Google Looker Studio Dashboard Reporting Training Course

Course overview

Teams often have data in Google Analytics 4, Google Sheets, BigQuery and operational systems, yet reporting remains fragmented across spreadsheets, screenshots and manually updated slide decks. Analysts and business users need dashboards that answer defined management questions, apply consistent metrics and allow decision-makers to investigate changes without requesting a new report. This course addresses the practical work of designing, building and governing Google Looker Studio dashboards that people can trust and use.

Participants learn to connect and prepare data sources, define report requirements, build calculated fields, blend data, configure controls and create interactive visualisations. They work with Google Looker Studio features including data source settings, field types, aggregation, date ranges, parameters, report-level components, chart interactions and scheduled delivery. The course also covers dashboard design patterns, performance troubleshooting, access controls and metric documentation so that reports remain understandable as data, users and requirements change.

Instruction combines guided demonstrations with structured build exercises using realistic marketing, sales and operational reporting scenarios. Each participant develops a multi-page Looker Studio dashboard from a reporting brief, including a KPI scorecard, trend analysis, segment controls, blended data view, drill-down visualisations and documented metric definitions. The finished dashboard and supporting design plan provide a practical artefact to adapt for a live reporting requirement after the course.

The course suits professionals who already work with business data and need to move beyond basic chart creation into reliable, stakeholder-ready reporting. It is particularly valuable where teams need self-service dashboards but must retain control over metric consistency, data access and report performance.

Course objectives

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

• Translate stakeholder questions into a dashboard requirements brief, KPI dictionary and page-level wireframe
• Connect Google Looker Studio to Google Analytics 4, Google Sheets and Google BigQuery data sources
• Configure field types, default aggregations, date ranges and data-source credentials for reliable reporting
• Create calculated fields using CASE, date functions, arithmetic and conditional logic
• Blend compatible data sources using join keys and selected dimensions to answer cross-source questions
• Build interactive scorecards, time-series charts, tables, controls and drill-down views for business users
• Diagnose dashboard performance and data-quality issues using chart inspection, source checks and query reduction
• Publish a governed multi-page dashboard with access settings, metric documentation and scheduled delivery

Benefits of attending

Target competencies

Who should attend

• Data Analysts — who need to turn recurring analysis into governed self-service dashboards
• Business Intelligence Analysts — who build management reporting from Google-based data sources
• Digital Marketing Analysts — who need to report GA4 acquisition, conversion and campaign performance
• Sales Operations Analysts — who need pipeline, activity and territory reporting that leaders can explore
• Operations Managers — who own KPI reporting and need clearer operational visibility across teams
• Product Analysts — who need to communicate product usage and funnel metrics to non-technical stakeholders

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should be comfortable working with tabular data, including rows, columns, filters, basic aggregations and the difference between dimensions and metrics. Prior use of spreadsheets such as Google Sheets or Excel is expected, along with confidence interpreting business KPIs. Familiarity with Google Analytics 4 or BigQuery is useful but not essential; course exercises explain the supplied data structures and queries. Participants need access to a Google account and should be able to use a desktop browser. SQL, programming, advanced statistics and prior Looker Studio dashboard-building experience are not required.

Training methodology

The five-day programme uses instructor-led demonstrations followed by individual and small-group builds in Google Looker Studio. Participants work from stakeholder briefs, inspect supplied GA4, Google Sheets and BigQuery data, then make design and metric choices that are reviewed against the reporting question. Exercises progress from a single connected chart to a multi-page dashboard with blends, parameters and controls. Daily critique sessions focus on readability, calculation validity and user behaviour. The final day includes a dashboard showcase and an implementation plan for each participant’s workplace reporting need.

Course outline

Day 1: Reporting architecture and data connections

• Translating business questions into dashboard decisions and KPI requirements
• Google Looker Studio interface, report structure and component hierarchy
• Connecting Google Sheets, Google Analytics 4 and Google BigQuery data sources
• Data-source credentials, owner credentials and viewer credentials
• Dimensions, metrics, field types and default aggregation behaviour
• Date range dimensions and report-level versus chart-level date settings
• Data validation checks for freshness, nulls, duplicates and unexpected totals

Workshop: Participants convert a management reporting brief into a KPI list, source inventory and first-page dashboard wireframe.

Day 2: Calculated metrics and blended analysis

• Creating calculated fields at data-source and chart level
• Using arithmetic, CASE expressions and conditional categorisation
• Applying date functions for period comparisons and reporting periods
• Handling null values, zero denominators and aggregation mismatches
• Data blending concepts, join keys and join configuration
• Building blended views from campaign, spend and conversion datasets
• Testing calculated metrics against source-data totals

Workshop: Participants build a channel-performance view that blends spend and conversion data and documents its KPI calculations.

Day 3: Dashboard design and analytical storytelling

• Selecting scorecards, time series, bar charts, tables and pivot tables
• Designing KPI hierarchies for executive, manager and analyst audiences
• Applying comparison dates, reference lines and target indicators
• Creating report-level headers, navigation and reusable visual components
• Using sorting, conditional formatting and sparklines to expose exceptions
• Designing accessible layouts with labels, colour contrast and clear annotation
• Building drill-down paths from summary metrics to diagnostic detail

Workshop: Participants create a two-page executive and diagnostic dashboard that guides users from a KPI variance to contributing segments.

Day 4: Interactivity, performance and governance

• Configuring filter controls, date controls and cross-filtering behaviour
• Using parameters and parameter controls for scenario-based analysis
• Applying optional metrics and optional dimensions for user-led exploration
• Controlling component scope across pages, groups and report-level elements
• Improving load time through query reduction, extract data and efficient chart design
• Troubleshooting chart errors, schema changes and data-source failures
• Managing sharing permissions, embedded reports and dashboard ownership

Workshop: Participants optimise an overloaded dashboard, add controlled user interactions and prepare a sharing model for different stakeholder groups.

Day 5: Capstone dashboard delivery

• Interpreting a cross-functional reporting brief and acceptance criteria
• Planning dashboard pages, audience journeys and refresh requirements
• Building a multi-source capstone report in Google Looker Studio
• Creating a metric dictionary with source, formula, owner and refresh notes
• Conducting dashboard quality assurance against business questions and source totals
• Configuring scheduled email delivery and stakeholder access
• Presenting dashboard findings and defining an adoption and maintenance plan

Workshop: Participants complete and present a multi-page capstone dashboard with documented metrics, governance settings and a 30-day workplace implementation plan.

Tools & standards covered

Google Looker Studio, Google BigQuery, Google Sheets, Google Analytics 4

A typical training day

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in the East Africa Time zone, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

How you can take this course

Certification

Participants who complete the full five days receive the Skillset Development Certificate of Completion, stating the course title, course code, dates and delivery format — suitable for professional-development records and employer reimbursement.

Frequently asked questions