Power BI is a powerful business analytics tool by Microsoft that helps organizations visualize their data, derive actionable insights, and make informed decisions. By integrating AI capabilities, Power BI offers automated insights, predictive analytics, and natural language queries, making data analysis more intuitive and accessible. This course will provide a hands-on experience in using Power BI for both AI-driven data analytics and creating impactful data visualizations.

This course outline should give attendees a comprehensive introduction to Power BI's AI and data visualization capabilities, providing them with practical knowledge and hands-on experience in both analytics and visual storytelling!

Course Objectives

By the end of this course, participants will:
1. Understand the key features and functionalities of Power BI.
2. Leverage AI capabilities within Power BI to analyze and interpret data.
3. Create interactive and dynamic data visualizations using Power BI.
4. Build customized reports and dashboards to present business insights.
5. Learn best practices for data storytelling and communicating insights effectively.

Who Should Attend

- Data Analysts looking to enhance their skills with AI-powered analytics.
- Business Intelligence Professionals who want to create compelling, data-driven stories.
- Managers and Decision Makers who rely on data insights for business strategy.
- IT Professionals involved in data management and reporting.
- Students and Enthusiasts interested in learning how to use Power BI for analytics and data visualization.

Course Materials Provided:

- Power BI Desktop installation guide.
- Sample datasets for exercises.
- Power BI resources and learning guides.

Session 1: Introduction to Power BI and Data Analytics
Duration: 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM
- Overview of Power BI: Features and benefits.
- Understanding the Power BI ecosystem (Power BI Desktop, Power BI Service, and Power BI Mobile).

- Importing and connecting to various data sources (Excel, Databases, Cloud, etc.). - Exploring the Power BI interface and basic functionalities.

Objective:

Participants will get a solid understanding of Power BI's interface, data integration, and how it fits into the analytics workflow.

Break: 10:30 AM – 10:45 AM

Session 2: Power BI with AI for Data Analytics
Duration: 10:45 AM – 12:30 PM
- Introduction to AI features in Power BI.
- Automated Insights: Using Power BI's AI-driven features to uncover trends and patterns.
- Predictive Analytics: Applying machine learning models within Power BI to forecast future trends.

- Key Influencers: Using the AI visual to analyze factors impacting business outcomes.
- Q&A Visual: How to ask natural language questions and get visual responses from Power BI.

Hands-on Exercise:

- Import a dataset and use AI tools to analyze and predict trends.

Objective:

Participants will learn to use Power BI's AI tools to automate insights, perform predictive analytics, and ask questions of their data in natural language.

Lunch Break: 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM

Session 3: Data Visualization with Power BI
Duration: 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM
- Principles of effective data visualization.
- Creating basic charts, graphs, and tables in Power BI.
- Custom Visualizations: Using and customizing Power BI's extensive library of visuals. - Building interactive dashboards and reports.

- Adding slicers, filters, and drill-throughs to enhance interactivity.

Hands-on Exercise:

- Build an interactive dashboard with real-time data updates and visual filters.

Objective:

Participants will be able to create interactive and visually engaging dashboards to communicate insights effectively.

Break: 3:00 PM – 3:15 PM

Session 4: Advanced Reporting and Data Storytelling
Duration: 3:15 PM – 4:30 PM
- Best practices for data storytelling: Structuring your report to tell a compelling story.
- Customizing reports with themes, colors, and branding.
- Exporting and sharing reports: Publishing to Power BI Service, embedding dashboards, and setting up automatic updates.
- Collaboration features: Sharing reports and dashboards with your team.

Hands-on Exercise:

- Create a report tailored to a specific business case, incorporating visual storytelling techniques.

Objective:

Participants will learn how to present data as a compelling narrative and share insights with others through customized and branded reports.

Q&A and Wrap-Up
Duration: 4:30 PM – 5:00 PM
- Open Q&A session.
- Recap of the day's learnings.
- Final thoughts and best practices for ongoing Power BI use.