Building trusted, AI-ready data foundations with Microsoft Fabric
How nexwave helped Workskil Australia cut Synapse costs by ~$60k/yr, close audit gaps, and migrate 100+ Power BI assets to a governed Microsoft Fabric platform
Client
Workskil Australia
Industry
Not-for-profit, Employment Services
Services
Cloud foundations, Data governance, Migration, Enablement
Technology
Microsoft Fabric, Power BI, Purview, Azure DevOps
At a glance
The challenge
To support its mission of helping Australians into meaningful work, Workskil needed faster, trusted insights — and a data platform ready for responsible AI. Their existing environment was creating rising costs, governance challenges, and manually configured cloud controls, which together led to fragmented reporting, compliance risks, and limited AI readiness.
What we delivered
nexwave partnered with Workskil to modernise foundations and move to Microsoft Fabric through a structured, multi-phase program.
1Azure foundations & hygiene
- Reviewed Microsoft Landing Zone and delivered recommendations highlighting key improvements and remediations to the environment
- Enabled Git-based DevOps deployment in Fabric for version control, bulk edits, and validation before release
- Workskil implemented hardened controls across all critical remediations
2Practical data governance
- Operationalised a fit for purpose governance policy and report development process
- Embedded a data ownership matrix across domains
- Rolled out a data dictionary and data-quality framework with associated reporting
- Enabled Microsoft Purview Hub in Fabric for metadata visibility and lineage
3Synapse → Fabric migration
- Provisioned Microsoft Fabric capacity and implemented a medallion architecture
- Automated ingestion, transformation, and orchestration with metadata-driven, reusable notebooks and pipelines
- 27+ pipelines automated
- 100+ Power BI reports and semantic models migrated in agile sprints
Outcomes
Cost savings
Eliminated ≈ $60k/year in Synapse licensing
Operational efficiency
~30% less analyst rework via standardised processes and governance
Future-ready
Trusted, governed Fabric environment prepared for Microsoft Copilot and GenAI use cases
Capability uplift
Knowledge transfer, runbooks, and ownership embedded with Workskil's Data & AI team
"nexwave's focus on enablement alongside education was a clear differentiator - they didn't just deliver solutions, they helped our team truly understand the principles of Microsoft Fabric and AI. That knowledge transfer built the confidence and capability we needed to take ownership of our data transformation. Throughout the engagement, it never felt like working with a traditional delivery partner; nexwave acted as a strategic advisor and change agent, ready to tackle any challenge while keeping Workskil firmly in the driver's seat."
Change management & enablement
To ensure adoption, nexwave co-designed with Workskil's teams, provided role-based walkthroughs, and delivered clear runbooks. Governance is now part of daily practice - not a side document - so insights are trusted and repeatable.
What's next
With solid foundations and Fabric in production, Workskil can expand governed analytics and explore targeted AI scenarios that enhance outcomes for job seekers and communities.
Want to modernise your data foundation with Microsoft Fabric?
Let's discuss how nexwave can help you build a governed, AI-ready data platform.
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