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Turn Your Data into Insight with Power BI

A Practical Introduction to Microsoft Power BI

Data is everywhere – in spreadsheets, databases, cloud apps, and operational systems. But raw data alone doesn’t drive decisions. Insight does.

In our recent Power BI 101 webinar, we walked through how organizations can connect, transform, and visualize their data to uncover meaningful insights – without needing a complex analytics background.

Whether you’re new to Power BI or looking to build better reporting habits, this session focused on practical fundamentals you can apply immediately.

Here’s a recap of the key concepts.

What Is Power BI?

Power BI is a business analytics platform designed to help teams:

  • Connect to multiple data sources
  • Clean and transform raw data
  • Build interactive reports
  • Share insights across departments
  • Instead of manually stitching together spreadsheets, Power BI creates a repeatable, scalable reporting process that grows with your organization.
  • Understanding the Power BI Workflow

A strong reporting process follows a clear structure.

Follow this easy Power BI workflow:

1. Connect to Your Data

Power BI supports a wide range of sources, including:
  • SQL Server databases
  • Excel and CSV files
  • SharePoint and OneDrive
  • Cloud services and APIs

This flexibility allows teams to centralize information without changing existing systems.

2. Transform Your Data: Power Query Basics

Most raw data needs cleanup before it’s analysis-ready. Power Query lets you:
  • Filter, merge, and split columns
  • Rename and standardize fields
  • Clean formatting inconsistencies

The key benefit? These transformations are repeatable. Once defined, they run automatically – saving time and reducing human error.

3. Model Relationships

When multiple data tables are involved, modeling relationships ensures accurate analysis. This step allows Power BI to interpret how datasets connect, enabling more meaningful reporting.

4. Build Reports with Visuals

Creating reports is where insight comes to life. Power BI’s drag-and-drop interface makes it easy to:
  • Create tables and charts
  • Add slicers for filtering
  • Build multi-page reports

Visuals automatically interact with one another, allowing users to explore data dynamically.

Reports vs. Dashboards: Knowing the Difference
Understanding when to use reports versus dashboards is critical:
  • Reports
  • Multi-page
  • Interactive exploration
  • Deep analysis
  • Dashboards
  • Single-page summaries
  • High-level monitoring
  • Quick decision snapshots

Dashboards are built by pinning visuals from reports – making them ideal for leadership overviews or operational tracking.

Interactive Exploration: Making Data Clickable
One of Power BI’s strengths is interactivity. Users can:
  • Click visuals to filter other visuals
  • Drill down into detailed views
  • Slice data by time, location, or category

This allows decision-makers to explore trends in real time instead of relying on static reports.

Real-World Example: Operations and Warehouse Reporting
We demonstrated how Power BI can answer operational questions like:
  • What inventory is truly available versus allocated?
  • Where are we at risk for backorders?

By building targeted visuals, warehouse and operations teams gain visibility that improves planning and responsiveness.

Getting Started with Power BI Desktop
Power BI Desktop is:
  • Available through the Microsoft Store
  • Windows-based
  • Updated monthly

Organizations should coordinate with IT before installation to ensure compatibility and governance.

Best Practices for Effective Reporting

To maximize success:

✅ Start with a clear business question
✅ Keep visuals simple and purposeful
✅ Validate numbers early
✅ Focus on usability, not complexity

The goal is clarity – not flashy dashboards.

Bringing It All Together

Power BI helps organizations move from scattered data to confident decision-making. By following a structured workflow – connect, transform, model, visualize, and share – teams can use Power BI to build reporting systems that are accurate, repeatable, and scalable.

Whether you’re supporting finance, operations, or leadership, Power BI enables faster insight and smarter decisions.

If you’d like help implementing Power BI or building reports tailored to your business needs, we’re here to offer expert support:

Contact Consulting: support@iscorp.biz
Contact Sales: sales@iscorp.biz

Power BI: Ways to Connect to Data

One of the main benefits about Power BI is the ability to connect to multiple data sources and combine the information onto one report. It eliminates the need to look at different systems to gather pieces of information regarding how the business is performing.

In this post we are going to look specifically at the main data sources I have used in working with clients; however, this is a small part of what is available. To view all data connection possible, select “Get Data” within Power BI Desktop.

OData

OData contains REST APIs that allow you to connect to the data within your source. Generally, I use these connections with Customer Relationship Management Systems (CRMs); however, it is something that is available for those using Great Plains and other ERP systems as well. With Great Plains the OData connection must be set-up, but for a lot of cloud-based ERP solutions the OData connections are available out of the box.

When using an OData connection you will first enter the URL and then select your credentials. For this connection I recommend using an organizational account credential. Power BI will ask you to sign in with the username and password you use to access the system you are connecting to. It is important that your credentials have the appropriate security level to access the data necessary for the report.

 

SQL Server

This is the primary way I connect to Great Plains tables and other SQL backed ERP software systems. With the ability to create custom views within SQL it is sometimes easier than performing the data transformations within Power BI. These views can be pulled into Power BI and used for the reports.

With SQL server connections you will be required to enter the SQL server name and potentially the database.

Once you have this entered you will be prompted to select credentials and I recommend using the current windows credentials with this connection as security access to the SQL server is generally attached to your windows log-in.

Files and Folders

Although many reports use dynamic data there are still times that require the use of static documents or folders. I have used excel files as reference tables and folders to manage how many documents have been added to a particular folder, but these are just a couple of ideas on how you can use these connections.

When connecting to any file or folder you will need to have the location of the data. This does not require a set of credentials, but it is important to select where to house the files. If others need to access the files for updating you will want them stored in a shared location.

Websites

I have seen direct website connections to monitor current weather conditions, track top news stories and current scores. If your business is affected by these things it can be helpful to have an active web connection.

With websites I use anonymous credentials for public websites. If using an internal website that requires a log-in I will use an organizational log-in for credentials.

Entering Data Directly

This is an ability I rarely use but wanted to touch on in this post. Within Power BI there is the ability to enter table data manually. In the past I have used this for creating reference tables or assigning values to particular data sets.

Once you select to enter data a pop-up box appears that will allow you to type in column and row data.

Again, these are just a few of the possible data connections, but I have found these to be the most common in all the reports I have created over the years.

-Jerica Coleman, CRM and Power BI Consultant

Power BI: Getting Started Tips

When beginning to use Power BI people tend to get frustrated and some will give up on the process altogether. I did a lot of work in excel and when I started I found Power BI frustrating because it did not function as excel does. With that in mind I have compiled the following list of tips for new Power BI users:

Take time to clean up your data.

When starting most people want to go straight into creating visuals and mapping out their reports. That is ok if you are working from a table that has exactly the columns you need and are titled correctly. If you are connecting to data sources where the information is coming over in a more raw form you definitely want to take the time to clean up your data. Some things you can do:

  • Remove unnecessary columns.
  • Rename columns to be more descriptive.
  • Trim and clean cells to ensure data falls in the correct buckets.
Start with basic reports and then upgrade as you learn more.

While complex, interactive reports may be your end goal I recommend starting with a simple report to learn Power BI functionality. As your experience and knowledge grows you can expand your reports. Start by connecting to just a few tables and add basic visuals.

Pre-plan your reports but remain flexible.

I have found myself staring at a blank canvas in Power BI with a few tables loaded and no idea where to start when creating a report. It is extremely helpful to put together a rough draft of what you want to see before you begin working in Power BI. Draw it out or make a list of the data you want to see, then you can begin collecting and putting the data points onto the canvas. Remember to be flexible as you are creating reports. Space and aesthetics matter so some visualizations may not fit on the same page or you may need to rethink how well it will function for end users. Don’t get frustrated trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.

Ask for help.

If you reach a block and just cannot figure out how to accomplish something or you don’t have the time to familiarize yourself with Power BI ask for help. Consulting companies and the Power BI community are full of experts ready to help make this amazing tool work for you.

-Jerica Coleman, CRM and Power BI Consultant

 

Power BI Formatting: Table and Matrix Visuals

Formatting is often overlooked when creating Power BI reports, yet it is something that really elevates a report. I highly recommend spending the time to format or set up a style of formatting reports when you start using Power BI.

To help you on your journey I am doing a Power BI Formatting blog series where we are going to look at different ways you can format Power BI reports.

In today’s example we are going to look formatting options specific to table and matrix visuals.

Here is our current matrix visual with default formatting:

Formatting options are available by selecting the paint roller icon on the visualization tab.

  • Style
    • This allows you to select between pre-defined formatting for your visual.

  • Grid, Column headers, Row headers and Values
    • If you do not want to use a preset style you can use these four areas to design your table style.
    • In the below example I turned on the vertical grid and formatting the color and thickness of both the grid and outline. I formatted the column and row headers to be framed in by the outline, gave the column headers a center alignment and increased the stepped indentation for the rows. I removed the +/- icons from the row headers and changed the font color for the alternating rows.

  • Subtotals
    • Subtotals can be turned off if you do not want the different categories to sum the details. If you have subtotals turned on you can also set them per row level and determine which levels you want to total.

  • If you have columns on a matrix visual, you will also have the option to turn on subtotals for the different columns.
  • Grand total
    • Turning this on will give you the total line that appears at the bottom of your table/matrix. We also accomplished this with the row level subtotals by having it turned on at the top row level.
  • Field formatting
    • If you want just one column to be formatted differently you can apply field formatting and change the font, background and alignment. This can be applied to the values, header and totals. If you want to set this up you do need to format each column individually.

  • Conditional formatting
    • Like field formatting conditional formatting is done by individual column and you can set up the column to format based on a color scale, field value or rules. The background and font colors can be changed, data bars can be added or icons can appear. The fields used for formatting do not need to appear on the visual.
    • In the below example I set the color of the job name font to be defined by the field value of a custom column created that labels a job green or yellow depending on whether the original contract amount is over or under $100,000. Icons were added to the total revised forecast cost depending on a set of rules where measures were used to calculate the percent of revenue based on forecasted cost compared to the original contract amount. Finally, data bars were added to the total actual cost column to easily see which jobs have cost the most.

Although I don’t expect anyone to use all the formatting options available for each table or matrix visual I hope this has helped you see some of the options available to use. Don’t be afraid to play around with formatting. If at any time you do not like what you have done you can always select the “Revert to Default” option at the bottom of any area and the visual will revert back to default settings.

– Jerica Coleman, CRM and Power BI Consultant

Power BI Formatting: Interactive Filters (Slicers)

Formatting is often overlooked when creating Power BI reports, yet it is something that really elevates a report. I highly recommend spending the time to format or set up a style of formatting reports when you start using Power BI.

To help you on your journey I am doing a Power BI Formatting blog series where we are going to look at different ways you can format Power BI reports.

In today’s example we are going to look at formatting slicers, which is Power BI’s interactive report filters.

Text Slicers

When you select a field to be a slicer it will default to a list type filter.  Here is an example of a slicer for vendor class in our report.

Let’s review the formatting options available when you select the paint roller icon. We are only going to review options that are specific to slicers.

  • General
    • Orientation: Switch between vertical and horizontal to make the list items appear like buttons.

  • Selection Controls
    • Single select
      • Turn this on if you want users to only be able to select one value from the slicer at a time.
    • Multi-select with CTRL
      • Defaults to on. Turn off if you want users to be able to select multiple values without needing to use the CTRL button.
    • Show “Select all” option
      • Turn on if you want a select all option. I generally do not use this as clearing out all selections from your slicer defaults to showing all.
    • Slicer Header
      • If you turn the header off you will lose the clear and list options available in the visual, so I do not recommend turning it off. You can change the header text here to give the slicer a different name.
    • Items
      • Here you can set the color and text formatting for the values displayed in the slicer.

Within slicers you can also change a few things by selecting the down arrow or ellipsis located in the upper-right hand side of the visual itself.

  • Down Arrow
    • Change between list and dropdown style.

  • Ellipsis
    • Add a search box to the list if you have a larger set of data.

Date and Number Slicers

There are a few different options with date and number slicers. We are specifically going to look at date fields, but it’s helpful to know that number slicers will have most of the same options.

Date Format

When you select a date field for a slicer it defaults to using the date hierarchy, which will provide a list to choose year, quarter, month and day.

If you want to only select between year and month you can remove quarter and day by selecting the x next to that data value in the visualization pane.

If you want to be able to search between specific dates you can switch from using the document hierarchy to the actual document date by selecting the down arrow next to your date field on the visualizations tab.

When you select this date format there are a few more options available to you from the down arrow within the visual itself.

  • Between
    • This is the option shown in the example above and allows you to set your beginning and end date.
  • Before
    • Looks the same as the between option but greys out the first date box so you only have to enter the end date.
  • After
    • Looks the same as the between option but greys out the second date box so you only have to enter the beginning date.
  • List
    • This lists all dates available as we saw in the text slicer.
  • Dropdown
    • Keeps all dates listed but is formatted as a dropdown box to save space.
  • Relative Date
    • Allows you to search within a time period specific to today, such as the last 7 days or the next 2 years.

  • Relative Time
    • Similar to relative date but allows you to look at hours and minutes.

There are a few differences in what is available on the formatting tab when you select the paint roller as well.

  • General
    • There is no option to switch between vertical and horizontal.
  • Slider
    • With the between, before and after options a slider bar will appear. If you do not want to use the slider bar you can turn it off.

Although slicers are a cool interactive feature for your end users I do find that formatting is important for saving space on your reports and making it easy for end users to navigate the report.

-Jerica Coleman, CRM and Power BI Consultant

Power BI Formatting: Page Formatting

Formatting is often overlooked when creating Power BI reports, yet it is something that really elevates a report. I highly recommend spending the time to format or set up a style of formatting reports when you start using Power BI.

To help you on your journey I am doing a Power BI Formatting blog series where we are going to look at different ways you can format Power BI reports.

In today’s example we are going to look at page formatting.

All these formatting options are available when you select the paint roller icon from the visualization tab with NO visuals selected.

If you have a visual selected it will access the formatting options for that individual visual versus the page itself.

Page Size

There are a few different size options available. If you are viewing reports on the Power BI desktop or Power BI online there is no need to switch sizes, but if you plan to export reports different sizes could be beneficial.

  • 16:9
    • This is the default size.
  • 4:3
    • A smaller canvas size that fits less visuals.
  • Letter
    • Switches the report canvas to a portrait orientation versus the default landscape orientation. This would help if you intend to export to a PDF that you would want to print.
  • Tooltip
    • Allows a set of visuals to be placed on a page that will appear as a tooltip on other pages of the report. We will look more into tooltips in a future blog post.
  • Custom
    • Set a custom canvas size.

I usually use the default 16:9 and tooltip sizes when creating reports.

Here are examples of the 16:9, 4:3 and letter size canvases.

Report canvas backgrounds can be customized with a specific color or image and transparency level. Use a higher transparency level to either fade a color or create a watermark effect with an image. Colors can be chosen from the default set or customized using the HEX color or RGB definition.

When working with a page background remember that visuals also have a default background, to see through to the page background individual visuals must have their background turned off or set to 100% transparent.

In the below example we have given our report a 50% transparent grey background. The top two visuals also have their backgrounds set to allow the background to show.

Page Alignment

Choose between top or middle alignment to determine how the report canvas is aligned on the screen.

Wallpaper

The options are the same as setting a page background, but this affects the entire visible screen versus just the canvas portion where visuals are placed. It is extremely helpful if you want to layer an image and color on your background.

In the below example a picture was added to the page background and set at 75% transparency and a grey was set as a color wallpaper. The grey is lighter where the visuals appear because the background of the picture was white and it combined the two colors to make a lighter grey

Filter Pane and Filter Cards

With these formatting options the filter pane appearance in both color and font can be customized. Here is an example of a report with a filter pane that has been customized.

I have not run across a lot of desire to custom this pane as it seems a bit extra, but it is a cool option if you want to give the whole report a streamlined look.

-Jerica Coleman, CRM and Power BI Consultant