Getting Started with Power BI

Begin your Power BI journey by building a great data model!

Data is the new oil and without knowledge of how to use the world’s leading BI tool it will remain untapped, no matter what industry you work in.

The amount of data available for decision-making has exploded and analysing it goes beyond what can be achieved with Excel alone. This has put skills in Data Analytics and business intelligence using Power BI in the spotlight.

The challenge lies with extracting relevant insights due to the huge increase in data and broader demand across the business for distributed insights is growing rapidly.

This has also meant that accounting and finance professionals are finding that proficiency in this area is increasingly valuable. But there’s a lot to take in when you first open Power BI. 

This session will help you move past the initial sense of overwhelm and look for ways to leverage the tool in your chosen profession. It’s aimed at those wanting to get started in using Power BI and will include a case study with a step-by-step approach to extracting, transformation and loading data into a well-designed star schema for visualisation.

There will be a practical overview of Power BI and its core components along with a deep dive into handling data particularly financial data when comparing actuals vs budgets, calendar vs financial year and other core accounting and finance concepts.

The session covers the following key areas:

•    the 4 core pillars of Power BI

•    extraction and cleansing of data through Transformation

•    the entire ETL process using Power Query

•    data model design and star schema

•    building and maintaining relationships between facts and dimensions

There will be a combination of both practical and theoretical concepts. Participants will also receive a detailed instruction manual that they can take away to ensure they are able to practically do the steps shown in the webinar in their own time.

The importance of cleaning and transforming the data along with building a great data model cannot be underestimated and it’s critical to master this skill first before moving into the visualisations.

You can build on this foundational knowledge by enrolling in ‘Power BI – Intermediate’ where visualisations and report design will be covered in more detail.

Learning Outcomes:

The following are the key learning outcomes that participants can expect to gain:

•    Understanding of what Power BI contains and how it works practically

•    Overview of the different screens, menus, and buttons

•    What some of the key terms and concepts mean in the context of managing data (ETL)

•    A step-by-step guide on extracting, transforming and loading data in a model.

•    Being able to build relationships between dimension and fact tables that enable visualisations

Suited to:

Accountants, management accountants, FP&A, CFOs seeking a foundational understanding of the core fundamentals of Power BI

This On Demand includes: 

• a recording of the webinar Event which can be viewed multiple times
• a PDF of the presenter’s PowerPoint
• a verbatim Transcript
• any supporting documentation
• a CPD Certificate after successful completion of the Knowledge Quiz