Power BI and a Creator Mindset Are Essential for FP&A Teams to Replace Excel with Rishi Sapra

In this episode of FP&A Unlocked, host Paul Barnhurst sits down with Rishi Sapra to explore how finance professionals can leverage business intelligence tools like Power BI to drive better decision-making. Rishi discusses how the role of FP&A is evolving with technology, and why it’s essential for finance teams to not only consume data but to create and model it in ways that deliver actionable insights.

Rishi Sapra is a Group Manager at Avanade, a global technology consulting firm, and a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP). With over 20 years of experience in major firms such as Deloitte, KPMG, HSBC, and Accenture, Rishi combines his financial expertise with cutting-edge data and AI solutions. Rishi is also the founder of Power Platform Finance, where he runs an accelerator program to teach finance professionals how to use tools like Power BI, Power Query, and semantic modeling to transform business data into actionable insights.

Expect to Learn:

• Why learning Power Query is a must-have skill for every finance professional
• The mindset shift from being a consumer of data to becoming a creator of data solutions
• How to build simple, effective data models and dashboards using Power BI
• Tips for applying semantic models and data storytelling in financial reporting
• How AI and business intelligence tools are changing the role of FP&A professionals

Here are a few quotes from the episode:

• “As a finance professional, you need to understand not just the data, but how to create the solutions that bring out insights from it.” – Rishi Sapra
• “It’s less about learning every tool, and more about understanding the fundamentals that remain the same, regardless of the software.” – Rishi Sapra

Rishi Sapra highlights the importance of shifting from being a consumer to a creator of data solutions within finance teams. By mastering tools like Power BI and embracing a mindset of data storytelling, finance professionals can unlock actionable insights and drive meaningful change. Rishi’s advice empowers finance teams to not just adapt to technology, but to lead the way in transforming business intelligence.

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Explore Campfire today: https://campfire.ai/?utm_source=fpaguy_podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=100225_fpaguy

Follow Rishi:

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rsaprano/

Website - www.rishisapra.com

Company 1 - www.msfabrictraining.com

Company 2 -  www.learndatainsights.com

Company 3 - www.powerplatformfinance.com

Earn Your CPE Credit

For CPE credit, please go to earmarkcpe.com, listen to the episode, download the app, answer a few questions, and earn your CPE certification. To earn education credits for the FP&A Certificate, take the quiz on Earmark and contact Paul Barnhurst for further details.

In Today’s Episode:

[02:04] - Rishi’s Career Journey

[04:41] - Career Expectations After Accounting

[07:19] - Becoming a Microsoft MVP

[11:40] - Why Finance Needs Power BI

[14:04] - Shifting from Consumer to Creator

[26:21] - Best Ways to Learn BI

[33:13] - Integrating BI into FP&A

[38:55] - Dashboard & Visualization Tips

[44:27] - Best Career Advice