The Integration Blueprint: Choosing the Right Path in Microsoft Fabric
Data Engineers in Toronto November 2026 Semimonthly Meeting Topic: The Integration Blueprint: Choosing the Right Path in Microsoft Fabric Abstract: In a world of multiple tools and endless data sources, how do you design the right integration strategy in Microsoft Fabric? Join Javier and Gaston, two Microsoft MVPs in Data Platform for a live demo-driven session that breaks down the real-world patterns, use cases, and best practices for landing, transforming, and orchestrating data in Microsoft Fabric. Whether you’re working with a Lakehouse, Data Warehouse, Eventhouse, or SQL Database, this session gives you the playbook to select and combine the right tools for the job. We’ll walk through: • Landing data using Data Pipelines, OneLake shortcuts, and external connections • Transforming and cleaning data using Notebooks (Spark) for scale and flexibility • Business logic and last-mile transformation using Dataflows Gen2 • How to orchestrate it all using Fabric Data Pipelines for repeatable, maintainable workflows • When and why to land your data into Lakehouses, Data Warehouses, Eventhouses, or SQL endpoints. You’ll walk away with: • A clear understanding of which tools to use when across the Fabric integration stack • A working knowledge of how to combine multiple integration techniques in one solution • Architecture patterns and decision criteria for building scalable data landing zones • Live demos you can replicate to accelerate your own Fabric journey Speaker: Javier Villegas, IT Director & Microsoft MVP Data Platform Speaker Profile: Javier Villegas is IT Director (DBA & BI Services) at Mediterranean Shipping Company with 30 years of experience working with SQL Server, Including Azure SQL. His specialization is Administration, Performance Tuning, High Availability and Disaster Recovery. Javier is a Microsoft MVP Data Platform since 2016 and MCT He is a frequent speaker in technical conferences and events such as SQL Saturdays, PASS Virtual Groups, PASS Marathons, 24 Hours SQL PASS , vOpen , GroupBy , Data Saturdays and Azure Global Bootcamps. He is one of the group leaders of SQL Argentina Community and former Microsoft Azure Data Advisory Board Member. The meeting is over Microsoft Teams, and the joining link is https://vip.dataengineersintoronto.org/webinar See you at the meeting!Deep Dive into Scalable, AI-Ready Spark in Microsoft Fabric
Data Engineers in Toronto November 2026 Semimonthly Meeting Topic: Deep Dive into Scalable, AI-Ready Spark in Microsoft Fabric Abstract: In this session, we’ll take a practical deep dive into Spark-based data engineering in Microsoft Fabric. We’ll walk through proven techniques and repeatable patterns for solving common and advanced data engineering challenges, covering advanced Spark SQL functions, effective approaches to semi-structured data, and strategies for building reliable, maintainable pipelines. We will be focusing on Fabric-specific aspects of Spark Notebooks, including table optimization. AI-related capabilities in Fabric Spark will also be covered, including built-in and integrated functions that support text processing, enrichment, classification, and feature engineering directly within Spark workloads, along with guidance on where these functions fit. Speaker: Iurii Iurchenko, Sr Data Engineer at Life Line Screening Speaker Profile: Iuril is an Azure advocate, Fabcon speaker, Senior Data Engineer & Tech Lead with 13 years of deep, hands-on expertise in Data Analytics, Microsoft Fabric, and the Azure data ecosystem. 2x certified in Microsoft Fabric, with 6+ successfully delivered complex projects leveraging Microsoft Fabric. Two-time SQL Saturday speaker in San Diego, Top-1% ADPList mentor, former entrepreneur, and active OHDSI CDM contributor with 7 years in consulting and 6 years in product engineering. He brings a highly practical, frontier-level skillset at the intersection of Fabric, AI, and healthcare analytics. He is currently innovating at Life Line Screening, bringing the best of Microsoft Fabric to its modern data analytics platform. The meeting is over Microsoft Teams, and the joining link is https://vip.dataengineersintoronto.org/webinar See you at the meeting!Beyond the Prompt: Tuning Fabric Data Agents for Flawless Results
Data Engineers in Toronto August 2026 Semimonthly Meeting Topic: Beyond the Prompt - Tuning Fabric Data Agents for Flawless Results Abstract: As organizations race to deploy AI Agents, it quickly becomes clear that standard prompt engineering isn't enough. To achieve production-grade accuracy, you have to go beyond the prompt and fundamentally change how you feed your data layers to the AI. In Microsoft Fabric, your choice of data artifact directly dictates your agent's reasoning style and native language. In this session, we will deep-dive into how Fabric Data Agents interact with four distinct data paradigms: Semantic Models, Ontology, Data Warehouses, and Lakehouses. Moving past high-level theory, we will practically map the three pillars of data agent optimization across the data paradigms: Agent Instructions (System Prompts) Data Source Descriptions (Grounding) Example Queries (Few-Shot Prompting) You will walk away with an actionable blueprint showing you exactly how to write context rules, embed semantic metadata, and supply technical query examples to ensure your Fabric Data Agents deliver flawless, trusted results every time. Speaker: Thimantha Vidanagamage, Data Engineer at OMERS, Canada Speaker Profile: Thimantha has over 8 years of experience in Data and AI. He currently works as a Senior Data Engineer at OMERS in Canada, where he plays an active role in the organization’s adoption of Microsoft Fabric. He holds multiple Microsoft certifications, including Microsoft Certified: AI Transformation Leader and Fabric Data/Analytics Engineer Associate. Thimantha is also a co-organizer of the Toronto Data Professionals Community. The meeting is over Microsoft Teams, and the joining link is https://vip.dataengineersintoronto.org/webinar See you at the meeting!Building Scalable SCD Type 2 Pipelines in MS Fabric DW Using T-SQL
Data Engineers in Toronto June 2026 Semimonthly Meeting Topic: Building Scalable SCD Type 2 Pipelines in MS Fabric DW Using T-SQL Abstract: Implementing Slowly Changing Dimension (Type 2) at scale is critical for maintaining historical accuracy in analytics, but doing so efficiently across billions of rows in Microsoft Fabric Data Warehouse requires leveraging its modern ingestion and optimization capabilities. In this session, we’ll build a Fabric-optimized SCD Type 2 pipeline using pure T-SQL patterns. We’ll start by comparing ingestion strategies like OPENROWSET for schema-on-read exploration and COPY INTO for high-throughput, parallelized loading—and explain why COPY INTO is the preferred method for large-scale ingestion in Fabric Warehouses. Next, we’ll implement incremental load logic without MERGE (since Fabric does not currently support the MERGE statement) by using UPDATE + INSERT patterns combined with hash-based change detection and filtered indexes for current-row lookups. We’ll also cover performance accelerators like batching, minimal logging, and distribution strategies to maximize query performance. Finally, we’ll demonstrate a full end-to-end pipeline: - Discover external Parquet/CSV files with OPENROWSET - Ingest into Fabric Warehouse using COPY INTO - Apply SCD Type 2 logic using merge-like T-SQL patterns for historical tracking You’ll leave with a production-ready template and a Fabric-specific performance playbook for handling incremental loads at scale with minimal friction. Speaker: Jean Joseph, Principal Data & AI Engineer Tech-Insight-Group LLC Speaker Profile: Jean Joseph is a seasoned consultant and senior technical trainer specializing in data engineering and artificial intelligence. With a strong background in database design, administration, and cutting-edge data technologies including machine learning and generative AI. He helps organizations build secure, scalable solutions across both legacy systems and modern cloud platforms. Formerly recognized as a Microsoft MVP and senior technical trainer at Microsoft, Jean brings deep technical insight and a passion for teaching. He’s also a dynamic speaker, mentor, and the founder of the Cloud Data Driven User Group and the Future Data Driven Summit, where he champions innovation and promotes responsible use of emerging tech within the data community. The meeting is over Microsoft Teams, and the joining link is https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_NzZkYWIyOTAtODk1MC00MjVmLWJlNjUtNTRiODZmODA2Zjdh%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%22bd9727e8-f539-4c76-983c-6c30130c0bee%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%229e8d5a64-e773-4ca2-90f6-9a266129171e%22%7d See you at the meeting!Introduction to PySpark in Microsoft Fabric
Data Engineers in Toronto July 2026 Semimonthly Meeting Topic: Introduction to PySpark in Microsoft Fabric Abstract: With all of the engineering features in Microsoft Fabric, which medium should you use to move and transform data? Low-code data flows and pipelines? Good old relational SQL? What about this newfangled PySpark everyone is buzzing about? If the last option piques your curiosity and you haven't tried it, this is the session for you. I'll cover basic Python principles that will make even complicated Python easy to read. Then I will explain important topics to understand when managing your Spark environment. Finally, I'll showcase Fabric features and community content that can support your next steps in learning to implement PySpark in Fabric. Speaker: Jared Kuehn, Data Engineer Speaker Profile: For over a decade, Jared has been a data engineering consultant implementing Microsoft products. For more than three decades, he has been honing his skills in theater and other performing arts. As a speaker, Jared marries these two disciplines together, creating dynamic presentations that add entertainment to education. This symbiotic relationship can improve presentation engagement, support attendees in knowledge retention, and foster a culture of passion for the data industry. As a speaker, Jared has spoken at events such as: -Fabcon Vegas (Microsoft Fabric Community Conference) -DataCon Seattle (Microsoft Data Conference) -PASS Summit -SQL Saturdays, Multiple -Microsoft Fabric Global Online Conference -Future Data Driven Summit -GroupBy Conference -and more! He also runs the YouTube channel DataBard, focused on making Data fun and teaching techniques along the way. Technically-speaking, Jared has multiple Microsoft certifications in both on-prem and cloud technologies. He has extensive knowledge in: -Microsoft Fabric -SQL Query Development and Performance tuning -Kimball Data Modeling -ETL design patterns -Azure SQL DB and Azure SQL MI In his spare time, he continues to perform in community theater productions, as well as musically for his church. Upon request, he would be happy to assist with more theatrical portions of events, such as performing musical numbers. See you at the meeting!
