At RedCloud, growth isn’t just about numbers — it’s about evolution. As our clients’ needs have transformed, so too has our business. Today, we’re proud to unveil a refreshed brand and a new logo that reflects who we’ve become: a globally minded, innovation-driven consulting firm at the forefront of data, AI, privacy, and strategic transformation. This update marks more than a visual change — it signals a renewed commitment to RedCloud’s mission of connecting people, insights, and technology across borders to solve complex business challenges. All still grounded in integrity and transparency - our core values we’ve leaned into since day one. A Logo That Reflects Our Momentum The new RedCloud logo was thoughtfully designed to represent the future we’re building — one where RedCloud’s influence and reach continue to expand globally. As we connect clients and employees across continents, our refreshed brand reflects this growing global presence with a clean, confident visual identity. But the design is more than aesthetic. The new logo embodies intelligence and innovation, expressing the forward-thinking mindset that drives our work in cutting-edge fields like  Data & AI, Privacy, and Strategy & Transformation . It’s a symbol of how we blend sharp insight with bold action — and do it in a way that’s always grounded in trust. The Meaning Behind the Mark: Three Arrows, One Purpose At the heart of RedCloud’s refreshed logo are three stacked arrows  — a simple, elegant symbol that captures the essence of who we are and where we’re going. Upward momentum : The arrows represent continuous growth — for our company, our clients, and our consultants. Each arrow reflects a new level of progress, driven by innovation and a future-focused mindset. Diversification and direction : The three arrows also signify RedCloud’s strategic expansion across practice areas , industries , and geographies . As we diversify, we’re not just scaling — we’re moving forward with intention, bringing expertise to new challenges and clients worldwide. Grounded in people : Though the arrows point upward, they remain centered and stacked, symbolizing a business firmly rooted in client service, collaboration, and community. Our growth is never at the expense of our values — it’s powered by them. As we continue to grow and expand our impact, this refreshed brand serves as a visual foundation for where we’re headed — and a reflection of the company we’ve become. We’re excited to share it with you, and even more excited for what comes next. To our clients, consultants, and community: thank you for being part of the journey.

Earlier this month, thousands of low-code developers and Microsoft Power Platform enthusiasts traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada, for MPPC 2023.  There, they were introduced to the latest and greatest features for Microsoft Power Apps, Power Automate, Power BI, Power Virtual Agents, and Power Pages. To no one’s surprise, the major focus throughout the conference was how Power Platform Users will now be able to make better use of Microsoft Copilot and other AI-powered features.   ​ In this blog post, we will share learnings and experiences from the three members of RedCloud’s Technical Solutions team (Benny Swedberg, Yusuf Shariff, & Matt Little) who were stationed at a booth in the Conference’s Exhibition Hall. Key Takeaways: Copilot and AI-powered features New and exciting use cases for Microsoft Copilot and AI-powered features were the talk of the Conference.  Up until now, Copilot has largely been used as a developer’s tool, which could be prompted to build the bones of new Solutions based on the provided context. What we learned at the Conference was that not only is Copilot now better at doing this sort of development work, but it has also evolved to where it can be employed as a user-facing virtual agent within an App, BI Report, or Page.   AI can also now work as an IT Governance tool, with the introduction of Power Automate’s new Process Mining feature.  Process Mining visualizes the Power Platform processes happening in your Organization, and provides customized reports/KPI monitoring, process comparisons, and root cause determinations for process inefficiencies. Organizations seeking to get an enterprise-wide view of how the Power Platform is being utilized and how to continuously improve efficiencies and costs should take note of this new and intuitive feature. What we were most excited to learn is that Power Platform Solutions can now be coded to make API calls directly to any version of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, with added context being passed to it that is invisible to the user.  The result is near-instant responses that have been curated to exactly meet the purpose of the Solution.  Having the full breadth of the Internet’s collective knowledge at your fingertips, and having it applied within the context of your specific business process or workflow is a mind-blowing leap forward for this technology.  One such example of this that we learned about, was prompting ChatGPT using the “Tree of Thoughts” method.  The trick to this method is in understanding how ChatGPT’s probabilistic model works.  If you give ChatGPT some data/context and ask it for the most likely outcome, it will give you the answer that has generated the highest confidence score. However, the data/context you gave may cause ChatGPT to “hallucinate”, meaning it has been led astray and produced an answer that humans will recognize as incorrect. More accurate/logical answers will result from employing the “Tree of Thoughts”, which means prompting ChatGPT to take on the personas of multiple experts each with a different theory on the probable outcome, and then having those experts perform an exercise where they take turns critiquing each other's theories until they have all arrived at a consensus for the most logical outcome. Seeing ChatGPT reason with itself until it arrived at a more correct response, was a stunning revelation in how to make use of this tool going forward.  Highlights: Visiting the RedCloud Booth The Conference’s Exhibition Hall was buzzing with activity all 3 days, as dozens of vendors set up booths to demo their products and introduce their services. The RedCloud booth featured Tablets that were pre-loaded with Power Apps for conference-goers to play around in, and Marketing collateral to take home with them as a reminder of RedCloud’s expertise & offerings. Along with demo-ready Business Applications, RedCloud received praise for providing Power App-based games that could be played for prizes in the form of a Slot Machine App and a Slide Puzzle Challenge. More than 150 players registered their information to play our games, and winners were awarded with Funko Pops, which quickly came to be known as “the best swag at the conference.” Community Recognition: RedCloud wins for best UX Design! On the final night of the Conference, the second annual “MPPC’s Got Power” talent show was held. With hundreds in attendance, each Talent Show applicant was given a 5-minute timer to present and compete in the Categories of: Low-Code Solutions, Storytelling, or Hidden Talents.  RedCloud’s own Yusuf Shariff took the stage to demo his Slot Machine Power App, which features complex logic, timers, and animations to perfectly mimic the experience of playing a Las Vegas Slot Machine. Yusuf was praised for his lighthearted and comical presentation style and was ultimately awarded for having the best UX Design of the night. The panel of Microsoft judges said, “Yusuf really stretched the capabilities of the Power Platform and showed us things we didn’t even know it could do!”

This year (October 2023), Copilot in Power Apps became generally available for app makers. In this blog, I’m going to walk you through how to create a Canvas Power Apps and Dataverse table in 10 minutes, with Copilot. Power Apps + Copilot ​Imagine having a trusted partner by your side as you embark on your app creation journey. Copilot in Power Apps is just that—a reliable AI companion that walks you through the entire process, from data table creation to app screen design, and finally, app publishing and sharing. It's like having a personal assistant that uses advanced AI and industry best practices to provide tailored guidance based on your unique data and preferences. But that's not all. Copilot doesn't just show you the way; it offers valuable tips and feedback to help you enhance your app-building skills. Step 1 | Creating the Dataverse Table In this scenario, we’re going to create a task tracking app. Using Copilot, we'll do the following: In the prompt, we're going to enter "task tracking app" ​Once the table is generated, we'll use Copilot to add a "notes" column by typing in "add a column for notes". Then hit send. ​ Step 2 | Create the Canvas Power App Once your table has been created, click Create App Once the app is created, you'll have a responsive canvas app connected to the new Dataverse table with a gallery allowing you to select a record and see the form for that record on the right. Step 3 | Use Copilot to Make Edits Next we'll use Copilot to change the icon colors. You can select a specific icon and then in the Copilot chat, type in "Change the selected icon to red". And just like that, Copilot updates the icon color for us. See this Copilot guide on current supported prompts: Editing Apps with Copilot Step 4 | Change the theme with Modern Controls To use modern controls and themes, click settings. Then click Upcoming Features and check the box for Modern Controls and Themes Now you can easily change the theme for your apps as well as use any of the new modern controls. Step 5 | Save & Publish! From here, click Save and then click Publish! Your app is now ready to go. This is just the start of Copilot for Power Apps and there's plenty of amazing features coming to the platform in the future. We'll keep you posted on the latest Copilot updates and how to best use AI to improve productivity for app makers!

As we bid farewell to another remarkable year, it's time to reflect on the groundbreaking developments that have defined the landscape of Data & AI, and Technical Solutions - a high-growth practice area for our RedCloud team in 2023. From high-profile conferences to in-depth explorations of emerging technologies, our team dived deep into the evolution of Microsoft 365 and the Power Platform while delivering solutions for our clients that create time and resource efficiencies and allow companies to make smart, informed business decisions based on data. Let's revisit some of 2023’s standout moments from our Data & AI and Technical Solutions teams. AI, AI, and more AI: Microsoft 365 Conference Highlights Recap Day 1 : Benny and Yusuf share exclusive insights from the Microsoft 365 Conference, highlighting the emphasis on AI integration into business applications and security measures. Read More Day 2 Highlights: Day 2 brought Copilot and Viva announcements to the forefront, unveiling Copilot's monumental impact on code development and its integration into Microsoft Teams for meeting summaries. Dive Deeper Day 3 Recap : Exploring the underutilized capabilities of Office Scripts in Excel, we highlight their potential in automation and integration with Power Automate for efficient report generation. Discover More Maximizing Value with AI Chatbots RedCloud Senior Associate Matt Little took center stage, delving into the technology and strategy behind AI chatbots. Focused on Power Virtual Agents (PVA), he highlights the growing significance of chatbots in enhancing user experiences. Organizations can explore PVA through a free 30-day trial, empowering them to embark on their chatbot journey. Get Insights Power Apps 2023 Release Wave 2 Highlights As we entered the second half of the year, anticipation surrounding the upcoming features in the Power Apps 2023 release Wave 2. Significant investments in Copilot, modernizing apps by default, and enabling enterprise scale demonstrated Power Apps' commitment to cutting-edge features and empowering users. Dive into the Highlights Power Automate: Process Mining with Next-Generation AI August 1st marked the general availability of Power Automate's Process Mining, infused with next-generation AI. We detail how organizations can gain a deep understanding of their business activities, optimize processes, and achieve continuous improvement through automation and low-code apps Explore Updates RedCloud at Microsoft Power Platform Conference 2023 Our team's experience at the Microsoft Power Platform Conference in Las Vegas took center stage in October. Key takeaways highlighted the conference's major focus, especially focusing on Copilot and AI-powered features. Furthermore, we offer insights into new use cases, the evolving role of Copilot as a user-facing virtual agent, and the groundbreaking integration with OpenAI's ChatGPT. Read Conference Highlights Create a Power App in 10 Minutes with Copilot To round off the year, Copilot in Power Apps became generally available for app makers. Yusuf provides a step-by-step guide on how to create a Canvas Power App and Dataverse table in just 10 minutes, showcasing the efficiency and guidance offered by Copilot in the app creation journey. Build Your App Power Automate Tools: Retrieving Date & Time of a Specific Change Addressing ad hoc needs that go beyond manual capabilities, our team dove into the power of Power Automate in capturing specific changes, such as capturing date and time in a SharePoint list. It highlights the efficiency gains achievable through automation, demonstrating the platform's versatility. Learn More As we close the chapter on 2023, we invite you to explore these highlights in detail. Check out the original blog posts to dive into the in-depth insights, learnings, and experiences that have shaped our understanding of business solutions and intelligence. Stay tuned for more in 2024, as we continue to unravel the latest in technology, insights, and updates. Cheers to a year of innovation and growth! - RedCloud’s Data & AI and Technical Solutions Teams

A couple of months ago, a few members of our Data & AI Team went down to the Microsoft Power Platform Conference where they proudly hosted a booth in the expo area. It’s always a competition at expos to best design a booth that draws positive attention. Being Power Platform fanatics, we decided to engage with the conference attendees with live demos! We had a number of business-related demos, but we also wanted to provide some fun with a little competition. After watching too much Survivor, the idea of a digital slide puzzle popped into our heads and quickly came to fruition. Cool features Image manipulation: SVG images were used so that new images could be easily added. When a game starts, the selected SVG image is segmented into the required number of puzzle pieces. Users Profiles: When players first play, they set up a gamertag and profile so that they can participate in the leaderboard and come back to improve their time. Data: Every game and move is recorded and tracked so that leaderboards can be segmented by the image, puzzle size, moves, time, and gamer. Helper controls: Users can choose to view the final image or turn on puzzle piece images to help solve the puzzle. Progress: Players can see their progress on the fly with how many pieces they have put into the right place Galleries, galleries, galleries: The puzzle board is made up of two nested galleries that dynamically adjusts to the slide puzzle dimensions. Something you may not have know Did you know that not all randomly distributed slide puzzles are not solvable? In fact, if pieces are randomly distributed, half of all puzzles are not solvable. Therefore, we needed to randomize the puzzle, check solvability, and then adjust the randomized order to make it solvable. (Read this if you really want to nerd out on math) How building games helps It goes without saying that the Slide Puzzle’d Power App is not going to be sold to a customer. However, that does not mean that these do not provide value. First off, as a Power Platform developer, building games exposes you to new challenges that require you to discover or create new methods in development that you wouldn’t have normally thought of when you’re in a strict business environment. For example, time was a critical component of this app, which stretched the developers to master the use of Timer controls, which then translates to business-related projects. And at the end of the day, games can be fun!

Are you tired of jumping through hoops to retrieve data from related tables in Power Automate? Say goodbye to cumbersome processes and hello to efficiency with the “expand query” feature. By leveraging the expand query in Power Automate, you can streamline the retrieval of properties from related tables without the need for additional steps. In this tutorial created by our RedCloud Technical Solutions Practice team, we’ll walk you through the process step by step, demonstrating how to set up the flow, identify navigation properties, utilize them, and parse JSON to get the desired output. Let's dive in! Utilizing the expand query in Power Automate can streamline the retrieval of properties from related tables without the need for additional steps. Here's a brief example: Step 1: Set Up the Flow Begin by creating a flow that uses the Dataverse List Rows  action. In this demonstration, the flow is manually triggered, listing “Accounts” from Dataverse. To limit the output, a row count is set to one. Step 2. Identify Navigation Properties Subsequently, use the Compose action to output the result from the List “Account” action.  This output serves to identify the navigation properties necessary for expanding related tables. Copy this output. Step 3. Utilize Navigation Properties In Visual Studio Code, search for navigation properties. These properties enable the expansion of related tables directly within the list rows action, eliminating the need for separate steps to retrieve related table values. To specify specific columns from the related table, OData queries can be employed. For instance, to retrieve Country details (Region, Location, and Currency) associated with a case, the following query can be used: Step 4: Parse JSON OData for expanding Country and selected properties will result in the JSON output shown below. By generating a sample from the JSON above, it will result as the following output in your flow.

A global client sought to efficiently manage awards and recognition for a large team of account and relationship managers. Manual processes for evaluating eligibility and sending personalized emails created inefficiencies and delays. RedCloud collaborated with the client to design an automated solution using the Power Platform, integrating Power Automate, Power BI, Dataflows, and Power Apps. The solution streamlined award evaluation, automated communications, and provided real-time insights, improving efficiency, recognition timeliness, and team engagement. Client Situation The client needed to ensure timely and accurate awards and recognition for a large, global sales team. Challenges included: Multiple awards with varying eligibility criteria based on bi-annual Customer Satisfaction Survey results Manual evaluation of survey data to determine eligibility Account Executives manually creating personalized emails using templates and imagery, a process prone to inefficiencies and delays The client required a solution that could automate data evaluation, email generation, and reporting while remaining flexible to accommodate new awards programs and scenarios where survey data was unavailable. Our Approach RedCloud implemented a comprehensive Power Platform solution with the following features: Automated Award Eligibility Evaluation:  Customer Satisfaction Survey data is automatically processed to determine award eligibility, with a manual override option if survey data is unavailable. Personalized Email Generation:  Batch processing generates individualized emails for Account Executives to review and send, reducing manual effort and ensuring timely recognition. Flexible and Scalable:  The platform supports adding new awards programs, eligibility criteria, email templates, and imagery without additional development. Embedded Reporting:  Power BI dashboards provide real-time insights into award eligibility, track the status of emails, and visualize program performance throughout the fiscal year. This approach centralized manual tasks into a single platform, enabling scalability, adaptability, and more efficient recognition across the organization. Impact The automated solution delivered measurable improvements: Operational Efficiency:  Consolidated manual evaluation and email processes into a streamlined workflow Timely Recognition:  Batch email processing ensures top performers are recognized without delays Customization & Flexibility:  Configurable award criteria and templates allow tailored programs for different geographies and business priorities Improved Adoption:  Manual award and kudos-sending options increase the solution’s usability across multiple business areas Enhanced Visibility:  Power BI dashboards provide real-time tracking of award eligibility and email status, increasing transparency and accountability Overall, the solution significantly improved team engagement, recognition timeliness, and operational efficiency. Ready to automate your awards and recognition processes? Contact RedCloud’s Technical Solutions team  today to learn how we can help streamline program management, improve reporting, and enhance engagement across your organization.

A group of three RedCloud Consultants encountered the challenge of managing a multi-year, enterprise-wide transformation project that involved over 120 client stakeholders from various departments. To address this, they collaborated with the Technical Solutions team to develop a solution leveraging SharePoint, Power Automate, and Power BI. The final solution was implemented in approximately 100 hours over a three-month period, resulting in substantial time and effort savings for the RedCloud team. Client Situation The RedCloud team responsible for planning a large ERP implementation was overwhelmed by the task of managing relationships, tasks, and deliverables for more than 120 stakeholders using an entirely manual process. This created risks of missed deadlines, overlooked tasks, and inefficiencies in communication and reporting. Recognizing the need for a better approach, the team reached out to RedCloud’s Technical Solutions group for help in designing a system that could: Monitor deadlines and task assignments automatically Send automated email notifications and reminders Automatically create tasks in SharePoint Provide real-time reporting on project status and team output via Power BI Our Approach RedCloud’s Techincal Solutions team designed an integrated system leveraging: Three SharePoint Lists for task and stakeholder tracking Five Power Automate Flows to manage notifications, task creation, and mailbox monitoring One Power BI Report to provide metrics and visual insights Key features included: Selecting from multiple email templates with dynamic details for automated messages Reviewing drafts before sending individualized emails to a large audience Scheduled reminder emails based on predetermined due dates Automated task creation in the project plan with relevant metadata Monitoring a shared mailbox for replies and attaching them to the correct project tasks Power BI visualization of task status, automated email metrics, average turnaround times, and drill-down capabilities The solution streamlined workflow, improved communication, and freed the RedCloud team to spend more time interfacing with stakeholders. The team also co-developed a roadmap for future enhancements and scalability across other areas of the client organization. Impact The automated solution transformed project management for the RedCloud team: Efficiency Gains: Reduced manual effort and ensured no tasks were overlooked Improved Response Times: Automated communications accelerated stakeholder interactions Enhanced Visibility: Power BI dashboards provided clear insight into project progress and team performance Quantifiable Value: Enabled the team to demonstrate their contribution and capacity more effectively Scalability Potential: Positioned the solution for adoption in other client areas, generating excitement for expansion By integrating automation and reporting, the team achieved higher efficiency, stronger accountability, and increased confidence in delivering project milestones on time. Ready to streamline your enterprise project management? Contact RedCloud’s Technical Solutions team today to learn how we can help automate program management, improve reporting, and create measurable impact across your organization.

A small RedCloud team recently returned from an incredible trip to Dubai, marking a major milestone for our firm as we take the first steps in expanding internationally to meet the growing clients' needs for smart, efficient, tech-driven solutions. Meeting with our new business partner, who is instrumental in helping us expand our global presence, was an exciting and productive experience. This partnership represents not just growth but a strategic move to tap into emerging markets rich with IT talent that will enhance the services and offerings we provide to our clients. During our visit, we toured the Dubai Digital Park  - the city’s leading technology campus and a hub of innovation where leading minds from the region are developing cutting-edge solutions in AI, cloud computing, and cybersecurity. Seeing the level of expertise and passion in this ecosystem reinforced our confidence in expanding RedCloud’s operations here. We are not just expanding into the region—we are integrating into a thriving tech community that will allow us to scale efficiently while maintaining the high level of service our clients expect. Of course, no trip to Dubai is complete without taking in its breathtaking sights. From the awe-inspiring Burj Khalifa to the stunning desert landscapes, the city’s blend of modern innovation and deep-rooted culture left a lasting impression on our team. This journey was about more than business—it was about forging relationships, gaining new perspectives, and laying the foundation for an exciting future for RedCloud. We are eager to take this next step in our growth journey and bring the best of global tech talent to our clients. Stay tuned for more updates as we embark on this new chapter!

Imagine a digital assistant that not only listens but takes decisive actions on your behalf. Welcome to the world of Copilot Autonomous Agents—a leap from mere chatbot conversations to full-on intelligent collaboration and actions on your behalf. What is Copilot Autonomous Agent? A Copilot Autonomous Agent is established by incorporating a trigger into a Copilot agent. This trigger essentially represents an event that the agent monitors, such as the arrival of an email in an inbox. Once the trigger is set, the autonomous agent functions similarly to regular agents, acting as an AI assistant that aids in automating tasks, sourcing information, generating content, and more. Why Autonomous Agents? Traditional automation requires meticulously defined steps or heavy reliance on platform experts. With Copilot Autonomous Agents, you simply describe what you want in plain language, and the system interprets your intent to take intelligent, self-directed instructions. These agents not only execute routine tasks but also adapt to changing conditions and make proactive decisions. Consider the possibilities: Reduce Manual Overhead: Let the agents work on repetitive tasks so you can focus on what matters. Proactive Decision-Making: The agents monitor key indicators and adjust workflows in real time. Seamless Integration: They easily mesh with platforms you already trust, enhancing productivity across your organization. How Do Copilot Autonomous Agents Work? These agents use advanced AI and large language models to convert natural language prompts into actionable steps. Here’s a simplified view of the process: Step Description 1. Creating the Agent Use natural language to describe a process—no technical jargon needed. 2. AI interpretation The system parses your instructions, understands the context, sets the tone, and deconstructs the task into outlined steps. 3. Add Autonomous execution Add an event trigger that the agent will monitor so it knows when to act. After a trigger is added, add any actions you want the agent to perform. 4. Update Instructions Update the instructions with the trigger and actions info. This process allows you to automate tasks without complex coding or manual system integration. For example, we'll create an agent to monitor emails. Email Monitor Autonomous Agent Example Creating the Agent To create an agent, go to Copilot Studio and click the Create icon. A prompt will appear asking what you want the agent to do. Define the agent's purpose and high-level steps. Copilot Studio will help you name the agent, set the language, provide a description, and outline instructions. It may also ask for the tone, topics to avoid, and more. Making the Agent Autonomous by adding triggers and actions. Once Copilot Studio is ready, click the Create Agent button. This will take you to the agent's Overview page, which shows its Name, Description, and Instructions. You can update these details if needed. Currently, the agent is not autonomous; let's make it so. Further down the Overview page, there are two sections: "Actions" and "Triggers." Begin by adding the trigger "When a new email arrives" in Outlook. Ensure you are signed in with Outlook, then set any monitoring criteria, such as sender or subject. Note that not all Power Platform Connector triggers are supported. After creating the trigger, click Add Action to create actions. While most actions are searchable, not all will work well. You can connect the agent to a Power Automate flow or create an agent flow for precise steps. For text approval and draft creation, I created an agent flow to send approval via Teams and Outlook and then add the approved text to my draft folder. Here's the agent flow: Updating Agent Instructions After adding Triggers and Actions, updating the agent's instructions with these names and steps is very helpful. It is also beneficial to include key inputs and outputs from those actions/triggers in the instructions. Links to flows and actions are added below. Naming the instructions, such as "Check Sent Folder," helps Copilot identify what to use. Now you have an agent designed to assist in efficiently managing your Inbox. Tips for Implementing Your First Autonomous Agent Start Simple Make sure your first autonomous agent has only a few clear instructions. For example, “Every day, email me a list of all new cases added to the the data source.” While many actions are straightforward to use, combining many of them into one complex agent may be a bit overwhelming at first. Define a Clear Purpose, Scope, and Instructions I always like to use the Peanut Butter and Jelly Instruction Challenge as an example of how to think about the instructions you give the agent. Making your instructions clear, concise, and thorough helps ensure that the agent operates consistently. Iterative Development, Testing, and Monitoring As you become skilled with creating more complex agents, test each instruction and action individually. In my example above, I began with the first step, "Check Sent Folder", and clicked Test in the top ribbon. After selecting a recent trigger event, I was taken directly to the Activity page to see the results. There, I could review a log of each action the agent took. Transform Your Daily Workflow Copilot Autonomous Agents leverage advanced AI to automate workflows, minimize manual tasks, streamline decisions, and tackle important issues. Get started today and see how these autonomous agents can elevate your operations. Explore the potential on your own or reach out to us at RedCloud Consulting for expert guidance. Let’s work together to redefine what’s possible in AI.

Note: While this post focuses on Fabric Premium Capacity, the principles also apply to legacy Power BI Premium Capacity. If your organization uses only Premium-per-User licenses, this guide may not be relevant for you. Many organizations turn to Power BI for self-service Business Intelligence — and for good reason. Power BI offers a powerful, intuitive platform to transform raw data into insightful reports quickly. With its ease of connecting data, creating metrics, and building compelling visuals, it empowers users to tell their data stories efficiently. But here’s the catch: managing Premium Capacity can become a costly endeavor. Without careful optimization, your organization might find itself shelling out an extra $5,000 every six months just to keep up with the growing demand for Premium Capacity. Why Is Fabric Premium Capacity So Expensive? Fabric Premium Capacity is a valuable but pricey resource. Unless everyone in your organization has a Per-User license, Premium Capacity is necessary. This blog will walk you through practical ways developers can optimize their use of Fabric Premium Capacity — potentially saving your organization thousands on Microsoft bills each month. What Is Fabric Premium Capacity? When you interact with a Power BI report — opening, refreshing, or filtering it — compute power is required to process those actions. If you’re working locally in Power BI Desktop, your computer handles the workload, along with some assistance from connected data sources. However, once you publish a report to an online Workspace, your local machine can no longer provide this processing power. This is where Fabric Premium Capacity steps in. Purchasing Premium Capacity allows your organization’s Workspaces to tap into Microsoft’s cloud computing resources, hosted in data centers around the globe (often in remote or secure locations). With Fabric Premium Capacity, your reports can be refreshed, queried, and accessed anytime, anywhere — but just like your laptop can only handle so many Excel files before slowing down or crashing, Premium Capacity has its limits. These limits depend on the amount of capacity your organization purchases. For detailed pricing information, see Microsoft’s official Fabric Capacity Pricing page. Why Are You Probably Buying More Capacity Than You Need? Every activity in the Power BI Service consumes capacity, but two operations especially — Refreshes and DAX Queries — tend to consume more capacity than necessary, often without being optimized. In the sections below, we’ll explore simple strategies to identify the root causes of Premium Capacity overuse and offer easy fixes. These methods can help your developers reclaim unused capacity, improving performance and reducing costs — freeing up resources to support more reports or users without upgrading your plan. Refreshes: Key Areas to Optimize for Premium Capacity Savings When it comes to optimizing Power BI Semantic Model refreshes, there are three easy but impactful targets to focus on: Unused Columns Unused Tables Non-Aggregated Tables At first glance, tackling unused columns and tables might seem overwhelming. Many organizations have reports and data models built years ago, passed through multiple owners, and often aren’t fully understood by current developers. Sound familiar? You’re not alone! The good news is—you don’t need to painstakingly review every single table and column in your model to identify the problem areas. Instead of manually digging through every detail, you can analyze the model’s metadata within the VertiPaq engine file to pinpoint the largest elements consuming the most capacity during refreshes. This approach helps you target the biggest resource hogs without getting lost in unnecessary complexity. Let’s put this into context with an example. Suppose an organization has a report that provides them with insights on how much Premium Capacity is used in their other Power BI Reports. Without even looking at the Report itself, I can quickly scan the model using DAX Studio to understand the model’s metrics.  There’s a lot to take in from this screenshot, but let’s focus on two key columns: Name  and %DB . The Name  column lists each table (with a dropdown to see its columns), while %DB  shows the size of the table or column relative to the entire model. Two tables stand out as particularly large: CUDetail_Primay  and TimePoints_Generated . Digging into TimePoints_Generated , the TimePoint  column alone accounts for 23.45% of the model’s size. This quick analysis took just minutes and already highlights major contributors to Premium Capacity use during refreshes. From here, we can target only these large tables and columns instead of combing through everything. If we identify even one or two large, unused elements to remove without impacting the report, we shrink the model and reduce the Premium Capacity needed for refreshes. Now, suppose TimePoint  is essential, for example, for a visual showing Premium Capacity usage by the hour. Let’s examine the table itself: The ‘TimePoint’ column has values for every 30-second interval throughout the day, resulting in many more rows than needed.  Since we only need hourly data, we’re pulling in about four times the rows necessary. This is a perfect example of a non-aggregated table causing high capacity consumption during our Refresh. To fix this, we can aggregate the data by hour at the source or use the existing ‘Start of Hour’ field instead. Either way, the table size could shrink to a quarter of its current size. These three optimization targets also apply when optimizing queries, which we’ll cover next. DAX Queries: Why Slow Reports Drain Premium Capacity If you’ve used Power BI, you’ve probably encountered slow-loading reports—these are usually caused by heavy DAX queries. Every visual element—bars, points, maps, matrices—relies on DAX queries that take input parameters, translate them into queries, and fetch data from the Semantic Model. Sounds straightforward, but when you layer in multiple measures, relationships, and filters, these queries can balloon in complexity. Power BI does some optimization automatically, but there’s still more you can do to reduce Capacity use. The main focus here is on measures—the calculations developers create to display metrics like “total sales” or “most recent purchase date.” While many developers write measures to get the right result quickly, they often overlook performance. This section won’t dive into DAX best practices, but will provide a high-level way to spot inefficient measures and optimize your Semantic Models to save Premium Capacity. Let’s say we have a stacked column chart in the same report, showing Fabric Premium Capacity usage broken down by day: This visual delivers the needed info—Capacity Consumption by day, broken down by operation type. But users report it takes over 2 minutes to load. Checking the visual’s setup, we find it pulls data from just one table, using a few columns and a couple of measures: From our earlier VertiPaq analysis, we know the table MetricsByItemandOperationandDay  isn’t very large, so the columns likely aren’t causing the slow load. That shifts our focus to the measures. We spot that the DayOverDayPercentChange  measure is a time calculation, which can be resource-intensive. Plus, it’s only used in the tooltip—meaning it’s not essential. To test its impact, we compare the visual’s performance with and without this measure. To do this, we duplicate the .PBIX file, limit the data volume, and use Power BI’s Performance Analyzer to measure the difference. *Note: limiting the amount of data being queried by your model for testing is useful in saving time, but may not provide accurate results. It is recommended to test your model again with the full model before deploying.  With ‘DayOverDayPercentChange’ Without ‘DayOverDayPercentChange’ Removing the measure improves visual load time by about 7%. While this might seem minor in Power BI Desktop, once the full data is published, every user benefits from faster load times. Faster loading means less Capacity used. Although it’s not a perfect one-to-one link, for our purposes, we can treat it as such. Sometimes, you might not want to remove the measure entirely—perhaps an executive still needs it. But there’s still room to optimize. By reviewing and refining the DAX code, you can test different versions to find a more efficient solution using the same process. Unpacking DAX optimization is a big topic—actually, it’s a whole book on its own. For more learning on optimizing DAX, please refer to the masters of DAX, Marco Russo and Alberto Ferrari - The Definitive Guide to DAX – 2nd Edition - SQLBI . If you’ve made it to this point and are thinking, “Hey, I want my organization to optimize our use of Premium Capacity, but I need more help,” that’s where we come in! Redcloud Consulting’s expert Engineers and Analysts can lead your optimization efforts—saving you time, enhancing your report users’ experience, and keeping those Microsoft bills from skyrocketing. Contact our Data & AI Practice  lead today to get started.

What happens when global infrastructure, technical security, and personal curiosity all come together? You get Andreas Tabor. As RedCloud’s Regional Representative in EMEA (Europe, the Middle East, and Africa), Andreas works at the intersection of datacenter growth and real-world complexity, balancing international standards with local challenges and adapting to fast-moving schedules that rarely follow a straight line. In our latest 10-minute interview, Andreas shares how he is learning the language of systems and installations, why he values reflection over assumptions, and how his passion for aviation gives him a unique perspective on movement, precision, and the way people connect across borders.  Describe your role and what you do in a nutshell. I am the Regional Representative of RedCloud in EMEA towards our Fortune 50 tech company with datacenter operations across the region. Along with my team, I serve our clients in the EMEA region while exploring future new services and delivering on our scope of work. What do you enjoy most or find especially interesting about your current project? Our client is a major player globally in the datacenter market, which brings a range of unique opportunities for our team and our business more broadly. The client’s expected growth is ambitious in itself, but it’s paired with the responsibility of keeping the world’s data safe. It is a global system, so we need to deploy technical security that works globally to keep data secure, while every country and construction project has its own dynamics. Different regulations, differences in experience, and new vendors who need to deliver service to this client are all factors that mean my team and I must deliver our A game every day as gatekeepers to the described standards of our client. That is our priority: to make sure the local fits within the global. Being that 'middle man' and feeling that responsibility drives me. As mentioned, we are now playing the game in a way that needs to change as more growth is on the horizon. Our teams will also grow, not only through new hires but also by seeking optimizations in work processes and efficiencies in how we operate. Share your go-to methods for professional development or personal growth. For personal growth, I focus on reflection and feedback. I always believe that I don’t have full knowledge, so I need to search for more. I genuinely believe there are no bad questions—only bad answers. That’s why I have a high drive to learn new things and to understand more sides of the same story. This growth mindset is especially important in my current project and client environment. Multiple schedules and deadlines come together, creating dynamics or friction. There is never a deadline that is met easily. So I’ve found there is a need to be creative, but also to verify items. Don’t make assumptions. Check what has been reported to make sure there are no surprises. Tell us about something interesting you've learned recently. My background is in security operations, but I am now working in a heavily technical security environment. When technical people meet each other, they speak technical. So I am trying to catch up and learn about servers, systems, and installations. Recently, I learned how coordination in this process is managed through systems between construction teams and delivery teams. I’ve been exploring how they request more information and document decisions. This is different from operations, where you typically come together, talk it through, and reach a conclusion with relevant stakeholders before proceeding. Now, everything must be verified against standards and multiple layers. It all needs to be documented for warranty, compliance, and any future questions that may arise. What's a piece of obsolete technology you still have a soft spot for? I guess you could say I have a soft spot for when things were locally organized, like older video cameras that someone on-site had ownership of. These technologies never crashed during system updates or overwhelmed me with alerts from 100 motion detectors triggered by a flying insect. But with the current setup, things are more secure and there is less risk of human error. So I can see the benefits of the newer tech, even if I have fond memories of the past! What's one thing people don't know about you that they would be surprised to discover? I am very passionate about flying. So whenever RedCloud or our client asks me to travel, I have no objection. When possible, I choose routes through airports I have not visited or airplanes I have not flown on yet. I enjoy airport operations. It is a minute-by-minute process where the world comes together in one place. In general, people are happy as they head off on an adventure for a holiday or work. Meeting new people and experiencing different cultures is something I really enjoy. What are you passionate about or enjoy outside of work? As mentioned, flying makes me happy. It always brings new memories. I enjoy being in another country and seeing how people live there. I am grateful that I have been able to see new things, but also that when I come home, I realize how well we are living. Sometimes you forget that the things you have are not normal. Freedom is not free, and having three meals per day is not something everyone has. It’s also eye-opening that when you think you work smart, you see other cultures working more efficiently. We Dutch people always have an opinion and share it when possible, while American people are more focused on the output. These differences are great to learn from.