Mirza Ahsan Baig, PMP, MBA

AWS is hosting a free Symposium in Ottawa on Oct 1 focused specifically on government digital transformation. Covers cloud adoption, AI implementation, and security for public sector use cases. Could be valuable for technical decision makers working on modernization initiatives. Features Canadian tech leaders and hands-on workshops. Free registration: https://bit.ly/4gyPwDO This post was made in partnership with AWS Public Sector. #PublicSector #DigitalTransformation #CloudComputing #Ottawa

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🚀 Quarterly Update: SAP BTP & BDC on Azure 🌍 As we wrap up another impactful quarter, I’m excited to share some key milestones and forward-looking updates from the SAP on Azure ecosystem: 🌐 New Data Centers LIVE SAP BTP is now available in Canada (Toronto) and China (Hebei) on Microsoft Azure - expanding our global reach and enabling customers to build and scale with regional compliance and performance in mind. 🛠️ SAP Build Now on Azure SAP Build, including Build Apps, is now available on Azure! This brings low-code development and automation capabilities directly into the Azure ecosystem - empowering business users and developers to co-create faster and smarter 📍 SAP BDC on the Roadmap SAP BDC is officially on the SAP roadmap for Azure, with key regions going live even next month! You can track progress here: https://lnkd.in/e27ur5uP 🤝 Marketplace SAP had announced it during Sapphire. Now it is here! SAP BTP now listed as transactable on the Azure Marketplace. Customers in the US can now purchase SAP BTP on here, and decrement their MACCs while doing so! https://lnkd.in/ewGJUwFa 💡 Looking Ahead to Q3 Stay tuned for: SAP BDC on Azure going live in August in US East, US West, Europe West and Brazil! #SAPonAzure #BTP #BDC #SAPBuild #MicrosoftCloud #PartnerEcosystem #Innovation

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We all know we need AI to advance Canada’s future. But how do we do that without losing control of our data? Excited to share that EY Canada has deployed FlexiGenAI, an advanced agentic AI platform, on TELUS' Sovereign AI Factory. For the first time, Canadian government agencies can harness cutting-edge agentic AI – autonomous agents that plan, execute, and make decisions – while maintaining complete Canadian control over sensitive government and citizen data. When government agencies and enterprises have access to secure, sovereign, advanced AI infrastructure, we catalyze our entire national AI ecosystem. We unlock AI's full benefits. We keep our world-class researchers home. We build breakthrough Canadian technologies that compete globally. And we're just getting started. The TELUS Sovereign AI Factory is already operational and powering workloads. Every new partnership, every new deployment, every new Canadian organization choosing our sovereign AI infrastructure strengthens our national AI ecosystem. Huge congratulations to our teams at TELUS and EY who made this happen and to Biren Agnihotri and the EY team for choosing to build the latest AI solutions on Canada’s first Sovereign AI Factory. https://lnkd.in/ebyjMgHW

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Exciting news coming out of the Canadian retail sector! 🇨🇦 I’m thrilled to share that RONA is deepening its collaboration with Google Cloud to accelerate its digital transformation and omnichannel strategy. By leveraging Google Distributed Cloud Edge and our AI capabilities, RONA is set to: 🚀 Automate and streamline critical processes. 🛒 Modernize retail operations across 425+ stores. ✨ Enhance the customer experience from online search to in-store purchase. As J.P. Towner, CEO of RONA, put it: "This collaboration allows us to position ourselves at the digital and technological forefront of our industry." Congratulations to the entire RONA team on this milestone and for also taking home the "Rising Star Award" at the recent Google Search Honours! 🔗 Link to the the full press release in comment #GoogleCloud #RetailInnovation #AI #DigitalTransformation #RONA #Omnichannel

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Discover how to build and manage AI models with Databricks, combining machine learning and Generative AI. Learn to enhance ML workflows with tools like agent workflows and deploy AI projects using your governed data for secure, scalable innovation.

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It's an exciting week for IBM and Microsoft in Canada! Yesterday we launched IBM’s fifth #Microsoft Experience Zone (MEZ) globally in Montréal. This marks the latest milestone in #IBMConsulting and Microsoft’s strategic partnership globally and is part of IBM’s core mission to help transform the enterprises of the future underpinned by hybrid cloud and AI. The Montreal IBM-MEZ provides a hands-on environment where clients can work with IBM Consulting in technology zones, to co-create #GenAI-powered solutions using Microsoft and IBM Technology. Learn how to: • Use GenAI to streamline #processes • Enable your #employees using Microsoft co-pilot • Reduce technical debt (and save money) – a challenge many of our organizations face Reach out, and let's plan a visit! Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gvXc8FhN Adam Porter Colette Cheung Mark Innes Matthew Simone Garmon Chow Noureen Syed Bina Mistry Ramesh Jeyaram Joe Kinch Neveen T.

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Microsoft deepens its commitment to Canada — and the AI era accelerates 🇨🇦🤝🤖 Big news this week: Microsoft announced a $19B landmark investment in Canada’s AI future, expanding cloud capacity, supercomputing infrastructure, talent development, and responsible AI initiatives nationwide. 📣 Full announcement here: https://lnkd.in/gksqQ3Jt From my role working with technology partners across the Americas, this moment is bigger than infrastructure. It’s a signal that Canada is stepping firmly into the frontier of AI-enabled innovation—and that partners have a massive runway ahead to build, scale, and transform industries. Here’s what stands out through my lens: 🚀 1. This raises the ceiling for what partners can build: More capacity, more compute, more AI superclusters… this is the foundation partners need to deliver next-gen solutions, intelligent agents, industry copilots, and modern data platforms at scale. 🏢 2. Canada is becoming a global AI destination: This investment doesn’t just strengthen local capabilities—it positions Canada as a magnet for AI-driven companies, talent, and ecosystem innovation. The opportunity space for partners expands far beyond national borders. 🧩 3. The partner ecosystem becomes even more critical: As AI moves from experimentation to operations, customers are looking for trusted advisors who can guide transformation, redesign processes, and deliver measurable business outcomes. Partners are the force multiplier that will help every industry adopt responsibly and effectively. 🌐 4. This aligns perfectly with the shift toward Frontier Firms and Frontier Partners: Companies, Customers and Partners, that learn to operate with AI, deliver with AI, monetize with AI, and innovate with AI will define the next decade. Today’s announcement accelerates the timeline for every partner to take that leap. What excites me most is how this will empower organizations—large and small—to transform at a pace we’ve never seen before. And for those of us working across the ecosystem, it’s a generational chance to lead with purpose, innovation, and impact. The future isn’t just arriving. We’re building it. Together. #Microsoft #AI #Canada #PartnerEcosystem #Innovation #AITransformation #FrontierFirm #FrontierPartner #Cloud #Supercomputing #AIInnovation

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🚀 IBM + Confluent: Powering Real-Time AI & Automation for Canada’s Banks and Government! 🇨🇦 IBM has announced its intent to acquire Confluent for $11B, bringing one of the world’s most advanced real-time data streaming platforms into the IBM ecosystem. Why is this a big deal for Canadian banking and government? Because real-time, connected data is the foundation for AI-driven services and automation—and many organizations still face challenges with siloed data across clouds, data centers, and legacy systems. This acquisition bridges that gap. By combining IBM’s #HybridCloud, AI, and automation stack with Confluent’s real-time #DataStreaming platform, here’s what it means for Canada: 🏦 For Banks & Financial Services • Real-time AI for fraud detection, personalized customer experiences, and risk management. • Event-driven automation for faster loan approvals, compliance checks, and operational resilience. 🏛️ For Public Sector & Government • Reliable data flow for citizen services, smart city initiatives, and digital identity programs. • Improved governance and data sovereignty with hybrid cloud flexibility and open-source foundations. ✅ Why it matters now Canada is accelerating digital transformation in both banking and government. This move enables organizations to shift from experimentation to production-grade AI and automation at scale, powered by continuous, trustworthy data streams. Excited to see how IBM + Confluent will help Canadian banks and public sector agencies lead the next wave of innovation! #IBM #Confluent #AI #Automation #HybridCloud #DataStreaming #BankingInnovation #GovTech #DigitalTransformation #CanadaTech

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𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝗖𝗹𝗼𝘂𝗱 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗩𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗦𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗱𝗮 Google Cloud’s update gives Canadian teams real choices that line up with GC requirements: a Data Boundary for Canada, a boundary for Government of Canada Protected B, plus Dedicated and fully Air Gapped options. The value is choice without losing access to modern services, including AI. For public and regulated programs, assurance and operations are the test. The Canada and Protected B boundaries tie residency to working controls: Access Approval, Access Transparency, External Key Management with Key Access Justifications, client side encryption for Workspace, and validation through Mandiant’s User Data Shield. Dedicated and air-gapped address higher bars where independent operation or full isolation is required. This is meaningful for Canadian buyers. Sovereignty is a spectrum, not a single box to tick. These patterns can be mapped to PBMM, PBHVA, and sector specific isolation needs, helping programs move from pilot to production with clearer guardrails. Amazing article by Farsad Nasseri & John Cousens : https://lnkd.in/eZmpFyEV

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Often long lived or nascent enterprise challenges float around looking the org for an owner and in my experience, a lot of the time they end up landing in Enterprise Architecture. The practice seems to collect a lot of "enterprise problems" that aren't necessarily "architecture problems" but need solving nonetheless. Possibly one of the traits we encompass which is to work across whole organisation that naturally lures these kinds of problems towards us. I often use the adage "an architect should wear many hats" so why not the practice itself, bringing teams together trying to ideate over problems where technology might be a potential solution but often more likely lies between people and process. From the desk of the Head of Technology Architecture and Governance (and Security of Critical Infrastructure legislation interpretation and Asset Management planning and Horizontal Technical Platform definition and Total Cost of Ownership attribution... 😅) #enterprisearchitecture #wearerofhats

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Quick 5 min. video of what Business Capability modeling is, the difference between strategic consulting and deep architectural use of the model, and why rigour matters — and how the wrong model does more harm than good. #CapabilityModeling https://lnkd.in/gDuf8znR

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Snowflake has completed the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security’s Protected B Assessment on AWS and Azure—meeting the Medium Cloud Security profile for the Government of Canada. 🇨🇦 Now, GC departments can combat fraud, improve citizen services, and power AI innovation with their most sensitive data—all while keeping it within Canada. Read how this milestone unlocks the future of government on Snowflake: https://bit.ly/4oHVC8r

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