Welcome to Greyskull Analytics

Welcome to Greyskull Analytics! So what is Greyskull I hear you ask? Well, if you’re hoping to come across a bright new start up in the analytics world well… sorry to disappoint, but Greyskull Analytics is me, Johnny.

It’s this website, it’s this blog and it’s my YouTube channel. And it’s all been set up to give me a creative outlet for me to nerd out about all things Power BI.

I love Power BI, and I’m not ashamed to admit it. I’ve been working with Business Intelligence software since 2007 and my Power BI journey started way back with Excel, Power Pivot and Power View. I even had the first release of Power BI – can anyone else remember when it had a green logo?

So I wanted a means of sharing my enthusiasm about Power BI, and I’ve decided this is it.

There’s already a wealth of community generated content on Power BI out there… in fact maybe it’s even over saturated. Do we really need another new website advocating for it? Well probably not. But the community around the product is one of its best features. Now the cheesy line at this point is for me to say “this is my opportunity to give back to the community” – well, there probably isn’t anything the community hasn’t already got that I can offer.  For me though, this is an opportunity to be more active in that community.

I’m hoping I can still bring my own perspective to the product. I’ve personally progressed from being a business user and a bit of a data tinkerer, through to working as a report analyst (I cut my teeth on Business Objects Crystal Reports), before moving in to full Data Warehouse development and I’ve spent a lot of time working with SQL Server Analysis Services, which is where I really earned my DAX stripes.

In a lot of ways, maybe there are some parallels between my own career and the evolution of Power BI itself, with it starting out as a promising self-serve, citizen developer tool before blossoming into a scalable enterprise ready solution. As the product has matured and started to really fulfil its potential I’ve definitely gravitated back towards it, and I’ve reached a point now where I really want it to play a more prominent role in my career.

Setting up Greyskull Analytics has also, quite selfishly, been an opportunity for self development. And that works on many different levels. In terms of furthering my knowledge, skills and experience around Power BI, I’ve immersed myself in information around the product wanting to make sure any information I provide through this avenue is of decent quality. That only helps serve to make me a better Power BI developer.

And then there’s all the other new skills I’ve picked up as I’ve launched this new venture:

• I built this website
• I’ve done graphic design and branding
• Started presenting in front of a camera
• Learned to edit video
• I even wrote and recorded my own music for my video intros and outros!

So far it’s been great fun! I’m hoping it will continue to grow and no doubt there’ll be chances to pick up more skills along the way.

Finally, as we emerge from the global crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s given me a renewed sense of purpose, pride and enthusiasm about the work I do and the career I’ve chosen. 

I hope you enjoy the content and resources I provide, and if you have any questions, don’t be afraid to reach out and contact me at johnny@greyskullanalytics.com.