Forum Discussion

Davacer's avatar
Davacer
New Member
2 years ago

Complex exercise: Automating reports in PowerBI Desktop

Hello everyone and Happy New Year with 10 days late 😂,

 

To put this into context, I'm new to the world of PowerBI, Desktop at the moment, but I've heard a lot about it. Today, I'm faced with an exercise that seems quite complex but is feasible in the context of a company selling software for which I need to extract data:

I'm looking to create reports to enhance visibility of Opportunity Changes by Channel, Quarter, Country, Partner, Revenue amount/type, and Opportunity process stage based on a 5-week rolling lookback.

 

Specifically, I need to:

  • Extract CSV data from a database every week.
  • Clean up/improve this data (replace "." with ",", add a total revenue column by adding 2 columns).
  • Create a link between previous extracts and new ones
  • Highlight, week by week, the above-mentioned developments (Eg. The point is to understand that "opportunity X", extracted 2 weeks ago, has evolved from "Open" to "Lost". But also, to show that there are #N new opportunities, etc...).

And above all, automate these tasks, from the moment of extraction, to the moment of viewing the data.

 

I know how perilous this exercise can be, but here are my requests:

  • Do you know if it's possible to perform these tasks with PowerBI?

If so, please let me know:

  • Do you know of any resources that can provide me with the knowledge without taking days of training?
  • Would you be able to share with me some tips on how to achieve my goal?

I would like to thank anyone who can help me with any of these tasks.
Have a nice day!

 

1 Reply

  • amustafa's avatar
    amustafa
    Solution Sage

    Hi dev 

    You made the first right step towards selecting Power BI. If you are doing a proof of concept type project then Free version of Power BI Desktop can meet all of your requirements. You can store/save weekly CSV files in a Folder and inhest data form a folder instead of a single CSV file. This method assumes that every CSV file does not chnage in term sof column and data types.
    Going into production and distributing these reports with business usres will require licensing.

    Feel free to connect with me and schedule a time on my calandar. I'd be happy to spare 30 min with you and walk you through the steps.

     

    https://outlook.office365.com/owa/calendar/[email protected]/bookings/

     

    Cheers!