PASS Business Analytics VC December 20 – The Civic Technology Movement

The next PASS Business Analytics Virtual Chapter meeting will be next week on Tuesday, December 20.  We welcome Adam Hecktman who is Microsoft’s Directory of Technolgoy and Civic Innovation for Chicago who will be teaching us about the new Civic Technology movement.

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December 20 – The Civic Technology Movement

Session Abstract –

Civic Technology is a relatively new movement of people with technical skills who want to work towards the public good. Developers, designers, and…yes…data folks are working together to build tools to make our democracy work for everybody and to solve some of the most intractable social problems in cities around the country. But that is only part of the story. Learn what is being done and how you can participate by joining this webinar

Speaker Bio –

Adam J. Hecktman is Microsoft’s Director of Technology and Civic Innovation for Chicago. In this capacity, Adam helps Chicago’s civic leaders – and the communities they serve – use cutting-edge ideas around technology to solve the city’s biggest challenges. He provides thought leadership on the key issues and opportunities facing Chicago today and in the future.

Prior to this role, Adam was the Director of the Microsoft Technology Center – Chicago, helping organizations maximize business value and ensure long-term success when facing their toughest business challenges and opportunities. He has been with Microsoft in Chicago since 1991. Prior to Microsoft, Adam was a consultant for Accenture.

Adam received a Bachelor of Science in commerce and business administration from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and is pursuing his Masters of Data Science at the Illinois Institute of Technology. He regularly appears on television, print, and radio, and has authored numerous articles.

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Also, make sure you check out some of the other exciting events coming up:

The world of data and analytics is rapidly changing, and we’re pleased to offer the Business Analytics (BA) Marathon for data professionals looking to use data to make better business decisions. This edition features six back-to-back webinars focused on R and predictive analytics.

http://www.sqlpass.org/bamarathon/2016/december/Schedule.aspx

Join us on January 11, 2017 in Chicago!

Immerse in a full day of intense learning guided by expert speakers. Connect with like-minded business analytics professionals. Walk away with real-world analytics knowledge that you can use immediately!

http://passbaday.com/2017/chicago/Home.aspx

MN PASS Microsoft BI User Group Meeting – Dec 12

The next MN Microsoft BI User Group meeting is on Monday, December 12. We will have two presentations, the first one is embedding Power BI in applications and the other is on Data Visualization best practices.

Please Register Now (Please register so that we can have your name badge pre-printed)

MN Microsoft BI User Group December 2016 Meeting

Sponsored by:

Date: Monday, December 12, 2016

Check In: 12:45 PM Event Time: 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Location: Microsoft Technology Center – 3601 76th St W, Suite 600 Edina MN 55435 (in LOW 1, 2, and 3)

Please Register Now (Please register so that we can have your name badge pre-printed)

Agenda:

• 12:45-1:30 : Check-In, Pizza, Networking
• 1:30-1:45 : Microsoft BI User Group Updates and Announcements
• 1:45-2:45 : Embedding Power BI Visuals within your application for internal and external users
• 2:45-3:00 : Break
• 3:00-4:00 : A Bigger Boat: Data Visualization Lessons from the Movie Theater
• 4:00-4:30 : Wrap Up & Networking

Presentations:

Session 1: Embedding Power BI Visuals within your application for internal and external users

Power BI Visuals can be consumed in different ways and fashions. You can either consume them directly from PowerBI.com or by embedding them within applications (both for internal and external users). In this session, we will cover how to embed Power BI Visuals into application for internal users (using Power BI Developers API’s) and for external users (using Power BI Embedded).

Speaker: Prateek Gandhi, Data Platform Solution Architect

Prateek works at Microsoft as a Data Platform Solution Architect. As a Microsoft employee for the last 4.5 years, he has worked with several large enterprise customers in the Twin Cities helping them with SQL Server, Azure and SQL BI. He has also been working with Microsoft database technologies for the last 15 years with a lot of emphasis on SQL Server.

Session 2: A Bigger Boat: Data Visualization Lessons from the Movie Theater

When Chief Brody first sees the shark in Jaws, he carefully backs away from the stern of the Orca and quietly, but certainly, tells Quint, “You’re gonna need a bigger boat.” That one line, combined with a terrific delivery by Roy Sheider, packs a great deal of contextual information into six words.

Making efficient use of space to convey meaning is a vital part of good Data Visualization.

In this session, we will discuss the fundamentals of human visual perception, including the important distinction between Pre-Attentive and Attentive Processing. We will use examples from feature films like Jaws, Alien, and Sneakers to show important aspects of visual analysis around Color, Form, Position, and Motion. We will then put these concepts into practice via demos in Excel and Power BI. By the end of this session, you will have a solid understanding of the importance of data visualization and how to use it to enable better decisions.

Speaker: Mark Vaillancourt, Data Solutions Architect

Mark is a Data Solutions Architect for Microsoft, helping organizations design data solutions in Azure. He has been working with Microsoft data technologies since 2007. Before joining Microsoft, he was a Business Intelligence consultant and two-time Microsoft Data Platform MVP. With a background in Theater and Improvised Comedy, Mark makes sure that his presentations are both informative and fun.