Brick and Caleb discuss the impact and implications of Microsoft's new data stack, Fabric. Can it completely replace the myriad of tools needed for data operations? How well will it integrate into a business workflow? Despite some concern about vendor lock-in, the hosts lean towards seeing Microsoft's comprehensive tool set as an advantage, particularly in terms of business productivity, cost savings, and ease of integration with other Microsoft applications.

Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel.

Blue Margin increases enterprise value for PE-backed, mid-market companies by building and managing their data platforms. Our strategy, proven with over 250 companies to-date, expands multiples through data transformation, as presented in our book, The Dashboard Effect.

Subscribe here to get more episodes of The Dashboard Effect podcast on your favorite podcast app.

Visit Blue Margin's library of additional BI resources.

Brick and Caleb delve into the latest announcements from the Microsoft Build Conference, specifically focusing on Power BI and its upcoming Copilot feature. They share some of the capabilities of the Copilot's natural language querying and the potential impact on report building and data infrastructure, prompting the question: what role will data visualization experts play in the future?

Power BI Copilots will become generally available in ~6 months, and companies need to start preparing their data now to leverage these revolutionary tools.

As referenced in the episode, here is a link to watch the Microsoft Power BI Copilot demo: (4) Copilot in Power BI Demo - YouTube

Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel.

Blue Margin increases enterprise value for PE-backed, mid-market companies by building and managing their data platforms. Our strategy, proven with over 250 companies to-date, expands multiples through data transformation, as presented in our book, The Dashboard Effect.

Subscribe here to get more episodes of The Dashboard Effect podcast on your favorite podcast app.

Visit Blue Margin's library of additional BI resources.

In this episode, Brick and Caleb discuss Microsoft's upcoming AI tools ("Copilots") and their new data management system, Microsoft Fabric, and how it fundamentally differs from its predecessor, Azure Synapse. They explain OneLake's innovative concept, where all data is centrally stored in Delta Parquet files. They also preview some pricing for the Fabric service and advice for those embarking on data projects ahead of its general release.

Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel.

Blue Margin increases enterprise value for PE-backed, mid-market companies by building and managing their data platforms. Our strategy, proven with over 250 companies to-date, expands multiples through data transformation, as presented in our book, The Dashboard Effect.

Subscribe here to get more episodes of The Dashboard Effect podcast on your favorite podcast app.

Visit Blue Margin's library of additional BI resources.

In this episode of the Expert Insights Series, Blue Margin consultant Greg Brown hosts Jack Nestell, Managing Partner of Nestell & Associates.

Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel.

Nestell & Associates is an ERP consulting firm that partners with private equity firms to drive ERP optimization and digital transformation projects.

With a background in business and IT leadership across multiple industries, Jack is an ERP practitioner, researcher, speaker, and academic with 30 years of experience in helping companies optimize their business processes and systems. He authored the book Successful ERP Systems: A Guide for Businesses and Executives.

In this episode, Jack shares his insights and best practices on:

- How to assess for data and ERP gaps during diligence
- How to assess your organizational culture and readiness for ERP implementation and digital transformation
- A six-step process for ERP migration and integration projects
- How to define, measure, and improve change success factors in an ERP project
- The impacts of AI and Industry 4.0 in ERP strategy

Blue Margin increases enterprise value for PE-backed, mid-market companies by building and managing their data platforms. Our strategy, proven with over 250 companies to-date, expands multiples through data transformation, as presented in our book, The Dashboard Effect.

Subscribe here to get more episodes of The Dashboard Effect podcast on your favorite podcast app.

Visit Blue Margin's library of additional BI resources.

 In this Expert Insights Series episode, Blue Margin co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer Jon Thompson hosts Paul Stansik, Operating Partner at ParkerGale Capital. Paul works with management teams to drive organic growth through improved sales, marketing, and leadership effectiveness.

 Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel.

Paul and Jon discuss:
- How to use vulnerability to build trust and improve team performance
- Why he chooses to show "Less Data, More Often" to portfolio executives
- How to improve portfolio companies with data-driven dialogue and a weekly Sales Metric Playbook

Prior to joining the firm in 2019, Paul served as a senior manager at Bain & Company in private equity, and VP of Sales at financial research firm ITG. With an MBA from Wharton, Paul is a prolific business writer and popular expert guest.

Check out Paul's writing (https://pstansik.medium.com/) and ParkerGale's podcast, PE Funcast (https://www.parkergale.com/podcasts).

Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on strategy and create a culture of accountability. We call it The Dashboard Effect, the title of our book and podcast.

Visit Blue Margin's library of additional BI resources here.

For a free, downloadable copy of our book, The Dashboard Effect, click here, or buy a hardcopy or Kindle version on Amazon. 

Brick and Caleb outline the importance (and complexities) of actively managing a data lake to meet ever-changing business needs and user requirements.

Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel.

Blue Margin increases enterprise value for PE-backed, mid-market companies by building and managing their data platforms. Our strategy, proven with over 250 companies to-date, expands multiples through data transformation, as presented in our book, The Dashboard Effect.

Download your copy here and subscribe to weekly insights on our podcast. 

Visit Blue Margin's library of additional BI resources here.

#datalake #BI #ETL 

In this episode, Brick and Caleb outline the three pillars of a BI system framework: data lakes, data modeling, and data visualization.

Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel.

Blue Margin increases enterprise value for PE-backed, mid-market companies by building and managing their data platforms. Our strategy, proven with over 250 companies to-date, expands multiples through data transformation, as presented in our book, The Dashboard Effect. 

Download your copy here and subscribe to weekly insights on our podcast. 

Visit Blue Margin's library of additional BI resources here.

#AI #datastrategy #datalake #BI

 In this episode, Brick Thompson hosts CIO John Manzanares, a seasoned IT leader and a board member for PE-backed field services, construction, transportation, and logistics companies, as well as the Society for Information Management.

John shares insight into:
- How a Midmarket Commercial Services Company Monetized Their Data
- Why Data Lakes are Key to the Buy-and-Build Strategy
- How Microsoft’s 365 Copilot Will Likely Change Data Reporting
- How to Wrangle ChatGPT in the Wild West Days of AI
- How to Minimize BI Project Delays
 
Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel.

Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on strategy and create a culture of accountability. We call it The Dashboard Effect, the title of our book and podcast.

Visit Blue Margin's library of additional BI resources here.

For a free, downloadable copy of our book, The Dashboard Effect, click here, or buy a hardcopy or Kindle version on Amazon.
#AI #datastrategy #datalake #BI

In this episode, Blue Margin consultant Greg Brown interviews John A. Lanier, CEO of Middle Market Methods. John shares insights into his approach to value creation road-mapping as well as his strategies for identifying areas for operational improvements and addressing the misalignment that commonly occurs between PE sponsors and portfolio company executives. 
 
Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel.

Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on strategy and create a culture of accountability. We call it The Dashboard Effect, the title of our book and podcast.

Visit Blue Margin's library of additional BI resources here.

For a free, downloadable copy of our book, The Dashboard Effect, click here, or buy a hardcopy or Kindle version on Amazon.
#AI #datastrategy #datalake #BI

In this episode, Brick and Caleb discuss the importance of preparing your data environment for the arrival of AI tools. They highlight the advantages of a data lake, a flexible repository for storing and integrating data, making it easier to analyze and report on. By having an established data lake, organizations can seamlessly leverage upcoming AI tools without having to scramble to access data in their transactional systems.
 
Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel.

Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on strategy and create a culture of accountability. We call it The Dashboard Effect, the title of our book and podcast.

Visit Blue Margin's library of additional BI resources here.

For a free, downloadable copy of our book, The Dashboard Effect, click here, or buy a hardcopy or Kindle version on Amazon.
#AI #datastrategy #datalake #BI