Curious About Data Flows?

Power BI users and Excel analysts often face repetitive data preparation tasks. Cleaning the same messy datasets for multiple reports leads to errors and inefficiency. Data flows address this by allowing teams to define transformations once in the cloud.

These reusable data pipelines integrate seamlessly with Power BI semantic models and Excel. They promote standardization across workspaces while leveraging the service's compute engine.

Jessica Jolly, a Power BI specialist, explores data flows in detail. She explains what they are, target users, core benefits, and practical ways to handle drawbacks like refresh delays.

What You Will Learn

• Core definition of data flows as cloud-based data transformation pipelines in Power BI service
• Common use cases such as preparing shared data for multiple datasets or reports
• Step-by-step process to create your first data flow using Power Query Online
• How to define entities, linked entities, and computed entities for efficient reuse
• Key benefits including governance through central control and reduced duplication
• Integration options with Excel via Analyze in Excel for PivotTable consumption
• Strategies to overcome drawbacks like long refresh times and storage costs

Key Takeaways

1. Identify repetitive tasks first. Scan your Power BI workspace for common transformations, then migrate them to data flows to cut prep time by half across projects.
2. Use incremental refresh where possible. Jolly highlights setting parameters for date-based filtering to speed up refreshes and handle large datasets effectively.
3. Monitor usage with workspace analytics. Track which data flows serve the most datasets, and prioritize optimization efforts on high-impact ones.
4. Start small with Excel integration. Test data flow output in Excel files before scaling to full Power BI deployments, easing adoption for spreadsheet users.

About the Speaker

Jessica Jolly focuses on Power BI and Excel ecosystems. She delivers sessions on data management features and helps teams adopt tools like data flows for better efficiency.

Who Should Watch This

This session suits Power BI admins and analysts who handle data prep but question if data flows fit their workflow. You gain clarity on when to use them over direct dataset queries.

Excel power users in hybrid environments will appreciate the connection methods for reusing Power BI transformations.

Teams new to shared datasets find value in governance tips. Skip if you manage enterprise-scale data flows already, though drawback solutions may refine your approach.