Introduction
Many organizations begin using Power BI to eliminate the hassle of manual Excel reporting. Power BI can certainly automate these manual processes, and there are numerous examples available for automating reports in the platform. However, automating Power BI refresh isn't just about using the tool; it's also about understanding how to effectively utilize it.
In this article, I’ll guide you on how to automate Excel reports using Power BI. If you're interested in a real-world example, I’ll share a case study of a client and how we successfully automated her Excel reports with Power BI. This case study will help to illustrate how to automate every aspect of your reporting using Power BI, including:
Automating data extraction
Automating data transformation
Automating report refresh
Automating report maintenance
How to Automate Reports in Power BI
Automating Data Extraction
The first step in report automation is to automatically extract data. This eliminates the need for manual copying and pasting between spreadsheets.
To automate in Power BI, you can leverage Power Query, which is available in both Excel and Power BI. You can find a beginner’s tutorial for Power Query on our website. Power Query in Power BI enables automatic data extraction from over 100 data sources. Although Power Query in Excel covers fewer sources, it still offers various options.
If your data source is not listed in the Power Query get data menu, it’s possible to create a custom Power Query connector. We have developed these connectors for many of our clients. Below is a demonstration of how these connectors function.
The custom connector directly extracts data from your source using an open API.
Remember the client mentioned earlier? They had their data housed in QuickBooks Online and previously extracted it manually. Upon discovering that QuickBooks Online has a documented open API, we created a custom connector to automate the data extraction.
To determine if a similar approach is possible for your data, consider searching for your data source name along with the term "API documentation." For instance, you might search for "QuickBooks Online API Documentation." If you find results, you may be able to create a custom connector.
You have multiple options for custom connectors:
Learn how to create them yourself.
Hire a professional consultant to do it for you.
Purchase a ready-made connector from companies like cData.
Automating Data Transformation
Once your data is extracted, the next step is to automate its transformation into a usable format. Many companies do this manually-removing columns, rearranging data, and deleting rows.
All these data manipulations can be accomplished automatically using Power Query. We have a detailed article describing these manipulations step by step. Power Query applies the data transformation steps to your tables, and every time you refresh your data, it reapplies these transformations. This means you won’t have to repeat manual adjustments each time.
Take the same client as an example; they used to spend 14 hours per week transforming the extracted data. They were aggregating data rows, applying filters, and conducting manual calculations. Now, all these processes have been automated through Power Query.
Automate Report Refresh
After you’ve automated data extraction and transformation, the next step is to automate the Power BI refresh process. Power BI includes a scheduled refresh feature that allows you to set data refresh times up to eight times daily (assuming you have a Power BI Pro license).
Setting up a scheduled refresh is relatively quick and can be done in less than an hour. However, the specifics can depend on your data source. For some data sources, you might also need a personal data gateway software installed on your computer that facilitates data flow from your sources to the Power BI Service.
In our client's case, we configured the Power BI report to refresh every working hour, totaling eight times each day.
If you encounter challenges while setting up automated refresh, consider seeking help from a professional consultant for guidance.
Automating Report Maintenance
Finally, it's essential to ensure that your reports require minimal maintenance. You can achieve this by limiting hard-coding as much as possible.
Hard-coding refers to using specific values directly in your code. For example, if you filter your visuals by date = “14 June 2023”, you will need to manually update this date later.
Instead of hard-coding, consider setting a filter such that date = “today”. This adjustment removes the need for daily manual maintenance of your Power BI reports.
The same principle applies when constructing your formulas and applying transformation steps. When we developed automated reporting for our client, our focus was on minimizing hard-coding in the formulas.
Conclusion: How to Automate Power BI Refresh
This article has outlined that automating Excel report processes with Power BI involves more than just using the tool-it's about how you leverage its capabilities. To fully grasp how to automate Power BI refresh, you need to methodically approach the report automation process step by step.
Now that you are familiar with the steps for report automation and the available functionalities, you can take proactive steps forward.
As next steps, consider planning to apply the approach laid out for automating your reports in Power BI. Reflect on:
Which data sources are manually being extracted?
What manual transformations are currently in place?
How often do these manual tasks occur?
What manual maintenance do you perform on your Excel reports?
Once you've answered these questions, explore more about the Power BI functionalities we discussed, including:
Power BI Custom Connectors
Power BI Power Query
Scheduling data refresh with Power BI
This foundational knowledge will allow you to make informed decisions about automating your reporting processes.
