agile
BI
Opinionated
talk
Isn’t Serious
Agile
Iterates
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Steph Locke
I’m not too good
with serious!
Modelling and Data Analytics
Manager (MaDAM)
User group organiser
Speaker
Blogger: itsaLocke.com
Twit: @SteffLocke
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Great goal for
Your career
Your team
Your company
Make more
money, faster
Objective
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Getting the
fundamental
concepts
Know enough to
get started
Understand
Iteration 1
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Understand what
agile is
Agile theory
Iteration 1
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
None of these
are “Instead Of”
Yes to these as
priorities!
Agile theory
People
Software
Process
Collaboration
Rigid
requirements
Documentation
Responsive
Project
plan
AgileManifesto.org
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Framework
Solely focussed
on value aka
money generation
Different “Agile”
methodologies
out there
Generic view
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Components: Theory
Tools
Productivity
tools
Continuous
integration
Automation
Quick
to build
Code
review
Planning
Continuous
learning
People
12 Agile
principals
Where the effort
should be put in
Satisfaction /
fitness
metrics
Face to face /
virtual
Teach
simplicity
Continuous
improvement
Quantified
Coping with
value
change
Coherent
communication
Process
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Components: Typical
Tools
Productivity
tools
Continuous
integration
Automation
Quick
to build
People
12 Agile
principals
Where the effort
is often put in
Satisfaction /
Continuous
fitness
learning
metrics
Face to face /
virtual
Coherent
communication
Teach
simplicity
Continuous
Planning improvement
Quantified
Coping with
value
change
Code
review
Process
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Reading material
The Phoenix Project
The Art of Agile
Agile Data Warehouse Design
Succeeding with Agile
Business Intelligence Roadmap
AgileData.org
Read as much as
you can
Learn from other
people’s mistakes
and successes
Isolate the bits
that work for you
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Understand what
BI is
BI
Iteration 1
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Data warehouse
ETL
Reporting
Analytics
BI: concept
Viz
Get &
Tidy
Transform
Transform
Model
@hadleywickham
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Data warehouse
ETL
Reporting
Analytics
BI: time spent
Viz
Get & Tidy
Transform
Transform
Model
@hadleywickham
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Data warehouse
ETL
Reporting
Analytics
BI: value
Viz
Get & Tidy
Transform
Transform
Model
@hadleywickham
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Declare your agile
service attributes
Include only things
that enable more
money
Interrogable(?)
Revisable
Definition of Done
Iteration 1
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Strategy is how
you make money
Tactics deliver
strategy
Agile is a culture &
process for
selecting value-add
tactics
Strategy or tactics?
Iteration 1
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Dev cycle: typical
Every exercise is
big
Gap between
value & delivery
also big
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Dev cycle: value
Priorities
A prototype is
worth a thousand
meetings
Get & use tools
to reduce test
dev/test time
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Start
Iteration 2
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
How not to start
The wrong way…
Iteration 2
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
• Lots of up-front
thinking,
discussion,
documenting
• Better to beg for
forgiveness than
ask for permission
A GRAND PLAN
Do?
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
The horizontal silo
Reporting
Data
warehouse
• Tackling an area at
a time
• Forgets interdependencies
• Too big = will fail
• Too isolated = will
fail
ETL
Cubes
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
The black box
• Same external
behaviours as
before
• Forgets People =
will fail
• Lots of layers =
will fail
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Note better, not
right
Working towards
being more
effective, not
perfect
The better way…
Iteration 2
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
The best way
to get a
project done
faster is to
start sooner
Jim Highsmith
• JFDI
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Agile coaching
can be valuable
Recommendations
Better
Quicker
Value
Value
Before
After
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
It’s never
about how you
start – it’s
always about
how you finish
The Rock
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Continue focussing
on improving
service and valueorientation
Introduce tools
when they add
value
Migrate over time
Iterate
Iteration 3:n
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
To improve is
to change; to
be perfect is
to change
often.
Winston Churchill
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
agile BI
Knowledge
Hot transfer
(Semi-)automated
seating
documentation
Failure
Training
tolerance Expectation
Template reports
setting
regimen
Source
Centre of
control Iterations
Excellence
Unit
Metrics
testing
Comms
Self-discipline
governance
CD?
Sign-off
Value
Code
Triage
framework
Review
Tools
Excel CI
People
Process
Spend time on
PPT in the right
proportion
Do the ones you
can achieve
Easiest, high
value first
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Recommendations
Better
Quicker
Devolve
capabilities
Scale
Throughput
High value
High impact
Ideas
Feedback
Experience
Value
Value
Before
After
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
People
Processes
Tools
Make more
money, faster
Objective
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Hurdle rate
Learning curve
Technical
excellence
Top Tool Tips
Which and how add value?
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Templating
Testing
Dynamic building
Reusable
agile reporting
Excel € SDLC
PowerBI € SDLC
R / Python € SDLC
SSRS € SDLC
AN Others €? SDLC?
?
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
agile data warehousing
SSDT € SDLC
Redgate DLM € SDLC
Anchor modelling €
MSBuild € SDLC
Hadoop? € SDLC
Automated
deployment
Source control
Metadata driven
Design patterns
SDLC
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Metadata driven
Dynamic
Templating
Design patterns
agile ETL
BIML € SDLC
SQL € SDLC
PowerShell €
C# € SDLC
M € SDLC
SDLC
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
agile cubes
Tabular model €
MDS & BIML €
SDLC
Design patterns
Dynamic
Metadata driven
SDLC
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
agile BI
Azure
Visual Studio Online
Trello
Atlassian stack (JIRA, FishEye etc)
GitHub
White board & post-its
Lync / Skype for business
Cloud
Online
Open
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
People
Processes
Tools
Make more
money, faster
Objective
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Steph Locke
I’m not too good
with serious!
Modelling and Data Analytics
Manager (MaDAM)
User group organiser
Speaker
Blogger: itsaLocke.com
Twit: @SteffLocke
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Our Main Sponsors:
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Say Thank you to Volunteers:
 They spend their FREE time to
give you this event.
 Because they are crazy. 
 Because they want YOU
to learn from the BEST IN
THE WORLD.
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
5 Sponsor Sessions at
15:10
 Don’t miss them, they might be
distributing some awesome prizes!





Rumos
BI4ALL
Bold Int
CozyRoc
Pythian
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com
Important Activities:
WIT – Women in Technology
 15:10 at BizSpark Room (Ground Floor)
SQLClinic Challenges
 10:00 DEV (Neil Hambly)
 11:50 DBA (Uwe Ricken)
 17:00 BI (Steph Locke)
Steph Locke
@SteffLocke
itsaLocke.com