Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT Since 2005) + Production Azure & AKS Cloud Architect
Since attaining his Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) credential in 2005, Steven Nagendran has trained thousands of enterprise engineers across Malaysia, Singapore, and EMEA through Microsoft Learning Partners while continuously architecting production Microsoft infrastructure—from global SCCM deployments for Volvo IT and SQL Server migrations for New Straits Times to modern multi-region Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) platforms for ParrotPos and Cognitoz AI.
Holding six verified Microsoft certifications—Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT), Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE), Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCITP), Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS), Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator (MCSA), and Microsoft Certified Database Administrator (MCDBA)—alongside 12 Red Hat certifications including Red Hat Certified Architect (RHCA) and Red Hat Certified Instructor (RHCI), Steven bridges proprietary Microsoft platforms and open-source Linux/Kubernetes ecosystems in enterprise production.
As a Specialist Consultant, Trainer, and Architect, Steven delivers official Microsoft curricula (via Authorized Learning Partners) and architectural consulting across Azure Infrastructure & Landing Zones (AZ-104, AZ-305, AZ-700, AZ-800/801), Cloud-Native AKS & DevOps (AZ-400, GH-200, GH-300, GH-500, AZ-2002/2003/2006), Zero-Trust Security (AZ-500, SC-200, SC-100), and Enterprise Data & Analytics with Microsoft Fabric (DP-600, DP-700), Azure SQL (DP-300), and Power BI (PL-300).
Azure Landing Zones, Networking & Hybrid Cloud
Designing resilient, well-architected Azure landing zones, hub-spoke virtual networks, and hybrid on-premise integrations.
- Enterprise Azure Architecture (AZ-305 track) & Administration (AZ-104 track): Management Groups, Azure Policy governance, Bicep/Terraform IaC, and cost optimization
- Advanced Azure Networking (AZ-700 track): Hub-Spoke vNET peering, Azure Virtual WAN (vWAN), ExpressRoute, Site-to-Site IPsec, Azure Firewall, Application Gateway WAF, and Private Link
- Windows Server Hybrid Infrastructure (AZ-800 / AZ-801): Entra Connect Sync, Azure Arc hybrid server management, Storage Migration Service, and Azure Site Recovery
- Azure Virtual Desktop (AZ-140) multi-session pooled host pools, FSLogix profile containers, and MSIX app attach
Production Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) & DevOps CI/CD
Engineering high-concurrency microservices on AKS with automated Azure DevOps and GitHub Actions release pipelines.
- Production AKS architecture (proven on ParrotPos FinTech e-Wallet & Cognitoz AI): CNI Overlay, Workload Identity, Key Vault CSI driver, KEDA autoscaling, and multi-region traffic routing
- Azure DevOps Solutions (AZ-400 track) & GitHub Enterprise (GH-100 / GH-200 / GH-300 / GH-500): YAML multi-stage pipelines, self-hosted runners, CodeQL SAST, and Dependabot
- Applied cloud-native workshops: AZ-2002 (GitHub Actions with Azure), AZ-2003 (Container Apps), and AZ-2006 (Automate Azure Load Testing)
Zero-Trust Cloud Security, Sentinel SIEM & Purview
Hardening Azure workloads, hybrid identities, and AI endpoints against modern cyber threats and regulatory audits.
- Cybersecurity Architecture (SC-100 track) & Azure Security Technologies (AZ-500 track): Zero Trust reference architectures, Entra Privileged Identity Management (PIM), Key Vault HSM, and Defender for Cloud CSPM
- Security Operations with Microsoft Sentinel & Defender XDR (SC-200 track): Kusto Query Language (KQL) threat hunting and Logic Apps SOAR playbooks
- Securing Cloud & AI Workloads (SC-5009 / AB-6007 / AB-650): Entra workload identities, Purview data sensitivity labeling, DLP, and shadow-agent governance
Microsoft Fabric, Azure Data Platform & Power Platform
Unifying enterprise lakehouses, real-time analytics, relational SQL estates, and pro-code Power Platform extensibility.
- Microsoft Fabric Analytics & Data Engineering (DP-600 / DP-700 tracks): OneLake Delta-Parquet lakehouses, Medallion architecture, PySpark notebooks, Real-Time Intelligence (KQL), and Direct Lake semantic models
- SQL Server & Azure SQL Database Administration (MCDBA / DP-300 / DP-900): SQL Managed Instance, Elastic Pools, Always On Availability Groups, and query store tuning
- Power BI Analytics (PL-300) & Pro-Developer Power Platform (PL-400 / AB-400 / AB-410) with custom PCF controls, Dataverse C# plugins, and Azure OpenAI integration
Official Microsoft Authorized Labs & Production Azure Architecture Mentorship
All official Microsoft courses taught by Steven are delivered strictly using official Microsoft Authorized Lab environments via Microsoft Learning Partners.
- Official Microsoft courses (AZ-104, AZ-305, AZ-700, AZ-400, AZ-500, SC-100, DP-600, DP-700, PL-300) run on official Microsoft Authorized Lab Hoster (ALH) environments through Certified Training Partners.
- Real architectural walk-throughs from Steven's production deployments: ParrotPos (multi-region AKS e-Wallet backend), Cognitoz AI (AKS + Azure DevOps + OpenAI), Volvo IT, and New Straits Times.
- Role-based exam readiness and hybrid Linux/Windows architecture mentorship from an MCT active continuously since 2005.
Production Deployments & Migration Track Record
Steven brings real architectural lessons from these enterprise deployments directly into every consulting engagement and hands-on classroom.
ParrotPos Mobile App — Implementation and Maintenance of backend System for Microservice
ParrotPos e-Wallet Mobile app is backed by Azure Kubernetes Service and Azure DevOps, the Project involves of implementing and maintaining the backend services for the Mobile App.
Cognitoz AI — Implementation of Generative A.I based on OpenAI
Cognitoz AI is backed by Azure Kubernetes Service and Azure DevOps, the Project involves of implementing and maintaining the backend services for the Web App.
Volvo I.T — Microsoft SMS implementation
The project involves implementation, testing, and training on Microsoft SMS ( now known as SCCM ) for Volvo I.T Global Support Center in Shah Alam, Malaysia
New Straits Times — SQL Database/Windows Migration Project
A full migration of News Database system and Windows 2000 to Windows 2008, involved as Project advisor, creating Infrastructure Architect for new systems for production in Balai Berita 1, Kuala Lumpur
MRT Rail Project 1 (CMMS) — Implementation and Delivery of Computerized Maintenance Management (CMMS)
The project involves Implementing Web Server, Database, and User Interface Modification. The technology involved, Oracle Database, Microsoft Database, Oracle Linux, Red Hat Linux, MariaDB, Windows 2012.
Courses & Curricula Taught by Steven (36 Tracks)
Official vendor courses are delivered through Authorized Training Partners on official vendor labs; custom-built tracks run on Cognitoz BetaLab.
Introduction to Cloud Infrastructure
Foundational cloud concepts, core Azure architectural components, compute, networking, storage, security governance, and compliance principles.
Microsoft Azure Administrator
In-depth administration of Microsoft Azure environments covering Entra ID identities, secure governance, virtual networking, compute deployment, and storage management.
Design Microsoft Azure Infrastructure Solutions
Architecting resilient, scalable enterprise solutions across identity, governance, compute, high-availability data storage, business continuity, and network architectures.
Design and Implement Microsoft Azure Network Solutions
Planning and implementing core Azure networking infrastructure: hybrid connectivity, ExpressRoute, virtual WAN, application routing, network security, and monitoring.
Develop Solutions for Microsoft Azure
Cloud solution development using Azure App Service, Azure Functions, Blob & Cosmos DB storage, API Management, and event-driven messaging architectures.
Introduction to Microsoft Azure Data
Foundations of relational and non-relational data workloads in Azure, cloud database services, and modern analytical reporting solutions.
Implement scalable database solutions using Azure SQL
Administering relational database solutions on Azure SQL Database and Azure SQL Managed Instance: performance tuning, automated backup, security, and HA.
Implement analytics solutions using Microsoft Fabric
End-to-end analytics engineering with Microsoft Fabric: Lakehouses, Data Warehouses, Apache Spark processing, Delta tables, semantic models, and Direct Lake Power BI.
Implement data engineering solutions using Microsoft Fabric
Designing and operationalizing enterprise data pipelines, Medallion architecture (Bronze/Silver/Gold), Spark transformations, and real-time streaming in Microsoft Fabric.
Designing and implementing a data science solution on Azure
Operationalizing machine learning models with Azure Machine Learning Studio, automated ML, MLflow model tracking, and managed endpoint deployment.
Data Engineering on Microsoft Azure
Traditional Azure data platform engineering with Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure Data Factory pipelines, and Azure Databricks Spark clusters.
Introduction to AI in Azure
Core Artificial Intelligence concepts: Computer Vision, Natural Language Processing, Conversational AI, and Generative AI on Azure cloud.
Develop AI solutions in Azure
Building production cognitive AI applications using Azure AI Services: Azure OpenAI, Document Intelligence, Azure AI Search, Speech, and Language understanding.
Get started with AI applications and agents on Azure
Architecting autonomous AI applications and agentic workflows using Azure AI Foundry, Semantic Kernel, and AutoGen agent orchestration.
Design and manage analytics solutions using Power BI
Comprehensive Power BI reporting: data ingestion via Power Query, Star Schema data modeling, advanced DAX expressions, row-level security, and Power BI Service administration.
Microsoft Power Platform Developer
Extending Power Platform with pro-code development: custom connectors, PCF (Power Apps Component Framework) controls, Dataverse plug-ins, Azure integrations, and ALM pipelines.
Extend Microsoft Power Platform Solutions with code and AI
Pro-developer extensibility for Power Platform: creating Power Apps Component Framework (PCF) controls, custom plugins, Azure OpenAI / Azure AI Foundry API integration, and enterprise CI/CD deployment pipelines.
Build intelligent applications
Architecting agent-first business applications on Microsoft Power Platform: Dataverse modeling, AI Builder integration, automated agent workflows, and embedding Copilot capabilities into custom apps.
Microsoft Power Platform App Maker
Building low-code Canvas Apps, Model-Driven Apps, automated cloud flows with Power Automate, and Dataverse tables.
Microsoft Power Platform Functional Consultant
Configuring Dataverse, business process flows, security roles, environment lifecycle, and Copilot Studio bots.
Microsoft Power Automate RPA Developer
Building enterprise Robotic Process Automation solutions using Power Automate Desktop, UI automation, and hosted RPA machines. (Officially retired by Microsoft — superseded by agentic automation and AB-400/AB-410).
Microsoft 365 Administrator
Administering Microsoft 365 tenant identity with Entra ID, security compliance, Microsoft Purview information protection, and device management with Intune.
Introduction to Microsoft 365 and AI administration
Foundational administration for modern AI-driven workplaces: managing Microsoft 365 Copilot, deploying pre-built agents, configuring Entra ID identity baselines, Purview data hygiene, and security posture.
Administer Microsoft 365 and AI services
Enterprise-grade administration of Microsoft 365 and AI services: Copilot deployment policies, agent access control, Microsoft Purview sensitivity labeling, data loss prevention (DLP), and compliance telemetry.
Manage collaboration and communication with Microsoft Teams
Planning and configuring Microsoft Teams architecture: security, compliance, guest access, governance, phone system integration, and room devices.
Plan, configure, and manage collaboration communications systems with Microsoft Teams
Deep voice architecture: Microsoft Teams Direct Routing, Operator Connect, emergency calling, PSTN calling plans, and Teams Rooms deployment.
Introduction to Microsoft 365
Foundational overview of Microsoft 365 cloud services, collaboration tools, zero-trust security, and cloud licensing.
Design and implement Microsoft DevOps solutions
Engineering end-to-end DevOps practices: Azure Pipelines, GitHub Actions, source control security, infrastructure as code (Bicep/Terraform), and continuous compliance.
GitHub Copilot for Enterprise Developers
Hands-on engineering workshop maximizing developer productivity with GitHub Copilot, Copilot Chat, context prompting, unit test generation, and secure coding practices.
Secure cloud resources with Microsoft Azure security technologies
Hardening cloud infrastructure: Entra Privileged Identity Management (PIM), Defender for Cloud, Key Vault HSM, network micro-segmentation, and automated threat detection.
Defend against cyberthreats with Microsoft's security operations platform
Threat detection, incident triage, and automated response using Microsoft Defender XDR and Microsoft Sentinel SIEM/SOAR platforms.
Microsoft Cybersecurity Architect
Designing enterprise Zero Trust strategies: identity security, hybrid cloud resilience, DevSecOps governance, ransomware defense, and data protection compliance.
GitHub Foundations
Core collaboration and development on GitHub: repositories, branching strategies, pull requests, Markdown documentation, and project boards.
GitHub fundamentals — Administration basics and product features
Administering GitHub Enterprise: organization policies, team permissions, SAML SSO / SCIM provisioning, audit logging, and repository rule sets.
Automate your workflow with GitHub Actions
Building robust CI/CD pipelines with GitHub Actions: workflow syntax, self-hosted runners, secret management, matrix builds, and custom action publishing.
GitHub Advanced Security
Securing the software supply chain with GitHub Advanced Security: CodeQL static analysis, Secret Scanning push protection, and Dependabot vulnerability remediation.
Active Certifications & Accreditations
Frequently Asked Questions — Microsoft Azure Cloud Specialist
What makes Steven's Microsoft Azure training and consulting distinct?
Steven has been an active Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) continuously since 2005, holding six verified Microsoft certifications (MCT, MCSE, MCITP, MCTS, MCSA, MCDBA) alongside 12 Red Hat certifications including Red Hat Certified Architect (RHCA). Because he actively engineers production Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), Azure DevOps, SQL Server, and hybrid Linux/Windows systems, he teaches how Azure operates in real enterprise production.
How are Official Microsoft courses and HRD Corp (HRDF) claims delivered in Malaysia?
Official Microsoft courses taught by Steven (MCT, HRDF Certified Trainer TTT/20188) are delivered through Authorized Microsoft Learning & HRDF-Registered Training Partners using official Microsoft courseware and official Microsoft Authorized Lab environments.
Does Steven provide independent Azure architecture consulting and AKS implementation?
Yes. Beyond teaching official Microsoft curricula through Authorized Partners, Steven provides direct architectural consulting, Azure Landing Zone reviews, AKS cluster engineering, and hybrid cloud migration implementation.