Data Modeling with Microsoft Power BI

Foreword

No topic in the data industry is more debated than data modeling. It is the source of memes, T-shirts, and endless debates at conferences, and its demise has been predicted for years.

Yet here we are with a new book about data modeling. And it is sorely needed; data modeling is a foundational skill with many applications. It makes tough problems easier to solve, data easier to work with, and Data Analysis Expressions (DAX) easier to write. It improves performance and eventually saves costs. However, you must be willing to put in the work; it’s necessary to start thinking about data modeling early in the process, whether you’re designing a data warehouse, lakehouse, or semantic model in Power BI.

The data model is the cornerstone of your project. I have learned this from working with customers on all variations of analysis services over the years (from Power Pivot to SSAS and Power BI). With proper data modeling, you won’t have to resort to as many DAX gymnastics. A good data model simplifies your calculations.

I’ve known Markus for many years and always enjoy his sessions at conferences. He explains tough topics in a simple manner, and this book is no exception.

In Data Modeling with Microsoft Power BI, Markus explores the many facets and long history of data modeling (who doesn’t have the Kimball data warehousing book on the shelf?): how we need to think about data, and how we can translate requirements into entities and attributes. Markus does a great job applying these ...