By: Daniel Calbimonte | Updated: 2022-12-22 | Comments | Related: More > Professional Development Interview Questions BI
Problem
Power BI is a highly demanded job and many companies seek users, Data Analysts, and BI Developers with the skills to handle Power BI as a self-service business intelligence solution. If you are thinking about applying for a Power BI related job, take a look at this helpful information for interview questions and answers.
Solution
This tutorial provides some Power BI interview questions that you may be asked and areas of discussion during an interview.
What is Power BI?
Power BI is a powerful real-time tool used in Business Intelligence (BI) for data visualization from different data sources like Microsoft Excel, CSV files, Azure SQL Database, AWS, SQL Server, Oracle, SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS), Tableau, data warehouse, data mart, and several other sources. Power BI Developers can create reports, charts, dashboards, and more for data analytics purposes.
What is a .pbix File?
Power BI files are saved using the PBIX extension. You can save your Power BI reports in a file with the PBIX extension and export them to other machines that use Power BI.
What is the Dataverse?
The Dataverse in Power BI is the Microsoft Dataverse. It is storage in the cloud to store tables from the Power Platform. The Power Platform includes Power BI, Power Apps, Power Automate, Power Virtual Agents, and Power Pages. All these applications can store information in the Dataverse.
Are you Certified in Power BI?
It takes time to be certified. If you do not have time to get the certification, at least study some material to ensure that you know the tool. Here is a great article about Power BI certification:
Another place for study material is the free Microsoft website that you can find here:
Do you have experience with DAX Functions?
DAX (Data Analysis Expression) is used to calculate columns, get data from Power BI, and calculate values. It is a must to know.
The following links can help you to improve your skills with DAX formulas and functions.
- Getting started with DAX in Power BI
- Calculating Work Days for Power BI Reports using NETWORKDAYS Function
- DAX Rounding Functions for Power BI Reports
- RELATED vs LOOKUPVALUE in DAX: How and when to use them in Power BI
- Calculate Values for the Same Fiscal Week in a Previous Fiscal Year with Power BI and DAX
- Dynamic Power BI Slicer Using DAX Logic
Do you have experience with R or Python?
This question is for advanced users, especially data scientists. R and Python are very popular programming languages (especially Python).
Several jobs do not require R and Python knowledge, but knowing a little about these languages is a plus.
The following links will help you to learn how to use R or Python in Power BI.
- Generate visualizations in Power BI using Python Scripts
- Visualize categorical scatterplots in Power BI with Python
- Getting started with R scripts and R visuals in Power BI Desktop
What are some Power BI Best Practices that you follow?
Here are some best practices for Power BI Apps:
- Prepare and know your dataset
- Use M or DAX
- Choose Visuals Wisely
- Make sure that the performance is OK
- Apply security in the Design
- Dashboard visual flow
- Implement Vertical Filtering in Power BI
- Create calculated columns as Power Query computed columns defined in M
- Improve Power BI Performance with SQL Server Indexing
- Use the Power BI Performance Analyzer
- Use performance Analysis using Ribbon Charts
- How to Create a Star Schema Data Model in Power BI Desktop
- Setup Tabular Model from SQL Server Database or Power Pivot on Analysis Server
- Publish Power BI Report to Power BI Service
- SSRS vs Power BI
- SSRS Mobile Report Publisher Compared to Power BI
- SSIS for ETL Projects - Data Refresh
Here are some articles explaining best practices:
- Development Best Practices for Power BI
- Power BI Performance Optimization Tips
- Comparing Power BI vs Tableau as Data Visualization Tools
Which Custom Visuals have you used in Power BI Dashboards?
I strongly recommend checking the Get more visuals option and other visuals that are not included by default.
Use them and include them in your portfolio.
Do you have some Power BI Dashboards that you can show us?
It is strongly recommended to have a portfolio published on the web with your best reports and dashboards.
Go to the Microsoft Power BI Gallery and try to publish your Dashboards there. A great dashboard is worth a thousand words in your CV.
Do You Know How to Use the Q&A in Power BI?
Q&A is an AI visual that helps you quickly get an answer from your data. You can ask a question using natural language.
- Here is an introduction to Q&A: Power BI Q & A Example and Demo.
- If you want to go deeper into this topic, you can use the Power BI Advanced Q&A: Power BI Advanced Q&A.
- If you need to customize the linguistic setup, please refer to this link: Power BI Q&A Linguistic Schema.
- It is also possible to search for information in Power BI using Cortana. The following article shows how to do it: SQL Server Power BI Cortana Search.
Next Steps
- Power BI is an extremely popular tool. I strongly recommend studying the material for the certification exam to make sure you know the technical skills and to also create a portfolio for the interview.
- Read the articles that are linked above and you should have a much better interview. Good luck!
About the author
Daniel Calbimonte is a Microsoft SQL Server MVP, Microsoft Certified Trainer and 6-time Microsoft Certified IT Professional. Daniel started his career in 2001 and has worked with SQL Server 6.0 to 2022. Daniel is a DBA as well as specializes in Business Intelligence (SSIS, SSAS, SSRS) technologies.This author pledges the content of this article is based on professional experience and not AI generated.
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Article Last Updated: 2022-12-22
