterprise systems. Microsoft Copilot Studio virtual workshop overview What your customers will build A copilot with generative answers and authored topics Custom actions that call APIs and Power Platform connectors Knowledge sources spanning SharePoint, Dataverse, public web, and enterprise data Channel deployment to Microsoft Teams and a public web embed Session flow Design → Connect → Author → Publish Prerequisites M365 Copilot license with access to Copilot Studio Familiarity with Power Platform helpful, not required A multi-step workflow or process in mind Outcome Attendees leave with a published copilot running in Teams or on the web, plus a pattern for connecting copilots to enterprise systems. This is where citizen developers and ops teams turn manual processes into orchestrated, agent-driven workflows. Tier 3 - Azure AI Foundry Ship a code-first agent with evaluations and observability. What your customers will build A code-first agent with custom tools and function calling Grounding via Azure AI Search and the customer's own data Model selection from the Foundry catalog, with optional fine-tuning Evaluations, tracing, and managed-identity deployment Session flow Provision → Build → Evaluate → Deploy Prerequisites Azure subscription with Azure AI Foundry access VS Code, plus Python or .NET familiarity Sample data or a use case ready to ground on Outcome Attendees leave with a deployed agent - code, evaluations, and tracing in place - plus reusable SDK templates. This is the right tier for architects and AI engineers shipping agents into production with the governance bar enterprise customers expect. How the Repository Works The repo removes the heaviest lift in running these workshops: content creation. Every session is curated against the same three axes - industry, business function, tier - and shipped with step-by-step instructions a facilitator can follow with minimum prep. Industry/Business Function × Tier → Ready-to-run Build-Along Each session in the repo ships with: A real-world scenario grounded in the chosen industry and business function Step-by-step build instructions tuned to the selected tier Sample data the agent can ground against Prompts, conversation starters, and configuration snippets Facilitator narrative so anyone can run the session Need an enterprise agent that can handle integrate with CRM data? There is a curated Copilot Studio session with a deal-desk scenario and sample CRM data. Need a pro-code health care agent? Choose the Foundry session with a patient-flow scenario and a grounded dataset. Same repo, different curated paths - at the right depth for the room. What Attendees Walk Away With Agent-Builder - A working agent in Microsoft 365 Copilot, ready to share with colleagues. Copilot Studio - A published copilot running in Teams or on the web, connected to enterprise systems. Foundry - A deployed Foundry agent with evaluations, tracing, and SDK templates for the next build. In all cases attendees leave with assets - not slides - and the confidence to build the next one without facilitation. Next Steps - Host a Build-Along Pick your tier - Start where your skills are today. Move up the pyramid as confidence grows. Drive Registration – Socialise your Build-Along session to maximise attendance. Show up and build. Bring a real scenario. Customers leave with a working agent to share. Where to Next Browse the self-serve repository of Build-Along sessions - curated by industry and business function, with step-by-step instructions ready to run: Agent Build Along.New eligible workloads for the Solutions Partner designation for Business Applications
The pathway to attaining and renewing the Solutions Partner designation for Business Applications has been widened thanks to the addition of two new eligible workloads: Microsoft Dynamics 365 Contact Center and Copilot Studio. Contact Center has been added across both performance and customer success metrics, while Copilot Studio has been added to performance. A Business Applications designation demonstrates your capabilities delivering solutions on Dynamics 365 and Power Platform, so if you don't already hold this designation, we encourage you to pursue it now. Partners approaching their renewal window can start preparing for renewal today. Visit the Business Applications dashboard in Partner Center to view how this addition has affected your progress toward attaining or renewing the designation. Go to the Business Applications dashboard to learn more.
Tech Talks presents: Building Secure, Intelligent Power Pages sites with Agents
Join us on Thursday, April 23rd at 8am PT as Nagesh Bhatt, Senior Product Manager, Power Pages and Bipul Deora, Principal Product Manager, Power Platform present 'Building Secure, Intelligent Power Pages sites with Agents'. We hope to see you there! Call to Action: Click on the link to save the calendar invite: https://aka.ms/TechTalksInvite View past recordings (sign in required): https://aka.ms/TechTalksRecording
Tech Talks presents: Unlock SharePoint Embedded Integration with Power Platform Connectors
Join us on Thursday, March 19th at 8am PT as Steve Pucelik, Senior Product Manager, Microsoft presents 'Unlock SharePoint Embedded Integration with Power Platform Connectors'. In this session, we’ll spotlight the SPE Power Platform connectors and how it lets you rapidly build and deploy apps that manage and collaborate on documents—without custom API plumbing. You’ll see how makers can create solutions that enable one-click co-authoring, apply AI across sets of documents for summaries and insights, and still keep content securely within existing Microsoft 365 tenant boundaries. We’ll close with a quick walkthrough of a Projects-style app pattern that shows how fast teams can go from idea to working experience using Power Platform + SPE. We hope to see you there! Call to Action: Click on the link to save the calendar invite: https://aka.ms/TechTalksInvite View past recordings (sign in required): https://aka.ms/TechTalksRecordingTech Talks presents: Build Power Pages sites with AI using agentic coding tools
Join us on Thursday, March 12th at 8am PT as Neeraj Nandwana, Principal PM, Power Platform presents 'Build Power Pages sites with AI using agentic coding tools (preview)'. We'll get a public preview of the Power Pages plugin for GitHub Copilot CLI and Claude Code. With this plugin, you simply describe the site you want in natural language. The plugin takes care of everything else, from project scaffolding and Dataverse setup to API integrations, permissions, and deployment. This plugin is purpose-built for Power Pages. It understands table permissions, web roles, site settings, setting up authentication and Web API patterns. The code it generates is platform-aware, so you spend less time on manual configuration and more time building your site. We hope to see you there! Call to Action: Click on the link to save the calendar invite: https://aka.ms/TechTalksInvite View past recordings (sign in required): https://aka.ms/TechTalksRecordingPartner Training | Build and extend AI-powered copilots with Microsoft Copilot Studio
Microsoft Copilot Studio lets you create powerful AI-powered copilots for a range of requests—from providing simple answers to common questions to resolving issues requiring complex conversations. Learn how you can build and extend these copilots, boot their capabilities with AI and extend them to perform actions, and provide answers for your copilot users. This three-day virtual training experience includes two-to-four hours a day of structured instructor-led training theory, hands-on labs to help develop specialized skills, and live Q&A with technical experts. Enroll today at: https://aka.ms/CopilotStudioPartnerTraining Note: Either register or sign into the Depth Training page, and then click on the Copilot Studio card to enroll, selecting the session appropriate to your time zone.Tech Talks presents: Governance to manage Low Code Agents
Join us on Thursday, March 5th at 8am PT as Ken Auguillard, Principal Program Manager, Power Platform presents 'Getting started with or adopting your current governance to manage low code agents'. We hope to see you there! Call to Action: Click on the link to save the calendar invite: https://aka.ms/TechTalksInvite View past recordings (sign in required): https://aka.ms/TechTalksRecording
