Explicit Measures Podcast

It is holiday time! The guys are giving Power BI gifts to each other, ideal features and tools that we would love to have and use. What features or tools are most needed, most wanted, more importantly, would we use them or re-gift them? This is a fun, with some great ideas! Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailba...

How important are data labels in Power BI, and where are they actually found? The guys focus in on their role, if they are underrated, and what is model label. Can labels actually hurt a report, and how important is consistency?  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...

We are having some fun with endorsements! There should be the utmost importance around what a certified dataset, but what should qualify one? The guys actually get heated on what goes into one, and what does that mean to a business having a certified dataset. 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...

We have talked extensively about what a Power BI Report is, but what is that experience for the users? How do we ensure that our consumers are actively using, adopting, and having the expereince that they need to have a data driven and impactful expereince? Join the guys as they go through what goes into that experience, and what we can do to improve it.  Get in touch: Send in your questions...

Let's face it: You are not an expert on Color Theory. It is a common challenge that most Power BI Professionals struggle with design and color theory (we like data more). However, one can argue the use of a standard and organized color pallete can make or destory a report.  The guys talk about the importance of Theming in Power BI, what they look for, and their tools and tricks to create prof...

An amazing new article by Marco Russo from SQLBI focuses on the complexities and pitfalls around the DAX language in Power BI. He outlines 7 unique reasons why DAX is not easy. The guys discuss the 7 reasons and their own experience around the article.  The guys run through the reasons and where it resonates from their own experience and how they have  tackled each. Read SQLBI's article...

A highly trending buzz word around Power BI is Data Culture. Growing, improving, and establishing a data culture is essential, and thanks to Melissa Coates' excellent Power BI Adoption Roadmap, we have a great framework on what to look for. That being said... How do you define and measure success for it? Can you even create measurable KPI's around it? Power BI adoption roadmap: Data culture - Powe...

The guys have some more fun and look to what can we can look forward to in new Power BI features, or more so what they want to see become reality for Power BI in the future.  We all know that Microsoft heavily relies on the ideas.powerbi.com website for future development of features and services, and it counts the votes on those ideas. The guys pick their wish list.  Get in touch: Send...

Happy Thanksgiving!  The guys talk about their experience learning Power BI and what options are available for users nowadays. While the guys had more self-training, what does formal vs. informal training mean in the Power BI world, and what should people consider? Do you need both formal and self-taught? What about scenario based? Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to...

Microsoft recently announced the Power Platform Release Wave v2 for the upcoming months, and we could not wait to get our hands on it! The guys talk about what are the biggest game changers, and what we think is going to change the space.  Read the release wave here: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/power-platform-release-plan/2021wave2/power-bi/planned-features Get in touch: Send in your que...

It's Draft Day! But not just any draft, the guys are taking the best of the best from the Power BI service and compete with each other for the best features.  The Goal: take from all the Power BI service features that will best enable you to adopt and distribute Power BI to an organization. We are choosing from Goals to Export CSV, 12 rounds of arguing and picks? We would love your input on w...

The guys talk about the November 2021 of Power BI, along with the next user group schedule among others.  The big topic: Paginated Reports have been around for a long time, even before Power BI. That being said, what is the role and where does Power BI Paginated Reports fit in the ecosystem and should users use and learn it? Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discus...

Let's face it: Some of what we do in building reports can be mundane and repetitive. Other items we may miss that will effect the quality of the report. Regardless of what you do, or how you do it, don't you need a checklist? The guys discuss what goes in their own checklist for building a report, from the scope to the publish. Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss...

The guys talk through out of all the tools available in Power BI, why can Power Query be the least known? It is a POWERFUL component of the Power BI Skill Toolset, and the guys share their experience, the use cases, and what role in plays in the Power BI World. Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit o...

What is the role of the Help Desk for Power BI? How should they behave, and why are there no templates for Business Intelligence Help Desks (looking at you Jira)? The guys dive into what they consider an untapped component of BI Projects, and where a Help Desk stands in regards to importance of any Power BI Solution, along with why the lack of resources for BI Projects and Help Desk providers. The...

The guys are rounding out their series on Power BI Governance with Part 3 - what are the challenges involved, how do you get people on board, and the overall components of running a Governance Program. As always, we are using the Power BI Adoption Roadmap document (link below). Link to document: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/power-bi/guidance/powerbi-adoption-roadmap-governance#governance-chall...

Dealing with a client or a project, a #powerbi report build or any data solution, how do we handle understanding the “ideal” approach vs. What is possible? The guys go over what makes up a short term compromise to a long term solution, and offer their experience on what makes up "must have", "should have" , and "would like to have" for aligning expectations for users.  Get in touch: Send in y...

How do you do P ower BI workspace planning? Using the Melissa Coates article on planning Workspace and Criteria's, the guys discuss what goes into the role of a Workspace, how to migrate, and pain points.  Melissa Coates Workspace Planning Guide 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...

We made it to fifty (50!). To celebrate, the guys are taking a step back from technical deep dives, as they curated the best of the best Power BI jokes, memes, and best content the community has shared. If you are a Power BI pro, we promise you will be able to relate!  All the content today is around what those in Power BI deal with, and we are not alone in the technical problems, frustration...

The guys are diving into Power BI Governance Part 2: Vision, Strategy, and Staffing. Again, we are using the amazing Microsoft Adoption Roadmap, focusing on the Strategy, and Staffing Sections. Links from today: Power BI adoption roadmap: Governance - Power BI | Microsoft Docs 10 Data Management and Governance Actions to Reset, Increase Impact and Enable Remote Work What is the RACI model? And whe...

The guys are still in Houston talking through the Community Summit 2021. Alot of Dynamics folks at the conference, where does Power BI fit into that story? Automated Insights in Power BI is a relatively new feature for Premium Users, which has blown Mike, Seth, and Tommy's mind. However, they find it "interesting". What would do they think the feature plays in for Users, and where do they want to...

Mike & Tommy are live in Houston for the Community Summit NA 2021! Let's face it. We have all failed at building and delivering solutions via data to our stakeholders. And it comes in all shapes and sizes. And it's not just your DAX or Power Query. What counts as failing, and what were your worst moments? The guys shares what it means to fail in Power BI both from the development and deliverin...

Anyone building Power BI Reports knows the amount of intricate tasks that are involved from data source to visuals in a Report. But what are the final enhancements you can make that really make it stand out? What about too much? When does it bloat your report? The guys discuss their best advice and their own checklists. Tommy finally released his article on the Scanner API! Read how to get it work...

This is the first part of what we believe will be at least a 3-part series on Governance in Power BI. Future Governance episodes will be released later in the future.  Using the amazing Power BI Adoption Roadmap series, today the guys kick-off what Data Governance is by defining the introductory statements outlined in the Adoption Roadmap article on Governance (article here: https://docs.micr...

We have a mailbag topic!  In the Power BI Space, there are more than enough areas of expertise that require skill and knowledge on. I am going from DAX all the way to adoption. So this begs the question: Is it better to be "somewhat" knowledge in all aspects or become a Master of a few particular areas? Get in touch: Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @Powe...