A note from Chris Sorensen
When I look back on 2025, one theme stands out clearly: AI moved fast, but the fundamentals that support it now mattered more than ever.
There was no shortage of new tools, announcements, or bold claims this year. What clients consistently asked, though, wasn’t what’s next?—it was where do we even start, and how do we do this properly?
That question shaped much of our work at Iteration this year.
Making Sense of AI Without the Hype
AI dominated the conversation in 2025, and it’s clear it isn’t slowing down. Vendors are embedding AI into semantic models, promoting tools trained on company-specific data, and promising quick wins. In practice, most organizations are still figuring out how any of this fits into their existing data environments.
The direction is agentic AI—systems that can reason, act, and work across data environments. But the path to get there isn’t about rushing into tools. It’s about making sure your data is structured, governed, and understandable enough for AI to actually work.
That’s where we’ve stayed focused. While many conversations jump straight to AI features, our work continues to start one step earlier: semantic models, data quality, and governance. If AI can’t reliably read your data, it can’t deliver value. Full stop.
AI won’t replace people—but people who know how to use AI effectively will replace those who don’t. Our goal is to make sure our clients are in the first group, with data foundations they can trust.
Growing Through Delivery & Partnerships
This year also marked meaningful growth in how we deliver projects and partnerships.
From a delivery perspective, started our largest project in Iteration’s history—a milestone for the team and a reflection of the trust our clients place in us. We also added several strategic clients in the retail, education and industrial sectors.
We partnered with Jot Digital, an ISV working with Dynamics 365 Business Central, to support analytics and reporting expanding our work into ERP-aligned environments. We also partnered with Reporting Hub, helping external consultants and partner organizations securely access reporting in their own environments—something we’re seeing more demand for as reporting becomes increasingly distributed. We became an official implementation partner of MortarCAPS, the leading Higher Learning Data Standard (MCDS). Lastly, on the commercial side, we formed a strategic partnership with Propel to support Iteration’s next phase of growth and go-to-market execution.
Investing in the Right Skills and Team
None of this work happens without the right people behind it. In 2025, we were intentional about growing our technical team, adding new skills and experience to support effective project delivery and long-term client success. As our projects become more complex and expectations continue to rise, investing in strong engineers, analytics specialists, and delivery leaders remains a priority—ensuring we can scale responsibly while maintaining the quality and trust our clients expect.
Learning, Teaching, and Community
A big part of 2025 was staying close to the Microsoft community and bringing that learning back to our clients.
We attended industry events and conferences throughout the year, while also hosting our own training sessions, Fabric In A Day, and user group events. These weren’t about showcasing shiny new tools—they were about helping people build real skills they can use right away.
One thing I’m proud of is that we didn’t ask clients to “wait until next year.” We focused on helping teams get started now, using the tools they already have, and building confidence step by step. That momentum will carry straight into 2026.
Looking Ahead
As we move into 2026, growth is clearly a focus—but not at the expense of doing things well. AI will continue to evolve quickly, but our approach won’t change: get the foundations right, enable people, and build systems that last.
We’re looking forward to continuing this work with our clients, deepening our community involvement, and returning to FabCon in 2026. Most of all, we’re excited to keep helping organizations move forward with clarity and confidence—without chasing every trend along the way.
— Chris
