Introduction

Power BI, Microsoft’s business intelligence (BI) tool, is a powerful platform that allows organizations to analyze and visualize data, transform raw data into actionable insights, and make data-driven decisions. As companies are increasingly relying on data to guide their strategies, mastering Power BI has become essential for professionals in the business intelligence field. This 5-day training course will empower participants with the skills needed to effectively use Power BI for data analysis, visualization, and reporting.

Throughout the course, participants will learn how to connect to multiple data sources, transform and clean data, create sophisticated reports, and deliver interactive dashboards that provide clear and actionable insights. By the end of this course, professionals will be well-equipped to leverage Power BI for enhancing business decision-making, improving data transparency, and optimizing performance metrics.

Objectives

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Understand the core features and functionalities of Power BI and its integration with Microsoft tools.
• Effectively connect to a variety of data sources and prepare data for analysis using Power Query.
• Apply data transformation techniques to clean and shape data for better analysis and visualization.
• Create interactive reports and dashboards that offer insightful visualizations for business analysis.
• Use DAX (Data Analysis Expressions) to create advanced calculations and metrics within Power BI.
• Share and publish Power BI reports and dashboards, including collaboration through the Power BI service.
• Implement security features such as Row-Level Security (RLS) to control data access in reports.
• Leverage Power BI Mobile and Power BI Embedded for delivering mobile-optimized reports and integrating Power BI visuals into other applications.

Who Should Attend?

This course is designed for professionals involved in data analysis, business intelligence, reporting, and decision-making processes, including:

• Business Analysts and Data Analysts who wish to enhance their data analysis and reporting capabilities with Power BI.
• Business Intelligence Professionals looking to gain a deeper understanding of Power BI’s capabilities and advanced features.
• Project Managers and Team Leaders who want to empower their teams with data visualization tools for making informed decisions.
• Data Engineers and IT Professionals who need to integrate Power BI with various data sources and ensure smooth data flows for business intelligence.
• Executives and Managers who need to make data-driven decisions and require advanced reporting and analytics tools.
• Consultants and Freelancers who provide business intelligence solutions to organizations and need a solid understanding of Power BI.

Day 1: Introduction to Power BI and Data Sources

• What is Power BI?

  • Overview of Power BI and its components: Power BI Desktop, Power BI Service, and Power BI Mobile.
  • Key features and advantages of Power BI in business intelligence and analytics.
  • The Power BI ecosystem: understanding the integration with Excel, Azure, and other Microsoft tools.

• Getting Started with Power BI Desktop

  • Installing Power BI Desktop and navigating the interface.
  • Creating your first Power BI report: connecting to a sample data set and exploring the Power BI environment.
  • Introduction to the Power BI workspace: panes, fields, visualizations, and filters.

• Connecting to Data Sources

  • Connecting to different data sources: databases (SQL Server, MySQL, PostgreSQL), Excel files, web data, APIs, and cloud services (Azure, Google Analytics).
  • Importing data vs. DirectQuery: pros and cons.
  • Understanding data relationships: creating relationships between tables and models for analysis.

• Hands-on Lab:

  • Connecting Power BI to an Excel file and a SQL database.
  • Creating a basic report using connected data sources.

Day 2: Data Transformation and Cleaning with Power Query

• Power Query Editor

  • Introduction to Power Query and its importance in preparing data for analysis.
  • Overview of the Power Query Editor interface: Query pane, applied steps, and preview window.
  • Basic transformations: filtering rows, renaming columns, changing data types, removing duplicates.

• Advanced Data Transformation Techniques

  • Merging and appending queries: combining data from multiple tables.
  • Grouping and pivoting data: summarizing data and creating calculated columns.
  • Using conditional columns and calculated columns for custom data transformations.

• Data Cleaning Best Practices

  • Handling missing values, duplicates, and outliers.
  • Text transformations: extracting parts of text, replacing values, and applying custom functions.
  • Using date functions to work with time-based data: filtering, grouping, and extracting parts of a date.

• Hands-on Lab:

  • Transforming data from an Excel spreadsheet to remove errors and perform necessary cleaning.
  • Merging data from two different sources (e.g., Excel and SQL) and preparing it for analysis.

Day 3: Creating Data Models and Visualizations

• Building Data Models in Power BI

  • Understanding data modeling in Power BI: tables, relationships, and keys.
  • Creating star schemas and snowflake schemas for optimal data analysis.
  • Managing relationships: one-to-many, many-to-one, and many-to-many.
  • Using Auto Date/Time and understanding Date Tables.

• Creating Interactive Visualizations

  • Introduction to Power BI visuals: tables, bar charts, line charts, maps, and slicers.
  • Using custom visuals and exploring the Power BI Visuals Marketplace.
  • Implementing interactivity: drill-through, tooltips, and cross-filtering.
  • Best practices for choosing the right visual based on your data.

• Formatting Reports for Effective Communication

  • Enhancing reports with color schemes, themes, and fonts for better presentation.
  • Creating dynamic dashboards that are intuitive and user-friendly.
  • Formatting and customizing slicers, legends, and charts for easy interpretation.

• Hands-on Lab:

  • Creating interactive charts and tables in a Power BI report.
  • Customizing visuals with themes, filters, and slicers.

Day 4: Advanced Features – DAX, Calculations, and Security

• Introduction to DAX (Data Analysis Expressions)

  • Overview of DAX and its role in Power BI for creating calculations and business metrics.
  • Basic DAX functions: SUM, AVERAGE, COUNT, and IF.
  • Understanding row context and filter context in DAX calculations.
  • Creating calculated columns and measures.

• Advanced DAX Techniques

  • Time Intelligence in DAX: working with YTD, QTD, MTD, and Year-over-Year calculations.
  • Using CALCULATE, FILTER, and other powerful DAX functions.
  • Implementing key performance indicators (KPIs) with DAX.
  • Variables in DAX: improving performance and readability of formulas.

• Row-Level Security (RLS) in Power BI

  • Understanding Row-Level Security (RLS) and its importance in protecting sensitive data.
  • Setting up RLS roles and filters for different users.
  • Implementing dynamic security using DAX expressions in RLS.

• Hands-on Lab:

  • Creating custom measures using DAX for sales data analysis.
  • Implementing Row-Level Security (RLS) on a report to restrict data access based on user roles.

Day 5: Power BI Service, Sharing, and Collaboration

• Introduction to Power BI Service

  • What is the Power BI Service and how does it complement Power BI Desktop?
  • Publishing reports to the Power BI Service and understanding workspaces.
  • Creating dashboards in Power BI Service and pinning visuals from reports.
  • Sharing reports with stakeholders and collaborating on Power BI reports.

• Power BI Mobile and Power BI Embedded

  • Optimizing Power BI reports for mobile devices and understanding Power BI’s mobile apps.
  • Embedding Power BI visuals in third-party applications and websites using Power BI Embedded.
  • Configuring user access and permissions in Power BI Service for collaboration.

• Power BI and Power Automate

  • Integrating Power BI with Power Automate to automate workflows and notifications based on data changes.
  • Setting up alerts and email notifications based on specific data thresholds.

• Hands-on Lab:

  • Publishing and sharing a Power BI report on the Power BI Service.
  • Creating a Power BI dashboard and embedding it in a mobile device view.

• Course Wrap-Up & Certification

  • Review of key concepts covered in the course.
  • Final Q&A session.
  • Certification of completion.