Designing Business Applications
Take your skills to the next level
Learn the super-power of collaboration and innovation with our design-led approach to business applications.
Online learning for Power Platform & Dynamics 365 professionals who want to build design thinking, workshop facilitation, and other in-demand non-tech skills that can be applied immediately.
"Hamish’s course has completely changed the way I approach workshops. As a result, I walk into workshops a lot more confident, spend a lot less time preparing and get better results."
Who is this for?
We are for the Solution Seekers, the Creative Collaborators, the Flow Facilitators. The ones who prioritise people over technology, are curious to learn and take action with others. They stand out because they bring people together to solve wicked problems and delight users. We see them as the catalyst that ignites business application project teams and ensure success!
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Is this you?
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​Overcome being...
- Overwhelmed by complex projects & stakeholders
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Frustrated with communication barriers between technical and non-technical stakeholders
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Anxious about meeting stakeholder expectations
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Uncertain how to gather requirements and understand user needs
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Demotivated by failed User Acceptance Testing (UAT)
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Fatigued from rework
What do you want to gain?
Distinguish yourself by mastering skills that are in demand but rare in the Power Platform & Dynamics 365 workforce.
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Through design thinking, we teach analytical & creative thinking, the top two skills increasing in importance most rapidly between 20023 and 2027 - World Economic Forum, Future of Jobs Report 2023.
Increased Effectiveness
Our tools and templates help you produce quality work while reducing time-consuming activities.
Reduced Rework
Truly understand user needs & get requirements right to prevent the need for costly rework.
Delighted Stakeholders
Engaging stakeholders in the design process results in a sense of belonging and ownership.
Enhanced Teamwork
Break down the typical communication barriers, leading to a more harmonious & collaborative environment.
Career Progression
Facilitation & design skills are sought after. Open doors to career advancement & increase earning potential.
Confidence & Certainty
Reduce anxiety by being comfortable facilitating
workshops, gathering requirements and leading teams.
Recognition
When you lead with empathy, are collaborative and user focused, you will be thanked!
How It Works
Designed for busy people. We know that you don't have hours to spend on training. You're busy, jumping from one challenge to the next. Our training is designed with short, high-value lessons to help you no matter what stage you are in a project. Whether you are preparing for a workshop, need to build a prototype, working on process mapping, or need to demo to stakeholders we have got you covered.
​​Online Learning Platform
​​Search and choose from a range of self-paced bite sized lessons based on what you need help with right now. Each lesson includes short videos and reading packed with insights from of years of Dynamics 365 and Power Platform consulting experience and design thinking coaching. Designed to be actioned straight away!
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Interactive Workshops
Join our regular interactive workshops with Hamish and other like-minded people. Each session is a chance to practice your skills with hands-on activities, learn from fellow members' challenges and share your own. Leaving you more empowered, more confident, and filled with actionable insights.
Workshop times:
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Fortnightly 10pm UTC
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Fortnightly 7am UTC
Tools & Templates
Save time and accelerate your preparation and client deliverables with our library of Miro and document templates.
What People Say...
Every time I interact with AppRising and you, the most prominent message I receive is the genuine care of how your business impacts people and brings them value in their life. It's not just through your words, but your actions.
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I would say overall, change in solution building at this company is evolving much quicker than I originally anticipated and because of your course, I'm able to navigate us to higher efficiencies!
Rachel Roberts
Business Solutions Manager
When I took this course I was expecting to come away with better requirements gathering skills but didn’t realise the confidence it would bring me in my workshop facilitation skills.
My employer is impressed, the clients I’ve used it with have given great feedback and I’m enjoying leading workshops more because of it. I highly recommend this course to anyone in the Power Platform space and would like to say a big thanks to Hamish for putting it together!
Rachel Bird
Business Improvement Consultant
The live workshops were really helpful as we were able to practice the theory, we learned with direct feedback from you as a coach. The workshops were also fun and engaging. Definitely the highlight of the course for me :-)
Dani Kahil
Power Platform & Dynamics 365 Consultant
I really enjoyed this Hamish. It was good to take myself back to first principles. I’ve been asked to work in some very challenging & vague ways, so it’s easy to stray from the patterns that work.
Your course has helped me to refresh the theory I’ve studied previously. Thank-you so much! You are a fabulous facilitator & I can see why Neil recommends you.
Emma Wehrmann
Business/Systems Analyst, Delivery Specialist
​I found the most benefit in learning how to apply Design Thinking principles to my Business Applications projects. In particular, how to gain empathy for our users so that we build applications they'll love instead of focusing on building features their managers want on time and on budget.
Neil Benson
Founder Customery & Superware
Your course has helped out so much and because of that my model driven app was a success. After convincing senior stakeholders that the model driven app was the right solution, we managed cut the costs by 90% and the adoption rate is so high. The ease of use and simplicity was a big hit, so much so we are ready to roll out another solution to the whole organisation.
Portfolio Manager
Your Instructor
Kia ora, I’m Hamish.
A few years ago, I had a challenging project to modernise a 20 year old Access database, which was a complete mess, and replace with a Power App. The information overload was overwhelming, the client was not experienced with software projects, and I had a new employee who was going to build the app. How on earth was I to take this mass of unstructured information and turn it into a clear backlog of requirements that both my client and employee could understand.
Around the same time, I discovered the value of design thinking and started exploring how to leverage its benefits in the work that I do. I have spent countless hours and over $15,000 on design thinking and workshop facilitation training. Over the years I have built up my coaching skills and experience as a coach at IDEO U - online learning from the award-winning design & innovation firm, IDEO.
​Many employers do not provide the essential "soft" skills required to be a great business applications professional. Skills that have shaped my career and brought me a lot of success and enjoyment. I have created Designing Business Applications for you to be able to have the same.
Outside of work, I live on Auckland’s North Shore with my wife and 2 young children. We spend a lot of time at the beach, and I get out wing foiling whenever I can!
Risk-Free Guarantee
If you make the decision to invest in yourself and/or your team, I am certain that you will see career changing results. But I want to make this a completely risk-free decision for you. If you put into practice the lessons, tools and techniques of this program and do not see career changing results, I will personally work with you until you do.
Pricing
In a world where technology never stands still, neither does the journey of learning. Designing Business Applications embraces constant change, offering training that grows with you and the Power Platform world. It's a place where you can continuously sharpen your skills, ensuring you're always ahead of the curve. Designing Business Applications is a learning experience that's as current as it is practical. Watch this space for more on Copilot and Gen AI.
Basic Membership
Learn in your own way, with videos, articles and templates.
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Best for people on a budget, prepared to take more time and want to go it alone.
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$25
USD / month
Billed annually, save $5 /month
or $30 USD /month, billed monthly
✓ Self-paced video lessons & exercises
✓ Templates & worksheets
✓ Online community & support
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Pro Membership
Take action, practice what you learn and network with a group of like-minded people.
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Best for individuals who are serious about personal growth, now.
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$79
USD /month
Billed annually, save $20 /month
or $99 USD /month, billed monthly
✓ Everything from Basic Membership
✓ Weekly interactive workshops and Q&A
✓ Practice new skills in a safe environment
✓ Access to Miro for workshops
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Limited to 10 new members per month.
Private Coaching
Hamish on your project team, coaching members and delivering for clients simultaneously.
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Best for teams who want to apply design-led thinking to their own projects.
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$2,997
USD /month
Billed annually, save $500 /month
or $3,497 USD /month, billed monthly
✓ Everything from the Pro Membership
✓ Planning & facilitation of project workshops
✓ Guiding your team's design deliverables
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Most Popular
What's included?
Designing Business Applications is a growing and evolving learning experience that helps you balance the needs of people, the possibilities of technology and the requirements of business success.
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It covers a range of topics, some already exist, others will be added over time. When you sign up, you will get to have a say in which future topics are prioritised.
Key: • existing, • coming soon, • road-map
Fundamentals
The fundamental non-tech skills you should have as a business apps professional.​
• Intro to Design Thinking
• Workshop facilitation 101
• Consulting 101
• Miro for Business Apps
• Solution Canvas
• Performance reviews
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Business
Viability - Design solutions that deliver business results.
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• Power Platform Strategy
• Envisioning Solutions
• Define Project Goals
• Fit / Gap Analysis
• "Selling" Design Thinking
• Measure Business Value
• Solution Blueprint
People
Desirability - Human-centred design for apps that delight users.​
• Understanding People
• Eliciting New Requirements
• Refining Requirements
• Prioritising Requirements
• Solution Ideation
• Prototyping
• User Testing & Feedback
• Storytelling & Demonstrations
• Designing for AI
Technology
Feasibility - Technical design in a non-technical way, that everyone understands.
• Solution Landscape Design
• Data Modelling
• Dashboards & Reporting
• Dataverse Security