Storytelling with Data using Power BI Course

Programme overview

2 Days

Applied learning

Hands-on

Power BI redesign exercise

Decision-focused

Insights over metrics

Executive-ready

Management communication

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What will you learn

01 Start with the business question Define the audience, decision and message before designing a dashboard.		02 Choose the right visual Select visuals that match the analytical question and communicate comparisons, trends and distributions clearly.

03 Create visual hierarchy Use layout, whitespace, colour and emphasis to guide attention and reduce clutter.		04 Design decision-focused dashboards Structure Power BI reports around management questions, meaningful KPIs and logical information flow.

05 Turn analysis into a narrative Explain trends, drivers, exceptions, implications and recommended actions as a coherent data story.		06 Communicate with executives Build management-ready dashboards and commentary that support clear, confident decision-making.

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Who should attend?

Business analysts
Finance and FP&A professionals
Reporting and MIS teams
Data and BI professionals
Managers and team leaders
Strategy and transformation teams
Marketing and commercial analysts
HR and people analytics professionals
Operations and performance-management teams
Professionals responsible for dashboards, management reporting or executive presentations
Power BI users who want to improve the quality and impact of their reporting

Pre-requisites

Basic familiarity with Power BI recommended
Participants should be able to open, navigate and interact with Power BI reports
Basic understanding of charts and business KPIs useful
Advanced DAX or data-modelling knowledge not required
Access to Power BI Desktop recommended
Laptop required for hands-on exercises

Delivery format

Hybrid – face-to-face + live stream
Two consecutive weekend days
Instructor-led demonstrations
Hands-on Power BI exercises
Dashboard redesign activities
Individual and group work
Business reporting scenarios
Data-storytelling practice
Management-presentation exercises
Practical dashboard critique sessions

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Programme structure

Explore the eight modules designed to build practical capability in data storytelling, visual design, Power BI dashboard development, executive reporting and decision-focused communication.

Module 1: From Data Reporting to Data Storytelling

What you'll explore:

Understanding the difference between data, information and insight
Defining the business question before building a report
Identifying the intended audience and decision
Understanding what makes a data story effective
Recognising common reporting and dashboard-design mistakes

Module 2: Choosing the Right Visual

What you'll explore:

Matching chart types to analytical questions
Comparing categories effectively
Showing trends over time
Displaying composition and distribution
Avoiding misleading or unnecessary visuals

Module 3: Visual Hierarchy, Layout & Attention

What you'll explore:

Designing dashboards around visual priorities
Using size and position intentionally
Reducing unnecessary clutter
Applying whitespace effectively
Guiding the audience toward the most important information

Module 4: Using Colour & Emphasis Effectively

What you'll explore:

Using colour to communicate meaning
Applying consistent business-reporting conventions
Highlighting exceptions and priorities
Avoiding excessive and decorative colour
Designing accessible and readable reports

Module 5: Designing Decision-Focused Power BI Dashboards

What you'll explore:

Structuring dashboards around management questions
Selecting meaningful KPIs
Balancing summary and supporting detail
Designing drill-down and interaction intentionally
Creating a logical information flow across the report

Module 6: Turning Analysis into a Business Narrative

What you'll explore:

Identifying the key message behind the data
Distinguishing findings from implications
Explaining trends, drivers and exceptions
Structuring a beginning, middle and end to the data story
Connecting insights to recommendations and actions

Module 7: Executive Reporting & Management Communication

What you'll explore:

Designing dashboards for senior stakeholders
Prioritising information for executive consumption
Writing concise management commentary
Presenting performance, risks and opportunities clearly
Moving from dashboard display to decision-oriented communication

Module 8: Dashboard Redesign Workshop & Personal Action Plan

What you'll explore:

Critiquing an existing dashboard
Identifying design and storytelling weaknesses

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PRACTICAL TOOLS & RESOURCES

You will walk away with

Practical tools and templates to help you design clearer dashboards, communicate insights effectively and apply data-storytelling principles in the workplace.

✓	Personal dashboard-improvement action plan A practical action plan to apply dashboard-design and data-storytelling principles directly to your workplace reporting.

01

Power BI Storytelling Checklist

02

Dashboard Design Canvas

03

Audience and decision-purpose template

04

Visual-selection guide

05

Executive-dashboard layout templates

06

KPI storytelling framework