In this issue:
Ace Aviator of the Month
September's Ace Aviator: Cameron McKay
What is your role and title? What are your responsibilities associated with your position?
As a Manager at MNP LLP, I provide consulting services to clients by architecting and leading teams to implement Azure integration, DevOps and Azure web solutions. My role involves working closely with clients to understand their business requirements, ensuring our solutions align with their business goals and deliver value. I coach and mentor team members to help them reach their highest potential, providing career coaching and fostering professional growth. On the architecture and implementation front, I work with other architects to develop patterns and best practices for our team to follow with integrations and web implementations. I frequently work with other services lines at MNP LLP such as Power Platform, Business Central, Sage Intacct and Dynamics CRM to aggregate our skillsets to deliver solution sets that maximize value.
Can you provide some insights into your day-to-day activities and what a typical day in your role looks like?
A typical day in my role as a Manager at MNP LLP involves a variety of activities that ensure both team and project success. Leading teams to implement Azure integration, DevOps and Azure web solutions involves reviewing pull requests and mentoring team members to maintain consistency and quality for our solutions. I conduct client workshops to understand business problems and drivers; these are translated into requirements for the integration and web solutions that we architect and implement. When needed, I provide support for our development teams by writing low and pro code on the integration and web solutions we are building for clients.
What motivates and inspires you to be an active member of the Aviators/Microsoft community?
Coming from a pro code background, I’ve witnessed firsthand the numerous mistakes and the significant time investment required to build with traditional pro code. Logic Apps eliminates many of the configuration, scalability, anti-patterns and security pitfalls typically associated with pro code. Utilizing low code enables developers to focus on delivering business value by combining the best aspects of low code and pro code into hybrid solutions. This unique capability of Logic Apps to streamline development while enhancing efficiency and security drives my passion and commitment to the community.
Looking back, what advice do you wish you would have been told earlier on that you would give to individuals looking to become involved in STEM/technology?
Embrace the concept of “fail fast.” It’s okay to fail; in fact, it’s expected. Everyone makes mistakes and encounters setbacks. The key is to fail quickly and minimize the impact, allowing for swift learning and recovery. Seek out senior team members and mentors, and don’t hesitate to ask questions. Most people are eager to help and appreciate genuine curiosity. Failing is a crucial part of learning, so it’s important to learn how to fail safely. Rely on others to create a safe environment for failure.
What are some of the most important lessons you’ve learned throughout your career that surprised you?
Throughout my career, I’ve learned several important lessons that have surprised me.
- Stopgaps often become production code and are rarely fixed later, so it’s crucial to address issues properly from the start. Be comfortable with the solution being implemented, so that it doesn't become an unsurmountable mountain of technical debt later.
- Breaking down problems into smaller, manageable parts and tackle them individually; take those smaller solutions and combine them into a larger solution has proven to be an effective strategy in all problem domains I've worked in.
- Document all of your assumptions about tasks, validate them, and ensure everyone is aware of them; this is essential for clarity and alignment on the work you are doing. It seems like a small harmless thing, but I've made assumptions in the past that did not get validated until later and it caused unnecessary re-work and re-architecture.
- Setting clear expectations, tracking progress and providing regular updates are not things I placed emphasis on early in my career. However, these are critical skills for success in the workplace and on projects; learning these skills and actively applying them will do wonders for your career.
Imagine you had a magic wand that could create a feature in Logic Apps. What would this feature be and why?
My feature request is related to .NET custom code extensibility. I would implement a mechanism for automatic compilation for .NET assemblies within the same logic app workspace. This feature would eliminate the need for separate compilation steps to allow logic apps to call azure functions within the same workspace. It would improve the developer experience and increase developer efficiency by reducing unnecessary back and forth in the terminal. These enhancements would not only save time but also simplify the workflow, allowing developers to focus more on building solutions.
Customer Corner:
Argentine agribusiness fyo brings Azure-driven innovation
Explore how fyo is revolutionizing its discrete manufacturing processes in Argentina with Microsoft Azure DevOps in this insightful customer success story. By adopting Azure DevOps, fyo is optimizing its development and deployment workflows, leading to enhanced productivity and streamlined operations. Leveraging Azure’s powerful tools, fyo is driving innovation, improving efficiency, and achieving greater agility in their manufacturing processes.
News from our product group:
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Post-retirement action for App Service Environment v1/v2, Logic Apps ISE, and APIM stv1
As previously communicated, the following Azure services reached end of life on August 31, 2024:
Customers running retired environments should migrate immediately to avoid security risk and loss of data. As part of our ongoing communication and assistance to migrate customers safely to their new environments, this article provides more information on the customer experience for any workloads that remain in production beginning 1st September 2024. |
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Logic Apps Live Community Standup - August 2024
Missed the Logic Apps Live last Thursday of August? Watch it here! |
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Join us on Thursday, September 26th for a dynamic community-driven event, proudly sponsored by Microsoft, with a diverse range of sessions presented by your Aviators community. This FREE, full-day event is your opportunity to become a key player in exploring the power of Logic Apps and addressing real-world integrations. |
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Integrate Logic App workflows as plugins with Semantic Kernel: Step-by-step guide
Use Logic App (Standard) to plug into Semantic Kernel SDK. |
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Implement Rule-Based scaling in Logic App Standard via Logic App Consumption
This blog is introduce how to "simulate" rule based scaling feature for Logic App Standard with WS plan as Logic App Standard running in ASE via using Logic App Consumption (it can be out Azure products as well, eg: Azure Function). |
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Identify scripting errors using Log Stream in workflow designer
With the introduction of PowerShell and C# scripting capabilities, we have made it easier to identify errors during development and compile time. The Log Stream feature in Logic Apps, powered by Application Insights, helps you catch syntax and compilation errors in real-time, directly within the designer. |
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Logic Apps Standard Monitoring Dashboards
We are very excited to announce the Public Preview of Templates Support in Azure Logic Apps Standard! |
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Unlock inline PowerShell capabilities to streamline Logic Apps workflows
The new inline PowerShell action, now in preview, adds flexibility to Logic Apps by enabling users to embed PowerShell scripts directly into workflows. |
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Announcement!! Templates for Azure Logic Apps Standard are now in Public Preview
We are very excited to announce the Public Preview of Templates Support in Azure Logic Apps Standard! This release marks a significant milestone in our ongoing commitment to simplify and accelerate the development of enterprise integration solutions. |
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Automatic Regeneration of Azure Managed Connectors Connection keys in VS Code Extension
We are very excited to announce the Public Preview of Templates Support in Azure Logic Apps Standard! This release marks a significant milestone in our ongoing commitment to simplify and accelerate the development of enterprise integration solutions. |
News from our community:
Running inline C# scripts in Azure Logic Apps workflows
Post by Stefano Demiliani
Learn how to use the inline C# scripts action in your workflow and improve performance with this article by Stefano.
Azure Standard Logic App with Private Storage Account using private endpoints
Video by Sri Gunnala
Watch this video by Sri who will walk you through deploying an Azure Standard Logic App with a private storage account using private end points and provide a high-level design to illustrate this setup.
Call x-www-form-urlencoded HTTP Service via Logic Apps and solve BadRequest error
Post by Prashant Singh
Getting a BadRequest error when you are using special characters in your Logic App? Prashant has a solution for you in this blog post.
Friday Fact: Two AI Assistants are Now Available on Azure: Copilot and Workflow Assistant
Post by Luís Rigueira
Learn more about Copilot and Workflow Assistant, the AI tools ready to enhance your experience in Logic Apps, in this Friday Fact by Luis.
Running Powershell scripts in Azure Logic Apps workflows
Post by Stefano Demiliani
Read about using the new preview release of the inline Powershell action and how to troubleshoot with this article by Stefano.
Post by Luís Rigueira
With Copilot now being in Azure, read more about the preview and what Luis has already explored.
Enabling CitizenOps for Integration Workloads with Azure AI Services
Post by Matt Ward
In this article by Matt, read about implementing Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) pattern and utilizing the Azure AI Search and Azure OpenAI services.
Friday Fact: Logic App Connectors Outlast HTTP Connectors in Default Retry Policies Timeouts
Post by Sandro Pereira
Discover how the default retry policies and timeouts for built-in connectors in Microsoft Logic Apps outperform those for HTTP connectors in this article by Sandro.
Export Azure Logic App Run History | Performance Analysis
Post by Sri Gunnala
Explore the performance analysis of exporting run history in Azure Logic Apps with steps using Azure Log Analytics in this article by Sri.
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