Many years ago when I was new and a small town, junior programmer, an extremely accomplished senior software developer architect gave me some very precious advice. He told me that if I wanted to be successful as a developer than I would have to accept the fact that 20% of my knowledge will become outdated every year. No rule has held more true all these years later. This is why I appreciate certifications because they give us a way to constantly measure our progress and push ourselves towards staying current. There are some positive updates about changes to the Dynamics certifications that happened this month. For all of you ambitious people who work hard and are completely dedicated to staying current, this post is for you.

First, this last week, I got to work in Amish territory. It was quite amazing to see horse carriages on the street along with cars. I just had to post a picture. One of the benefits to being senior and having a good reputation is that you get opportunities to go all over the world and help people. Along the way, you get some very beneficial experiences like the one below.

And finally, this was the Walmart Parking lot:

Now, regarding changes to the Dynamics Operations/AX Certification Program, there has been some significant moves here.

1^st. My appeal of the certification curriculum was successful with Microsoft: For those of you who are like me, doing upgrade paths on certifications, this is very significant. The SQL MCSA 2016 does equivocate to the 70-764 exam for all of you upgraders. The upgrade path wasn’t out at the time that Microsoft originally made the MCSE Business Applications certification which is why it was left out. I thank Microsoft deeply for adding this.

2^nd.Path for the Microsoft Certified Expert certification for Business Applications.

There are some changes which haven’t been announced yet. Mainly, there is a new path is being added for the MCSA Dynamics Operations. I’ll leave that for Microsoft to announce , so my lips are sealed for now. I find the new path very agreeable, and I think that most people will like it. So, at current, here is what you need(without the new path announcement) for the highest certification on Dynamics currently out there (from a testing and knowledge standpoint). You need MB6-890, 70-764 or 70-765, plus one of the functional exams (MB6-892, MB6-893, or MB2-718, MB2-717) and you accomplish the expert certification.

In summary, I got to go catch a plane to another client. Keep pushing and studying!!! Good things are happening in the background.