What Is Microsoft Azure Used For? How Learning Azure Can Boost Your Career
Page Last Updated: March 2025
It’s been nearly 20 years since the first cloud computing services were introduced to the marketplace, and it’s only grown over time. The business world has evolved with it.
Today, cloud computing is the backbone of modern business. It allows companies to scale their operations, store large amounts of data, and increase productivity through the many applications available in the cloud.
Microsoft Azure is one of the most widely used cloud platforms. It provides a large assortment of tools and applications for cloud infrastructure, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, data storage, and more, changing how many companies operate.
Whether you’re a beginner or a professional looking to up-level your skills, learning Microsoft Azure can open the door to many career opportunities.
What Is Microsoft Azure?
Azure is a Microsoft-developed cloud computing platform used by businesses worldwide. It’s a comprehensive set of cloud services that allow companies to build, deploy, and manage applications and services through Microsoft-managed data centers.
In addition to the three core services — network, storage, and compute — Azure offers much more. Databases and AI are large, growing services within its cloud umbrella. Because it’s a global presence with data centers scattered across many countries and continents, it’s become a go-to cloud platform for businesses of all sizes.
One of the key differentiators for Microsoft Azure is its hybrid cloud capabilities. Many businesses aren’t quite ready to go all-in on cloud computing due to concerns about security, compliance, data sovereignty, and operational disruption. Businesses worry about protecting sensitive data, meeting industry regulations, maintaining control over their infrastructure, and ensuring a smooth transition from legacy systems without disrupting operations.They prefer to hedge risk by having on-premise deployments in addition to cloud-based deployments. Microsoft Azure allows risk-averse businesses to combine their on-premise infrastructure with cloud services easily and in a controlled manner. It ensures smooth integration of workloads across all platforms — on-premise, in the cloud, or hybrid, using a single user interface and common tools for both.
The platform offers flexible pricing models that allow businesses to scale up or down based on their needs, and other enterprise products, such as Office 365, Teams, and Dynamics 365 and Entra ID are integrated into it.
It competes with other major cloud platforms, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Google Cloud, and its ease of integration with existing Microsoft software and tools has made it a top choice for many businesses worldwide.
Expert Insights with Phillip Burton: What’s new in Microsoft Azure in 2025?
“One of the major trends in Azure in 2025 is related with AI. The models used with Azure AI continue to develop, with additional functionality made available in services such as Azure AI Language, Vision, and Document Intelligence. These services can be used in conjunction with other services, such as Cognitive Services or Azure Functions, to integrate AI throughout Azure. You can also now use AI functions natively in the PostgreSQL database, and they are expected to be available in Azure SQL Database when SQL Server 2025 is released.
Microsoft is actively promoting Azure services. Over half of Microsoft’s Applied Skills certifications focus on Azure services, showing that it is at the heart of Azure’s Cloud strategy. However, there may be a change coming, as Microsoft Fabric has recently been launched.
Some of the functionality in Azure is now mirrored in Fabric, including its recent addition of SQL database, reducing Azure’s uniqueness. Also, Microsoft’s popular DP-203 “Data Engineering on Microsoft Azure” exam was retired in March 2025, in favor of Fabric certifications. This indicates to me that Microsoft will be promoting Fabric as the future for data services, and it is likely that some of that functionality in Azure will ultimately be deprecated.
This would leave Azure as an infrastructure layer, provisioning, integrating, and governing other services, with Fabric offering a more unified, user-friendly experience for data analysis and data science on top, with reduced complexity. If you need to ultimately transition some Azure services to Fabric, then there is a lot of connectivity between Azure and Fabric, such as using Mirrored Databases and mounting an Azure Data Factory in Fabric, which can aid any transition.” – Instructor Phillip Burton
Courses by Phillip Burton
Key Use Cases of Microsoft Azure
Let’s explore some common use cases of Microsoft Azure.
Cloud Computing & Infrastructure
In the Azure cloud, businesses can host and manage their servers, databases, virtual machines (VMs) and containers, without the need for on-premise infrastructure. These items can scale up or down in resource usage based on the needs of the business, and businesses only need to pay for the resources they use. This flexible computing model is ideal for companies that need to adjust operations based on demand.
It also offers cloud storage services, such as Azure Blob Storage, Azure File Storage, and Azure Disk Storage. These services allow businesses to store large amounts of data in a secure and cost-efficient way.
Azure Virtual Machines (VMs) allow businesses to run more demanding applications, such as ERP systems or large customer-facing applications, that need to run fast at scale.
Azure Container Instances allow teams to focus on building applications quickly in containers without having to build out wider infrastructure to support it.
Application Development & Deployment
Azure provides developers with a stable platform and development environment for building, testing, and deploying applications. If offers:
- Integration with many programming languages. Developers of all styles can make use of a variety of programming languages that work with Azure, such as .NET, Java, Python, Node.js, and Ruby.
- Azure DevOps. Azure’s suite of deployment tools, Azure DevOps, allows teams to work together, track progress, and deploy code efficiently through collaboration and transparency.
- Containers. Azure Kubernetes Services (AKS) helps organizations deploy and manage containerized applications, which are lightweight, portable software packages that include everything needed to run an application, such as code, runtime, and dependencies. These containers also allow the use of microservices, which can be independently developed, tested, and deployed.
- Continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) tools. These tools automate the deployment pipeline, allowing developers to deliver faster and more reliable application updates, automatically without requiring manual steps.
Data Analytics & AI
To stay competitive, modern businesses need the ability to efficiently process and analyze data to drive informed decisions.Azure offers several tools for data analytics, machine learning, and AI development.
Its big data processing services, such as Azure Data Factory and Azure Synapse Analytics, allow businesses to ingest, process, and analyze large datasets. Azure Data Factory integrates data from various sources and transforms it for analysis. In contrast, Azure Synapse Analytics runs real-time analytics on large volumes of data. The result of those analytics can give decision-makers insights they use to improve business performance.
Azure also offers several AI tools, such as Azure Machine Learning and Azure Cognitive Services. Azure Machine Learning allows data scientists to build, train, and deploy machine learning models, while Azure Cognitive Services offers APIs that make it easy to add AI capabilities for facial recognition, speech recognition, and natural language processing (NLP) applications.
Cybersecurity & Compliance
Cybersecurity is a major concern for businesses of all types, including those adopting cloud technologies. Azure helps address these concerns with its own suite of security services, such as Microsoft Defender for Cloud, Microsoft Sentinel, and Microsoft Defender for Cloud, which cover threat detection, vulnerability management, and security automation, helping businesses stay secure in the cloud.
Azure Policy allows companies to enforce automatic compliance for their Azure infrastructure and provide a centralized dashboard of the companies compliance status, both on-premise and in-cloud.
The platform also has over 90 compliance certifications that help organizations meet industry-specific compliance standards, such as GDPR, HIPAA, and ISO.
Networking & Hybrid Cloud Solutions
Azure’s virtual networking allows businesses to create secure and scalable cloud-based networks. It provides solutions for setting up virtual networks and VPNs, ensuring data flows smoothly between cloud and on-premise environments. Azure Content Delivery Network (CDN) ensures fast delivery of web content to users wherever they are, thanks to a global footprint with endpoints near users everywhere.
Its hybrid cloud solutions allow businesses to create a connected environment where on-premise and cloud resources work together without issue. Azure Stack allows Azure’s capabilities to run in on-premise data centers. This is crucial for businesses with strict data sovereignty requirements or other mandatory compliance or security requirements.
How Learning Azure Can Develop Your Career
Cloud computing skills are in high demand. Whether you’re new to cloud computing or an experienced professional looking to expand your skills, learning Azure can set you apart from your competition.
Businesses are constantly shifting workloads to the cloud, and many use Microsoft Azure. Candidates with Azure knowledge are highly sought after for roles such as cloud engineer, DevOps engineer, and data scientist.
Having expertise in this platform makes you a valuable asset in the tech industry. Azure cloud professionals are in demand across many sectors, such as finance, healthcare, retail, and government. As cloud services grow, so will the need for skilled professionals.
In-Demand Azure Careers
Some of the in-demand careers for individuals with this cloud platform skill set include:
- Cloud engineer: These professionals are responsible for designing, deploying, and maintaining cloud infrastructure. They ensure cloud systems run smoothly and efficiently. Azure cloud engineers specifically focus on creating and managing Azure environments.
- DevOps engineer: They use Azure DevOps tools to automate testing, building, and deployment processes, making the development lifecycle more efficient.
- Data engineer: Data engineers build systems and pipelines for large-scale data processing using tools such as Azure Data Factory, Azure Synapse Analytics, and Azure Databricks.
- AI/ML engineer: They use Azure Machine Learning and Azure Cognitive Services to create models that help companies make decisions and improve customer experiences.
- Cybersecurity analyst: Cybersecurity analysts use Azure Sentinel and Azure Defender to monitor, detect, and respond to security threats throughout the cloud offering.
How to Learn Microsoft Azure and Advance Your Career
“One of the common challenges that beginners face when learning Azure is the fact that it is so big – where do you start?… A good way to start is by using a guide, such as a book or video course… Two Microsoft certifications that can focus your learning are the AZ-900 Azure Fundamentals and the DP-900 Azure Data Fundamentals.” – Instructor Phillip Burton
Learning Azure may seem like an uphill challenge, but there are plenty of resources to help you increase your skills with the cloud platform. Let’s explore how you can start learning this amazing platform.
Take Online Courses
Udemy has an excellent Microsoft Azure: Zero to Hero course that introduces you to the key concepts and tools in Azure. Microsoft also provides several courses for you to build your cloud skills:
- Azure Fundamentals: This course covers the basic concepts of cloud computing and introduces you to many Azure services.
- Azure for Developers: Take this course to dive deeper into Azure’s DevOps tools, app deployment, and management.
- Azure AI and Machine Learning: Learn how to leverage Azure’s AI and machine learning capabilities to build intelligent applications.
Get Hands-On Experience With Azure
Cloud computing and Azure require a lot of hands-on practice to master. You can use the free tier to build your skills and work on small projects. The more you experiment hands-on, the better you’ll understand how it works.
Get Certified
“Certifications can give the potential employer confidence that you have the knowledge for various topics, thus helping you to get an interview for the job, while hands-on experience is vital for the interview, allowing you to address the interviewer’s questions, and reflect on similar situations that you have encountered.” – Instructor Phillip Burton
Earning Azure certifications is a great way to validate your skills. Three certifications that can help you demonstrate your skills include:
- AZ-900: Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals: Ideal for beginners who want to understand Azure’s core services.
- AZ-104: Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate: A great selection of courses for those who want to focus on managing Azure environments.
- AZ-204: Microsoft Certified: Azure Developer Associate: Courses designed for developers who want to focus on building and deploying applications on Azure.
Explore Udemy’s Azure Courses on Cloud Engineering, AI, and Security
Whether you’re a beginner or an expert, you can continue your Azure education journey by taking any of Udemy’s large selection of courses.
Bringing It All Together
Microsoft Azure is a powerful and versatile cloud platform that’s used by businesses around the world. Learning this cloud platform is a valuable investment whether you’re looking to develop new skills or expand your career opportunities.
By learning it and becoming certified, you’re positioning yourself for success in a fast-growing tech industry sector. Many of these positions pay excellent salaries and come with a great set of benefits. If you’re ready to start or advance your career in cloud computing, explore Udemy’s expert-led Microsoft Azure courses today.
