From Data Scientist to Power Platform Developer
Tags: datascience, powerplatform, changingcareer, datascientist
Published: 2022-07-15 23:18:49

I know this might sound crazy to you. I am leaving the sexiest job of the century for something not known to all. I will like to share with you my reasons and journey on this path.


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I am a very passionate Data Scientist, and I’ve delivered a couple of Machine Learning solutions. I began the first Data Science team at my place of work where I was able to standardize the team's activities with EXCOM supports.

So, Data Science is amazing!

The global lockdown in 2020 was a significant game changer as everything was hung on the cloud. Our on-prem infrastructures failed us.
We were all locked down.


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We are all aware that software changes how we work, and in every century, the very nature of work itself changes. We are already on the verge of experiencing another major shift. It is the 2nd wave of digital transformation, and the lockdown accelerated it.

Deep down, my passion is to help people and organizations simplify processes and map innovative solutions to drive growth, reduce cost, and optimize operational processes. At the root of this passion is no attachment to a particular software or tool. Data Science was a technique I discovered that could help me deliver on this.

> At the root of this passion is no attachment to a particular software or tool. Data Science was a technique I discovered that could help me deliver on this.

**Why then did I make this Switch from Data Science**
Reason No 1: My passion is not tied to technique but instead centred around people. This made it easier to consider a change of job title and use of a tool.

Back to the conversation on the global lockdown, I saw businesses shutting down, people losing jobs and loved ones (My heartfelt condolences to all families affected by the pandemic. It was too emotional for me), employees getting significant pay-cut, and so on.

I then realized how privileged I am to be working with AXA Nigeria where premium attention was given to all employees' wellbeing and mental health without any pay cut or lay-off. There were a thousand and one reasons to consider some of these options because revenue was dwindling at the time (at least not as projected).

> My passion got redefined, and I found its pivot on love and empathy. I saw more reasons why I have to give all my best to the organization.

As a Data Scientist in the Nigerian market, we are limited in application and use cases because of data structures and management. Most of the available data in businesses today are not adequately managed to make them suitable for advanced analytics use cases (however, we were able to pick up a couple of use cases and delivered some during the pandemic).

We are aware that the lockdown accelerated the digitization need of every organization and AXA Nigeria wasn't an exemption. From a hard copy form that could no longer be filled and submitted to the next office, to the leads that can no longer be contacted in person. This led to more inefficient processes with limited capacity.

I hurriedly searched for sustainable tools (apps and services) that could help my organization streamline these processes and become more resilient, and I found Power Platform.

> I was able to work with my team and managers' support, address significantly several processes within the organization, and bring relief to lots of teams (several team/divisions). The joy was immeasurable for me.

With the Microsoft Power platform and its integration to Microsoft 365 Apps and Services, I was able to leverage Microsoft Forms, SharePoint List, Power Automate, MS Teams, Power Apps and build working solutions in hours while some cases, in days (because of the learning gap).

With the capabilities of Microsoft Power Platform, I realized the workplace is changing rapidly.

> Without prior knowledge of Power Platform, I learned so much and accomplished so much in a matter of days. This was not the case some years ago.

**Reason No 2:**
As against Data Science projects, I could leverage the existing data in their raw form and simplify processes. Meanwhile, some Machine Learning projects were abandoned because the data available are not sufficient to deliver on the project's objectives.

**Reason No 3:**
The Smooth learning Curve. No software or tools have been more straightforward for me to learn (in terms of learning) like the Power Platform Applications. There are numerous learning resources that will address your needs and ever-growing learning communities all over the world.

**Reason No 4:**
Just You! While a team of ProDevs and Citizen Developers can come together to build a solution using Power Platform-tools (FusionDevs), you can single-handedly create a production-ready application without dependency on several teams as you would have in the traditional application development experience.

**Reason No 5:**
The Speed of Delivery: I can't express my feeling when I built a Power Apps application connecting to SharePoint List within an hour. It's a mind-blowing experience. Application development has been like rocket science to me for years until I started using PowerApps.

**Reason No 6:**
The Extensibility of the solution: The fact that I can customize my solution, build my connector, visualization card, themes, etc. was something I found intriguing.

**Reason No 7:**
It is no-code/low-code: How can I build a functional application without writing code or at most writing expressions similar to Microsoft Excel? This is so real!

**Reason No 8:**
You are not saying bye-bye to Machine Learning and AI solutions. With the AI Builder in Power Platform, you can easily infuse pre-trained Artificial Intelligence solutions into your application or flow. These AI solutions, in most cases, are more accurate than what you will develop, and you will need a lot of resources to achieve their level of accuracy.

**Reason No 9:**
Microsoft Power Platform is the future of workplace automation. PowerApps for application development, Power Automate for workflow automation, Power BI for analytics, and Power Virtual Agent for intelligent chatbot development. These solutions integrate natively to Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, and Azure Services. You can see how big the vision is.


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**Reason No 10:**

![Image description](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/c6zl4hkq5weuzrrprx6y.png)
According to Microsoft Data Science Report curled from Linkedin (see the image above).
The world needs more software developers! either pro developers or citizen developers (users of low-code/no-code tools).

These developers will focus on building solutions that will address the increased digitization needs of the world. I want to be part of these people. I want to see the world rise again to its full potential.

**Reason No 11:**
You can learn for free. Learning Data Science is almost completely free, while a fraction is licensed, e.g. leveraging on cloud services. I got my fingers burnt several times with Azure Invoice at the end of the month 😊. But for Microsoft Power Platform, you have several options to learn utterly free with access to Premium features through its Power Apps Developer Plan.

There is also an amazing community in Nigeria led by Foyin Olajide-Bello, David Abu, Ibrahim Idowu and many others (of course, I am privilege to be among the team today).

Reza Dorrani has been an inspiring leader in this space. He do not only gave himself to this community, but he also motivates me daily. you can check out his YouTube Channel here . kindly subscribe and support his work.

I have said so much here, and I need to put things together.

>I derive my satisfaction whenever I solve a business challenge, and with Microsoft Power Platform, I smile more often than before.

Today, I still oversee Data Science Projects in the organization as a Data Science Program Manager. I have seen the need to move closer to the business through Power Platform solution implementation.

I am learning every day, and I am confident that I am on the right path.

In my next post, I will introduce you to Microsoft Power Platform and show you the wonders of this amazing and god-gifted automation solution.

Resources:
My Youtube Channel: https://youtube.com/c/theoyinbooke . please subscribe 😊.
Images credit goes to amazing contributors at pixabay.com