3 Overlooked Power BI Skills (that aren't coding)

TL;DR: To excel in the Power BI world, focus on three often overlooked non-coding skills:

1. Business analyst skillset: Understand and communicate business outcomes
2. Effective communication: Tailor your message to your audience
3. Linking data to business outcomes: Use hypothesis-led data modeling

These skills, combined with technical prowess, will make you a well-rounded and valuable Power BI developer

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Data projects are rooted in humanity - so if data represents the world, why are so many devs disconnected from humans?

Why Power BI Developers Struggle to Make Actionable Progress

• Too much focus on the technical aspect of the tool
• Lack of business acumen and domain knowledge
• Poor communication skills
• Inability to link data to business outcomes.

However, with a few minor changes in mindset, the path to becoming a fully-rounded developer can become much more straightforward.

Here's how to up your people game:

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Here's how to up your people game:

1: Your business analyst skillset

Always keep business outcomes front of mind.

What exactly are we trying to do with our data? What is the message we're trying to extract and convey? What problem are we solving?

Google this stuff:

• Problem-solving (something from Mckinsey)
• MECE (also Mckinsey)
• Project Documentation and Presentation (check out consultantsmind.com)

There's no point telling a CEO about your great DAX measure - tell her what the DAX measure does for her business. Then, if she wants to know about the technical DAX aspect, she will ask.

2: Communicating with your audience

99% of developers I see don't bother to define their audience. Are we dealing with a team of engineers or some new starters?

Is my audience well-versed in financial terms and acronyms, or must I spell it out?

This also applies to your boss or project manager. What do they respond to? Do they simply want the job done, or do they want a more detailed recount of events?

• Actively listen. Don't just wait for your turn to talk. When people say that another person is a great communicator, they mean they are a great listeners.
• Take notes. Don't be afraid to ask someone to repeat themselves.
• Say, "I don't know." If you don't know something, don't lie. I'd much rather know my team's gaps at the start of a project than at the end. Showing some vulnerability makes you approachable and encourages the group to share thoughts (even if they're wrong) without fear of judgement or retribution.
• Understand the audience for which you're building your report. Speak their language. Chat with them and see what other words they use. Analyse their emails. If it's a broad audience, ensure you're not offending anyone.

Communication will set you apart in the business world.

Bolt technical aspects to a solid communication foundation, and you'll never be short of work again.

3: Linking data to business outcomes

For faster and more accurate outcomes, employ a hypothesis-led data modelling strategy.

Starting with the question, "How can the data model improve performance" will lead you to ask, "What are we improving?"

• Start with the business outcome/goal/opportunity - i.e. "We want to increase revenue."
• Gather data. Do we have an exhaustive list of income and costing data? What other data sources affect revenue? What data sources impact sales, etc.?
• Do I need to clean or reformat the data? Do I need to do any transformations?
• And most importantly, ask, "What is the simplest data model that improves our performance?"

It's easy to grab a data set, bang together some visuals, create a few reports, and run with it. But this is not the path to longevity.

First, take the time to understand your audience.

Then, take your time to understand the business outcomes.

Weave in your technical prowess, and you're nigh unbeatable.

Just remember the most critical skills in any data analyst's life have nothing to do with coding, tools, and technology.

Example: If you are a gun coder but an absolute pain in the arse to be around, you won't last long on one of my projects.

Better example: Good fit, excellent business skills, critical thinker, great communicator, and a so-so coder?

Welcome aboard.