Organizations have, and continue to accumulate, masses of data from multiple sources. This data, being largely unformatted, does not yield readily pertinent information. Microsoft tackled this issue by adding data analytics tools to their Microsoft Office 365 suite. Power BI, the latest addition to Office 365, enables users to aggregate and interpret massive data in a user-friendly environment. With this data visualization tool, analysts build custom data analysis and dashboards with scheduled automated updates: empowering managers’ decision making with accurate and intuitive real-time measures.

This fast-paced introductory course to Microsoft’s Power BI application covers key concepts for delivering effective automated dashboards. This is a hands-on training session: participants learn Power BI’s functionalities as they build an interactive report. Best practices for data visualizations and dashboards are described and applied through examples.