Veteran IT strategist Yurii Biriukov unveils the untold story of global engineering teams powering the software infrastructure behind U.S. businesses. His own journey — from finance, through business process optimization, to Microsoft Dynamics consulting — sheds light on Ukraine’s rising impact in enterprise CRM solutions.
In recent years, Ukraine’s tech sector has moved from outlier to contender. The country’s IT outsourcing industry is projected to grow from $1.2 billion in 2025 to $1.73 billion by 2029.
Much of that muscle is quietly fueling the systems U.S. companies rely on every day — including their customer relationship management (CRM) platforms.
One of the architects behind this silent engine is Yurii Biriukov, a Ukrainian-born developer-turned-strategist who has spent over a decade designing and delivering Microsoft Dynamics–based solutions for clients across the U.S., Canada, and Europe.
Biriukov, who holds Microsoft certifications as a Power Platform Solution Architect Expert and Functional Consultant Associate, has led teams implementing low-code automation tools for enterprise and government clients. His work focuses on reducing manual processes and integrating data systems, particularly within Microsoft Dynamics environments.
As part of a broader wave of Ukrainian IT professionals contributing to U.S. infrastructure projects, Biriukov’s role reflects the increasing reliance on global engineering talent in critical business systems.
From finance to automation
Biriukov’s shift into Microsoft Dynamics began not in code, but in balance sheets. “I came to IT from the financial sector,” he explains.
At Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world’s largest brewing company, Biriukov led the finance department, where he focused on streamlining and optimizing business processes.
He worked on automating payment workflows and establishing tighter control points but soon realized that real change required more than financial oversight.
“One of my goals as a team lead was to optimize business processes and replace manual labor with automation,” Biriukov said. “That is what inspired me to work directly with IT and automation.“
Recognizing the strategic advantage of blending technical expertise with business acumen, he made a decisive career shift — leaving finance behind to become a hybrid professional: part manager, part engineer.
Building technical capacity with client empathy
Biriukov joined a company developing CRM systems, particularly Microsoft Dynamics.
“After several years working as a developer, I realized I wanted to have greater influence over the projects. So, I transitioned into a managerial role. Soon, I was overseeing the entire project portfolio, managing teams of project managers, developers, and testers and business analysts.”
This transition was not simply a step up — it was about gaining deeper insight. “As a manager, I came to understand not only how systems are built, but why clients build them — what business objectives they prioritize, where the real challenges lie, and what trade-offs must be made.
That rare combination of technical expertise and business acumen became a competitive advantage in consulting.
“Businesses want specialists who can do more than just develop a system — they want someone who can lead the entire process. Someone who can explain how the system fits into the company’s operations, what capabilities it offers, and how it can be customized further.”
For U.S.-based firms in particular, this blend often becomes the deciding factor: “They need someone who can translate strategic goals into practical software solutions, not just convert specs into code.”
Case studies: Depth, integration, and AI
Biriukov has managed around fifty projects built on Dynamics CRM, spanning from small-scale deployments to massive systems supporting thousands of users and processing millions of transactions.
One particularly notable project involved developing a custom HR module within Dynamics that seamlessly integrates recruiting and sales processes.
“We developed a module for HR that covers everything — from candidate search and hiring to interviews — all within the CRM system,” Biriukov said.
This consolidation allowed sales pipeline data to coexist alongside recruitment pipelines, enabling companies to make more accurate forecasts and confidently commit to contractual obligations.
“AI played a key role in this system. When resumes and job vacancies are entered, the system analyzes the resumes and automatically identifies the top candidates based on skills and keywords,” Biriukov says.
This automation spared recruiters the tedious task of manually sorting through hundreds of applications, highlighting the strongest matches effortlessly.
Biriukov’s portfolio also includes complex projects for U.S. real estate firms, where contracts, leases, and occupancy data across hundreds of properties were integrated into the CRM.
Similarly, for Canadian energy companies, the system tracked millions of energy usage transactions while measuring efficiency improvements.
In every case, Biriukov emphasizes that cost savings stemmed from reducing license fees, cutting infrastructure expenses, and minimizing the need to maintain multiple systems.
“Our U.S. clients saved millions by avoiding extra software licenses and consolidating platforms,” Biriukov says. “It cut infrastructure costs and significantly reduced the workload for support teams.”
Low‑code vs deep customization: Where the edge lies
Microsoft often promotes Dynamics CRM as a low-code, no-code solution — an accessible platform that lets organizations customize without writing traditional software. But that promise only goes so far.
“In principle, you can configure the system without writing code,” says Biriukov. “But in many cases — especially in large or complex projects — you still need developers. You still need deep customization.”
That gap between ease of use and enterprise-grade functionality is where Ukraine’s engineering talent has carved out a niche. Ukrainian teams step in when point-and-click tools fall short, and when business logic stretches far beyond what the out-of-the-box product can handle.
Many U.S. companies already depend on Ukrainian engineers in ways they might not fully realize. The dashboards and workflows they use, the contract renewals, the candidate pipelines, even regulatory compliance — much of that rides on custom modules, connectors, and automation built overseas.
