Explore Power BI through classes focused on creating visual reports and dashboards. You’ll transform data into clear, impactful visual stories for decision-making.
Learn how to use Power BI, a powerful data visualization tool, to create interactive and aesthetically pleasing charts, graphs, and maps. Learn how to connect to datasets, analyze and structure data, customize visualizations, and publish reports.
Learn Power BI for data analysis & visualization and become a certified Power BI Data Analyst Associate in this hands-on certification course.
Learn the essential skills needed to become a Data Analyst or Business Analyst, including data analysis, data visualization, and statistical analysis. Gain practical experience through real-world projects and prepare for a successful career in the field of data analytics.
Microsoft’s Power BI is one of the tools that any professional can use to create easy-to-understand data-visualization infographics, easily shared among departments. For deeper-level use, Data Scientists and Data Analysts take advantage of the advanced features, which can require some training and practice. Power BI is a tool that brings data to all users when needing a quick update, instead of waiting in between the critical information that data scientists can provide. Trained users have the information they need for data preparation, data discovery, and customizable dashboards that fit their business’s needs, transforming how information was previously gleaned. The platform integrates with Excel and Office 365 and has a very active user community that extends the tool’s capabilities, making it a plus for everyone in an organization.
Power BI is a scalable business intelligence software application that is cloud-based and available as part of Microsoft’s suite of business tools. Power BI is just one part of the Microsoft Office 365 suite, which includes tools such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, used by many professionals every day. As Microsoft’s business solutions offerings increase, Power BI is often underutilized, but with training, it becomes a tremendous help for busy professionals. The higher functions Power BI can perform make it a standby for those who spend a great deal of time analyzing data, making predictions, and producing reports. However, the more a workforce has access to this tool, the better it is for communication and performance.
Some of the functions of Power BI include options for aggregating, analyzing, visualizing, and sharing data. Anyone with experience with programs such as Excel or any other basic spreadsheet work finds that it makes their work much easier and more efficient, especially when using it as a shared workspace. Since Power BI integrates well with all Microsoft applications, workforces appreciate how easy it is to use, including the ease of importing tables.
There are two versions of Power BI that companies can choose from. The basic free version is for small or midsize companies that don’t need to wrangle as much data or don’t demand real-time information a few times per day. Businesses that have data-savvy accounting, sales, and marketing departments often find the basic version effective enough as an additional way to work with data. The Power BI Plus version for bigger companies is subscription-based and wrangles large amounts of data. For companies of all sizes, areas such as FinTech, business intelligence, data science and analysis, and cybersecurity departments find the small investment in the Power BI Plus version an essential addition. One thing that makes Power BI more attractive to data-sensitive departments is its ability to secure a report server, allowing data and reports to be maintained on-site.
For high-ranking careers in data science and business analysis, expertise in Power BI is standard knowledge. There is an opportunity for tech talent to make a career as a Power BI developer for those who already have experience with data analytics or a similar business segment. Power BI developers must have solid skills in data integration, data warehousing, modeling, and presentation concepts and are considered part of the data science team. Sensitive and private data is shared within companies, and Power BI users and developers must have high ethics. Since any data-heavy role has to be able to demonstrate what the information they’ve gathered means to supervisors and stakeholders, top communication abilities and business acumen are required skills.
The advantages of Power BI extend beyond basic Microsoft 365 applications, too. It’s a valuable tool that supports more than seventy related programs such as widely-used Azure, DropBox, Google Analytics, OneDrive, and SalesForce, and supports on-premise applications such as SQL databases. With these built-in connectors, dashboards that everyone can use can be created in minutes and can be scaled and customized at will. Power BI’s drag-and-drop interface also means not having to code, copy, or paste anything, another advantage for users.
Professionals will want to have methods they can use for understanding and presenting data. The use of Power BI as a career tool is essential for professionals who have to have real-time availability of data for understanding and predicting directions their company is heading. Data accumulates at a stunning rate in an information-hungry business climate, and if data is mishandled, it can mean major disadvantages for companies. Data gathering is useless unless a program is in place that can automatically translate each bit in real-time.
Data scientists and analysts are still among the highest in the chain of command in an organization, but everyone benefits when most department heads can glean data by using Power BI. Technology continues to evolve at a blistering pace, and the urgency for experts in data management is skyrocketing, with more demand than supply. The ability to pull information that can be easily read and completely up-to-date for any group in an organization is now necessary.
Organizations commonly use Power BI when looking for insights within their data to connect disparate datasets. It’s also a way to transform and clean data that can be made into sharp infographics, including charts and graphs that can be easily understood. Power BI’s data models are flexible enough to be used in numerous ways such as telling stories through charts and data visualizations, as well as examining “what if” scenarios. Department heads need a way to share information with stakeholders at the moment they need it, and they can do that with Power BI.
Power BI administrators and managers can execute highly advanced custom dashboards for those managing the most data, providing even deeper insight into how departments perform. The Power BI Admin has access to the admin portal, allowing for the ability to modify tenant settings, view usage reports, and set organization visuals. The ability to make solid predictions when charting a new direction or monitoring an existing situation is valuable for any business. In a data-hungry business world, the ability to gather real-time data and produce understandable infographics with Power BI is advantageous.
Those with experience with Power BI find it is an attractive addition to any resume. Training and practice with the platform are not difficult, but it can be time-consuming to have to pull an employee away from regular job duties to upskill. When a prospective employer sees that a candidate is already fluent in the tool, that candidate stands out in the crowd. These decision-makers know that they’ll be able to not only get the data they need but have someone on their team that can create regular reports and forecasts for them that track how their team or individual employees are progressing without having to do deeper levels of Power BI training themselves. Power BI is the Microsoft tool they use to make this task easy and efficient. There is even an admin portal for use by administrators to be able to monitor usage and licenses.
Virginia is steeped in established businesses that offer tremendous job security. It’s also a state with a wide range of choices when it comes to where a professional chooses to live. Virginia has beaches on its eastern borders, rich farmland inland, and large cities with all the metropolitan amenities someone could want. Nature lovers will feel at home since the majority of the state offers deeply wooded forests, rolling mountains, and dunes with seagrass waving in the wind along the shoreline. Well known as a foodie state, some of the nation’s top restaurants are nestled in romantic and historic hideaways such as the Inn at Little Washington.
Home prices are typical for East Coast living, and schools consistently rank above the national average. Salaries for professionals range depending upon industry, role, education, and experience. Average yearly salaries across the state include Digital Analysts at around $68,000 and Project Managers at about $79,000.
Taking in-person Power BI classes in Virginia is the way to get 1-on-1 tailored attention from instructors in small class sizes. ONLC and Certstaffix Training are two schools that provide Power BI classes in Virginia. These are hybrid courses, meaning they are taught by remote instructors and students may attend in a state-of-the-art computer lab.
ONLC offers a few courses that teach Microsoft Power BI at different levels or for different roles in business. A solid option for an introductory course is their two-day Power BI for Excel Users workshop. Students in this course discover how to easily move raw data from an Excel spreadsheet to Power BI for analysis in this beginner-friendly course. Using existing skills in Excel, participants learn how to model data, as well as create and publish reports. Students also learn how to master colors, text boxes, interactions, and other data visualizations tools. Additional topics include sharing and publishing, including customized dashboards, workplaces, and personal gateways.
Certstaffix Training has a Microsoft Power BI Desktop and Microsoft Power Query class that shows students the necessary functions to transform and combine data from various sources. Topics covered in this class include database connections, loading, and grouping, as well as data merges, Power Query syntax, CSV, and Excel management.
Virginia is a large state, and not everyone is located near a major metropolitan area where they can access classes easily. Additionally, those who are interested in adding Power BI to their arsenal of professional tools tend to be extremely busy. Live online courses in Power BI are a great way for those professionals to find space in their schedules to take classes from anywhere. Finding a distraction-free location of their choice allows students to concentrate on the material offered and take advantage of direct assistance from their instructor. Because the classes are live and have small sizes, students can get the assistance they need while they learn. Students are even free to share their computer screens with their instructors for more individualized help.
Noble Desktop, the creator of this tool, offers an excellent course for instruction in Power BI: the Power BI Bootcamp. Bootcamps are comprehensive, information-rich sessions that allow students to learn best practices when using Power BI for creating data visualizations for business reports. In these bootcamps, students discover how the tool was created by combining the best aspects of Excel, Access, SQL, and additional business technologies. Power BI streamlines the process from data to insights, providing users with a skill that solves any business task more efficiently. Students also learn how to connect multiple data sources into one relational model, use Power Query, and make throughout time intelligence reports. Additionally, students use Power BI’s DAX language to power visualizations and get tips on which experts to follow as they refine their skills when they return to the workplace.
Live online Power BI courses and bootcamps are also offered by NYIM Training. Instruction from NYIM Training includes showing the benefits of using Power BI in many roles in technology by demonstrating the use of the software with Power Query, data modeling to connect datasets, and the report view to create compelling dashboards and visualizations. NYC Career Centers also offers virtual Power BI instruction. Classes with this school are hands-on and demonstrate how gaps in data reporting potential in businesses can be satisfied with this tool.
Power BI isn’t just for those who work with data every day, and it is not limited to Microsoft’s Office 365. It’s possible to give all employees skills with this user-friendly business intelligence tool by providing onsite corporate Power BI training. Investing in training is a tremendous advantage when keeping a workforce up-to-date with instruction in the tools they have at their fingertips but might not know how to implement. An expert instructor from Noble Desktop will tailor a course for your employees and provide training at your location, or conduct a virtual session over a video conferencing platform. If it is more convenient to allow employees to attend public open-enrollment classes, individual vouchers can be purchased at a discount. Contact Noble Desktop for more information.