AI is rapidly transforming how work is done, and the urgency for businesses to bridge the skills gap and implement AI solutions is more pressing than ever. Understanding and pursuing Microsoft AI Certification paths is not just critical; it's a necessity for survival in the evolving business landscape.
The demand for AI Skilling and Certification
Finding or training IT professionals with AI skills is more pressing than ever. Does your business have the skills to transform with AI? According to IDC, 71% of companies are already using AI. Although a glaring 52% talk about a shortage of skilled talent. National data reveals the expanding digital skills gaps, with a focus on AI and training challenges.
In Australia, the demand for AI skills has ballooned, with the number of jobs requesting core AI skills such as machine learning, natural language processing and deep learning growing from 300 in 2013 to almost 6,000 in 2023. This is according to the ACS Digital Pulse 2024.
Why focus on Microsoft Certification paths?
A structured approach to AI skilling is critical in accelerating transformation and ensuring it aligns with your career and business goals.
For technical professionals, it supports them in the following aspects:
Career Advancement: Microsoft AI Certifications demonstrate your expertise in building, managing, and deploying AI solutions using Azure AI services.
Skill Development: The Microsoft AI certification path helps you develop a comprehensive skill set. Learn about various AI technologies like Cognitive Services, Machine Learning, and Knowledge Mining, which are essential for implementing AI solutions.
Industry Recognition: Microsoft AI certifications are widely recognised and can add credibility to your work experience.
Networking Opportunities: Being part of the Microsoft-certified community can open up networking opportunities with other professionals in the field. From there, you can discover collaborations, mentorship, and career growth.
Staying Updated: The field of AI is rapidly evolving. Microsoft regularly updates its certification content to reflect the latest advancements and best practices, ensuring that certified professionals stay current with industry trends.
For technical executives and learning and development managers, it supports the following:
Strategic Alignment: You can ensure that your teams' skills align with the organisation's strategic goals. Understanding the Microsoft AI certification path helps you plan and implement AI initiatives better.
Talent Development: You can use the certification path to design effective training programs so that staff have the necessary competencies to work with advanced AI technologies.
Competitive Advantage: Organisations with certified professionals are often seen as more credible and capable in the market, leading to expanded business opportunities and partnerships.
Innovation and Efficiency: Certified professionals are more likely to be proficient in the latest AI tools and techniques that can help the business find innovative solutions and improve operational efficiency.
Employee Retention: Offering certification opportunities can boost employee morale and retention. Employees are more likely to stay with an organisation that invests in their professional growth.
Compliance and Best Practice: Certifications ensure that professionals know the latest industry standards and best practices, which is crucial for maintaining compliance and ensuring ethical AI deployment.
The four-stage AI learning journey
Microsoft has developed a four-stage approach that companies can follow to upskill their workforce on AI. These stages are not intended to be linear. Neither are they predefined paths nor mandatory steps. The rationale behind this design is that businesses and individuals may be at different places in their AI journey.
These stages can serve as a framework for organisations to discover the training resources needed to upskill their teams.
Stage 1: Understanding AI - Start with a strong foundation. Learn AI concepts.
Stage 2: Preparing for AI - Gain essential knowledge to prepare your infrastructure for adopting copilots.
Stage 3: Using AI - Discover skills to use copilots and maximise their benefits.
Stage 4: Building AI Solutions - Learn how to build AI experiences into your own apps and services.
Across each stage, we have curated role-based training resources—ranging from fundamentals to technical knowledge to business-user training—that teams can leverage to develop their AI skills.
The Microsoft Azure AI Certification Path
Advancing your skills in Microsoft AI technologies involves going through structured levels.
Beginner: Understand foundational knowledge of AI concepts and services. Start with the Azure AI Fundamentals certification. Learn about AI workloads, machine learning principles, computer vision, natural language processing, and generative AI on Azure.
Intermediate: Progress to mid-level credentials that validate your skills in designing and implementing AI solutions. Explore the Azure AI Engineer Associate certification. Learn about content moderation, computer vision, natural language processing, knowledge mining, and generative AI solutions. Showcase your ability to apply data science and machine learning techniques on Azure. You can also consider the Azure Data Scientist Associate certification. Learn about data preparation, model training, model evaluation, and deployment using Azure.
Advanced: Aim for expert-level certifications, which require more in-depth knowledge and experience in AI technologies and Machine Learning.
Step into digital transformation with Microsoft AI skilling
To accelerate transformation, organisations need to take an AI-skills and certification-first approach.
Take a structured approach to AI skill building. Build skills based on individual and team goals: Understanding AI, Preparing for AI, Using AI, and Building AI solutions.
Train and validate skills across every business function—from leadership to IT to dev to line of business users.
Certify with a trusted partner. Lumify Work has been delivering practical training across all Microsoft products for over 30 years. We are proud to be both Australia’s and New Zealand’s first Microsoft Gold Learning Solutions Partner and the winner of the Microsoft MCT Superstars Award for FY24, which formally recognises us as having the highest quality Microsoft Certified Trainers (MCTs) in ANZ. Our training expands to the Philippines. Contact us to enquire about Microsoft Certifications.
Learn more about validating AI skills within your team. Download our whitepaper, "Accelerate innovation with Microsoft AI certifications."
