Power BI Data Visualisation and Dashboard Development Training Course

Participants can prepare reliable reporting data using Power Query transformations and controlled query settings.

• Power Query profiling identifies column quality, distribution and distinct values
• Query folding assessed before transformations reach source systems
• Applied steps document type changes, null handling and error replacement
• Merge and append queries combine operational extracts using defined keys
• Parameters separate development, test and production data-source settings
• Dataflows compared with desktop queries for shared transformation logic

Participants can build a Power BI model with dependable relationships, dimensions and business definitions.

• Fact and dimension tables structured around a declared business process grain
• One-to-many relationships configured with single-direction filtering by default
• Role-playing dates handled through inactive relationships and USERELATIONSHIP measures
• Bridge tables resolve many-to-many relationships without ambiguous filter paths
• Hide technical fields and create display folders for report authors
• Model view annotations record owners, definitions and refresh dependencies

Participants can create accurate DAX measures for core performance, variance and period-based reporting.

• DAX measures distinguished from calculated columns through evaluation context
• SUMX and CALCULATE express controlled filter-context changes
• Variables improve measure readability and avoid repeated calculations
• Time intelligence measures calculate year-to-date, prior-year and rolling periods
• DIVIDE, COALESCE and IFERROR manage zero, blank and error outputs
• Measure names, formats and descriptions follow a governed semantic layer

Participants can select and configure visuals that communicate business performance clearly and accurately.

• Visual grammar matches comparison, composition, distribution and relationship questions
• Chart selection avoids misleading dual axes, truncated scales and overloaded pies
• Bar, line and scatter visuals encode measures with appropriate scales
• Pre-attentive attributes direct attention through position, length, colour and size
• Layout grids establish visual hierarchy, alignment and consistent reading paths
• Accessible colours tested with contrast ratios and colour-blind-safe palettes

Participants can build interactive report pages that support summary review and detailed investigation.

• Wireframes translate decision questions into page structure and visual priority
• Executive summary pages present exceptions, drivers and required actions
• Drillthrough pages preserve context for customer, product and regional investigation
• Tooltips provide secondary detail without overcrowding primary report pages
• Bookmarks create guided views for alternative audiences and scenarios
• Slicers, sync settings and edit interactions control cross-visual filtering
• Mobile layouts reorganise essential visuals for phone-sized report consumption

Participants can add controlled analytical features that help users investigate trends, drivers and scenarios.

• Field parameters let users switch measures and dimensions within visuals
• What-if parameters model assumptions and expose scenario sensitivity
• Decomposition trees trace variance drivers through controlled hierarchical splits
• Key influencers assessed critically against data quality and causal limitations
• Forecasting and anomaly detection reviewed for assumptions and interpretation risks
• Reference lines, error bars and analytics panes contextualise performance variation

Participants can apply governance and security controls that support trusted, appropriate report use.

• Row-level security roles restrict report data through DAX filter expressions
• Workspace roles separate administration, publishing, editing and viewing responsibilities
• Certified and promoted semantic models signal approved reusable data assets
• Endorsement criteria document ownership, definitions, refresh status and intended use
• Sensitivity labels classify confidential, internal and public reporting content
• Usage metrics identify adoption, dormant reports and support priorities
• Accessibility checks address keyboard order, alt text and reading sequence

Participants can publish, refresh, distribute and troubleshoot Power BI content using controlled operational processes.

• Power BI Service workspaces organise development, test and production content
• Scheduled refresh configured with credentials, gateways and failure notifications
• Deployment pipelines promote reports through controlled release stages
• App audiences distribute curated content without exposing workspace permissions
• Subscriptions and data alerts deliver exception reporting to decision makers
• Refresh failures diagnosed through gateway status, credentials and source changes
• Performance Analyzer identifies slow visuals, DAX queries and rendering delays

Participants can review dashboard quality and create a practical plan for applying course methods at work.

• Dashboard review applies decision usefulness, usability and trust criteria
• Peer feedback prioritises revisions using a severity and effort matrix
• Release checklists verify filters, totals, security, accessibility and refreshes
• Documentation packs capture metric definitions, owners, sources and business rules
• Adoption plans define user briefings, support routes and feedback cycles
• Thirty-day action plan schedules report improvements and governance conversations

You should be comfortable with business data, tables, filters and basic calculations. Prior Power BI experience is helpful but not required; the course begins with the Power BI workflow before progressing to data modelling, DAX and publication.

For classroom delivery, bring a Windows laptop capable of running the current version of Power BI Desktop, unless your training arrangements state that equipment is provided. For live online delivery, you need Power BI Desktop, a stable internet connection and access to the course environment specified before the programme.

The course is designed for analysts, reporting professionals, finance staff, operations managers and digital teams who need to build or specify Power BI dashboards. It is particularly useful for people moving from Excel-based reporting to governed self-service business intelligence.

Fundamentals courses usually focus on interface orientation and basic report creation, while data analysis courses may focus more broadly on analytical methods. This course concentrates on professional dashboard development: data preparation, dimensional modelling, DAX measures, visual design, governance and controlled publication.

You can use the requirements template, model blueprint, DAX patterns and release checklist on an active reporting request. The methods apply to common business uses such as sales performance, financial reporting, service delivery, workforce reporting and operational exceptions.

Each day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides approximately 6.5 contact hours. The programme progresses through ten modules covering requirements, data preparation, modelling, DAX, visual design, interactivity, governance, publication and application planning.