Explicit Measures Podcast

We have found the hidden episode! The guys got thinking after 84 was unable to be recorded: what happens when we do our demos, our systems, and our reports completely fail on us? What is our methodology when something happens, and how do we deal with it at a company, or even when presenting?  This goes through dealing with gateways, reports, demos, or anything we deal with business and techno...

The guys are at the penultimate of episode 100!  DAX Evaluation Context is one of the hardest concepts to master and learn in Power BI, yet it is also the most essential. What have the guys learned in all of the years and situations on getting better, learning, and getting their minds around it? Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips...

The guys are uncovering what Write Back means for Authors in Power BI: What are the use cases, where does it fit, and where do we go from here? From Power Apps, threats, and what should you know? Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page . Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powe...

Personal Bookmarks, Personalize Visuals, and Comments - How important and what role do they play for #PowerBI Report consumers? The guys jump into the conversation, where they land on their importance, and what how do we get users to use them more (or even if they should). Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag...

We have an amazing article that  the guys dived into by Iteration Insights (Thanks to Steve Richardson) - article here: https://iterationinsights.com/article/the-trend-in-analytical-data-modeling/ The gap between data modeling for IT and for the business is shrinking. Not only that, but the barrier to entry, and flexibility to architect data models is becoming more and more commonplace. What...

The guys are back from vacation! Jumping right into it, there are quite a few ways grouping works in Power BI, from visual grouping to field grouping, but is there a cut-off? The guys dive into all aspects, and focus on creating a group in a report file and what techincal debt ensues from it. We are near 100 episodes, and launching our next contest! From now until episode 100, post on LinkedIn or...

It doesn't matter if you have the best design skillset in the world, or if you can develop DAX Measures people couldn't even dream about. It doesn't matter if you have incredible vision and understand people's pain points in 2 minutes. What does matter is if you can manage and successfully roll out all 3.  In the BI space, the ability to deliver high quality content, that users can understand, and...

Today is coming from a mailbag! The focus - How do people document their Power BI Solutions? What should included / not included, and when does the documentation get updated?  Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page. Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/ Watch the e...

What a perfect day to release our episode! March 2022 Power BI is out, and the major release is the new formatting pane. What are our thoughts, what has changed, and how do we adapt?  Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page . Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tip...

One Power BI, two different worlds?  You love Power BI, but you may have a vastly different viewpoint and experience in the platform depending where you work. Are you FTE (Full-Time Employee) or IC (Independent Consultant)? The guys wanted to know just how different and distinct the experience brings to a Power BI Pro, and what skillsets are developed in each.  We are at the Power Platfo...

The guys dive into the use cases of Drill-Through in Power BI - from single zoom-in's all the way to using cross-report drill-through for Direct Query Reports. We all use it, but it is used as much as it should be? Are we being too redundant with our pages, and what story are we really telling with our drill-through pages? Listen in for what Mike, Seth, and Tommy have to say about where and why dr...

The guys share their deepest, darkest, maybe not best practices in Power BI's DAX language. From the value of Calculated Columns to Tabular Editor 3's DAX Debugger, there are many ways to hack your way to a value and a result. But are they are all worth it? Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on th...

if you had $100 to spend on improving the visuals and the experience building our visuals in #PowerBI Reports, where would your money go?  The guys break down their budget and where their focus is (hint, Tables are a big deal). Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Pa...

You have a great process developing and deploying Power BI Reports. I am sure you do. But what about your team? Do they follow the same rules, methods, and process? How can you get a group or entire team of #PowerBI Authors to follow the same process. The guys discuss do you need the carrot or the stick, and what makes up best practices for a team.  Get in touch: Send in your questions or top...

The guys are back and dive into what it means and how important it is to reward, provide goals, and setting up a Center of Excellence that motivates the people involved.  Based on the Power BI Adoption Roadmap, how much do the incentives align with that is possible at most organizations? The guys break down the difference between audiences and levels of users, as well as the difference b...

The guys are back (episode 84 is coming on Tuesday) with a talk on ownership - a conversation in need of discussion in the Power BI space.  Who owns what, and what should ownership consist in regards to data, business, and reports? Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcas...

By far one of the most engaged conversations the guys have had: We constantly evaluate if a report is "correct" or relevant for the users. When consumers come back and say it's confusing, does that mean the report is wrong? More so, is that a report problem or a people problem? The guys dive into the ability to scope out and derive what makes a report wrong, and when does it start in the developme...

The guys run through all the ways data can be exported from Power BI, with a few hot takes in between on is it always a positive outcome from consumers. What should be the purpose or the role of exported data, and what does it say about your reports? Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the Power...

The guys run through what it means to be productive in Power BI. Is it output, learning, or solutions?  How to estimate your work, how to stay productive (rolling average), and how to break down your work. What methods and tools are used? Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips...

If you consider yourself a master of the Power BI arts, there is a good chance you have used and know about External Tools in Power BI. If you have not, then stop listening start learning! What is the role of External Tools, and should it be a requirement for a Pro to know and use them in Report Development? How essential are they? The guys cover this and some tools you may not know about.  I...

The guys discuss a contested topic: What are the MOST IMPORTANT DAX functions in Power BI, and can they even rank them? What makes specific functions essential, important, or widely used? What should you know when you hit a wall, and do you have to know and master these important functions? Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the h...

The guys run through what Incremental Refresh is, why use it, and implications for how can impact your process. Mike gives a master class on advanced uses on utilizing XML endpoints for incremental refresh.  Also, Goals in Power BI is a Pro feature now! You do not need Premium! https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/power-bi/connect-data/incremental-refresh-configure https://docs.microsoft.com/en-u...

The guys talk through why our reports get complicated, and if we add more elements and objects than needed. What causes this, and how much has to do with the design and the application itself? Or is it a problem of poorly managed objectives? Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips P...

No matter if you have never spoken before, presented once, or never have before, the guys share their own stories and tips on how they started speaking on Power BI at user groups and conferences.  Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page . Visit PowerBI.tips: https:...

The guys are focusing on all the ways that we connect to Power BI - Basic (SQL), Advanced (API), Frustrating (Dynamics), and Future (Databricks).  What have they seen that works, what doesn't? What to look out for?  Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page . Vi...