James Serra

Learn the pros and cons of data fabric, lakehouse, and data mesh, and how they compare to warehouses and data lakes. Cut through hype, understand what each architecture enables, and see how Microsoft Fabric supports and enhances these approaches.

This workshop defines big data and core architecture concepts, then explains warehouses, lakes, marts, virtualization, ETL vs. ELT, and compares Modern Data Warehouse, Data Fabric, Lakehouse, and Data Mesh, highlighting pros, cons, and practical considerations.

In three years I went from unknown to blogger, PASS speaker, and MVP. It wasn’t genius—just goals, branding, and stepping out of my comfort zone. Learn how to build visibility through blogging, presenting, networking, and more to grow your career.

In three years I went from unknown to blogger, PASS speaker, MVP, and then Microsoft. It wasn’t luck—just goals, branding, and work. Learn career tips on interviewing, networking, skills, social media, presenting, blogging, and building a high-paying tech career.

Thinking about presenting but too nervous to try? Join this session to learn simple steps to become a confident speaker. I’ll share how I went from fearful introvert to frequent Microsoft presenter, plus practical skills to help you present with ease.

Generative AI now works with structured data—databases, spreadsheets, CSVs—to deliver insights, patterns, and predictions. This session covers practical uses with ChatGPT, Copilot, and Fabric AI Skill, plus RAG, fine-tuning, and industry use cases.