
What we’re about
Welcome to the VAN 365 View Meetup Group in Vancouver, Canada.
Our goal is to create a space for organizational leaders and professionals to connect and share about Microsoft 365, AI, ERP, CRM, and Enterprise Apps. Vancouver is growing, and communities are leading the way in building a stronger city.
When? We aim to organize an in-person event during the second or third week of every month. These events will cover upcoming trends, learned lessons, best practices, and sharing resources and experiences to help our local community grow. Most importantly, it has to be fun.
With insights from MVPs, Senior Architects, Senior Consultants, and Organizational Leaders, our in-person events and conversations will revolve around technology.
- Microsoft 365 Strategic Deployments
- Business Automation
- Information Management
- SharePoint Online, and Dynamics 365
- Intranets, Collaboration Workspaces
- Document Management Systems
- User Adoption & Change Management
- Microsoft Power Platform and Microsoft Teams: No Code, Low Code, and Code-Based Business Process Automation, including RPA
- Integrations with Microsoft 365
Join us. Let's learn, network, have fun and grow together!
Sponsors
See allUpcoming events (4)
See all- Architecting for Scale: How Strategic Tech Decisions Future-Proof StartupsLow Tide Event Space, Vancouver, BC
Event Description:
In the early days of a startup, technology choices can make or break your growth. But beyond the tools and frameworks lies a deeper challenge: how do today’s CTOs and key decision makers make strategic decisions that scale with the business?
Join us for an informative and dynamic panel led by experienced tech leaders on architecting the right systems, best hiring and leading practices for technical teams, and balancing development and GTM speed with long-term sustainability. Whether you're building your first platform or modernizing legacy decisions, this session offers real-world insights into how top CTOs think and act when it matters most.
You'll walk away with frameworks, hard-earned lessons, and new connections with fellow tech decision-makers navigating similar paths.Event Details:
Date: Friday, May 23
Time: 1:00–1:45 PM
Cost: You must purchase a Vancouver Startup Week All-Access pass to attend this event.
Use our code VSWxInsideView20 to receive a discount on All-Access passes (covers 60+ events across 4 days) at https://vanstartupweek.ca/
Location: Low Tide Event Space, 1 Water Street, VancouverThis is the first of three sessions in Van365View x Inside View x Vancouver Startup Week's 2025 Event Series: Navigating Tech, Product & Equity in Startups.
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About the Speakers:
This panel features Luis Juarez (CEO of Inside View Global), Liam Ross (CTO and Co-Founder of Withe), and David Nudelman (Director of Steeves and Associates).
Luis Juarez is the founder of Inside View Global, but what truly defines him is his belief in using technology to create positive change and connect people. With a background in IT consulting, software development, and process optimization, Luis focuses on solving real problems and simplifying complex processes. His passion for building communities is evident in his role as the founder of the VAN 365 View Microsoft User Group in Vancouver.
Luis is always looking for ways to support others in their growth, believing in the power of collaboration and unity. His mission is to create lasting, meaningful impact wherever he can.
Liam Ross is Co‑founder and CTO of Withe, creators of TalentSync—a platform that powers campus recruitment events by capturing and managing candidate data in real time. He’s passionate about the evolving landscape of web development, developer tools and startup infrastructure. He formerly led architecture and engineering teams at Apryse (formerly PDFTron), xneelo (formerly Hetzner) and Collabware. Liam holds a BSc in Computer Science, Chemistry and Biology from the University of British Columbia.
As Director of Services and Alliances at Steeves, David Nudelman leverages his extensive technical, management, and leadership background to drive strategic initiatives and deliver targeted results. With a career spanning multiple countries, including the UK, Spain, Germany, and Canada, David has built and managed technical and project delivery teams, ensuring successful outcomes for many clients. David's expertise includes creating IT strategies, developing business cases, and defining organizational workstreams.
In addition to his technical prowess, David's commitment to excellence and innovation makes him a sought-after speaker and advisor, providing valuable insights into architecting scalable systems, best practices for hiring and leading technical teams, and balancing development speed with long-term sustainability.
- Pitching to Win: How to Use Storytelling to Land Customers and FundingLow Tide Event Space, Vancouver, BC
Event Description:
In today’s competitive startup landscape, developing a great product alone isn’t enough — you need to craft a great story that gets you customers, investors, and momentum to scale. Whether you're convincing your first customers or pitching to investors, your ability to craft and deliver powerful narratives can pave the way to lasting success.
Join us for an informative and dynamic session built for founders, featuring seasoned entrepreneurs and industry experts who have mastered the art of storytelling. You'll learn how to shape a narrative that not only drives customer acquisition and retention, but also sets you apart when raising your first (or next) round. We'll cover frameworks that sharpen your key message, marketing and sales tactics that amplify your story, and strategies for positioning your brand and vision as you scale.
Whether you're preparing to launch, grow, or fundraise, you’ll walk away with actionable insights on developing a customer-centric story that resonates and converts.
Event Details:
Date: Friday, May 23
Time: 2:00–2:45 PM
Cost: You must purchase a Vancouver Startup Week All-Access pass to attend this event.
Use our code VSWxInsideView20 to receive a discount on All-Access passes (covers 60+ events across 4 days) at https://vanstartupweek.ca/
Location: Low Tide Event Space, 1 Water Street, VancouverThis is the 2/3 sessions in Van365View x Inside View x Vancouver Startup Week's 2025 Event Series: Navigating Tech, Product & Equity in Startups.
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About the Speakers:
This panel features Michelle Sklar (Head of Marketing @ Innovation UBC), Meena Sandhu (Chief Revenue Officer @ Saas Revenue Consulting), and Paschal Okwundu (Founder & CEO @ Binta Financial).
Michelle Sklar is a strategic communications leader with expertise in performance driven growth marketing, storytelling, community building and entrepreneurship. With over two decades of comprehensive achievements in both B2B and B2C industries, Michelle has a proven track record as an executive leader in digital marketing, PR, strategic partnerships, and venture building. Michelle has focused her professional career development on scaling ideas to impact in the Emerging Technology, Digital Media, Events, Retail and Nonprofit industries.
Michelle’s broad cross-functional expertise is in brand strategy, content creation, building marketing teams, stakeholder engagement, project management and impact reporting. Michelle leads EDI (equity, diversity, and inclusion) initiatives, change management, developing comprehensive leadership tracks and mentorship programs - all to help empower the organizations she works with to flourish. Michelle thrives in Startups and fast paced environments, where culture and vision match the desire to be transformative.
Michelle is the Head of Marketing & Communications for Innovation UBC, the Chair of the Vancouver Entrepreneurs Forum, and a Mentor with New Ventures BC.
Meena Sandhu is an enterprising Saas revenue executive, adept at architecting go-to-market strategies that propel SaaS startups to 2x and 3x growth multiples. With over 20 years of experience, she excels at developing high-performing sales, marketing, and customer success teams, and is a master at driving expansion revenue through innovative cross-sell and up-sell strategies.
As the Chief Revenue Officer at Saas Revenue Consulting Advising, Meena helps startups scale up from seed to series B, provides startups with sales, customer success, and marketing playbooks, leads strategic planning and works with executive teams to make 10x improvements to their business, coaches young and up-and-coming leader, and ensures that marketing, sales, and CS align. Meena helps all revenue teams work as one and breaks down silos.
Having led sales, marketing, customer success, and product teams at a VP level or higher, Meena's multi-faceted approach to revenue leadership is underpinned by a robust go-to-market strategy that aligns with market dynamics and customer needs.
Paschal Okwundu is the founder and CEO of Binta Financial, an award-winning fintech company redefining access to credit for immigrants, renters, and underbanked communities. Recognized as one of Canada’s Top 20 Black Tech Entrepreneurs to Watch, Paschal is leading a financial revolution—building products that enable global credit migration, rent reporting, and culturally tailored financial education.
His journey from international student to fintech founder embodies the entrepreneurial spirit. With over a decade of experience in private equity, banking, and management consulting—including roles at RBC, BMO, and Slalom Consulting—Paschal brings deep insight into systemic barriers and how to dismantle them through innovation.
In under a year, Binta has been named Best Innovative Business of 2024 by the Black Business Association of BC and is already supporting communities across Canada. Paschal is passionate about inclusive innovation and empowering the next generation of tech leaders to build boldly and equitably.
- Designing with Strategy: How Early UX Decisions Impact Your Product RoadmapLow Tide Event Space, Vancouver, BC
Event Description:
In fast-moving startups, early UX decisions can either accelerate your product's success or lead to costly reworks and misalignments down the road. Founders often face pressure to build quickly, but what happens when early assumptions overlook what users actually need?
In this candid and dynamic co-presentation, two UX experts will walk through real examples of how early design and research decisions have shaped (and sometimes conflicted with) startup founders' product roadmaps. From missed signals in user testing to design choices that saved months of dev time, you’ll learn how to avoid common pitfalls and make smarter product decisions throughout your entire product lifecycle.
Whether you’re shipping your MVP or scaling a growing product, this session will give you an eye-opening perspective on the integral importance of connecting UX to business goals to achieve long-term product growth and business success.
Event Details:
Date: Friday, May 23
Time: 3:00–3:45 PM
Cost: You must purchase a Vancouver Startup Week All-Access pass to attend this event.
Use our code VSWxInsideView20 to receive a discount on All-Access passes (covers 60+ events across 4 days) at https://vanstartupweek.ca/
Location: Low Tide Event Space, 1 Water Street, VancouverThis is the 3/3 session in Van365View x Inside View x Vancouver Startup Week's 2025 Event Series: Navigating Tech, Product & Equity in Startups.
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About the Speakers:
This co-presentation features Ernesto Peña (Associate Teaching Professor of Design @ Northeastern University) and Silky Chan (UX Manager @ Charitable Impact).
Ernesto Peña is a professional designer, turned professional educator, turned professional researcher. In the years that passed between the first and the last stage of this ongoing process, he became a problem-solver with a deep interest in the root causes of those problems and rigorous methods to address them. This journey has taken him across continents, languages, and disciplines. It has made him an eternal learner and teacher, a big-picturer and a dot-connector.
Ernesto holds a Master's degree in Information Design and a PhD in Language and Literacy Education from the University of British Columbia. He is currently an Associate Teaching Professor of Design and the Information Design and Data Visualization Graduate Program Coordinator at the Northeastern University, Vancouver campus. He is also into information design, media and digital humanities. His research interests include visual literacy, semiotics and rhetoric, visualization, typography and editorial design, among many others.
Silky Chan is a UX Manager with over 10 years of experience in eCommerce and the public sector. She has had experience working with brands such as Disney and Apple, and was recognized with a Vancouver UX Award in 2020. Silky brings a thoughtful, user-centered approach to design, combining strategic thinking with a passion for creating meaningful digital experiences.