Tradeoffs: single model vs specialized models

In this episode, we tackle a critical gap between Power BI's Field Parameters and Excel's live connection capabilities. Inspired by a mailbag submission from Eivind Haugen, we explore the tension between building semantic models that look great in Power BI reports versus models that serve all consumers—including the often-overlooked Excel power users.

We dig into why Field Parameters break the Excel experience, when Calculation Groups might be the better choice, and how to design semantic models that truly serve as a single source of truth across multiple consumption tools. If you're building models that connect to Excel, this conversation will change how you think about feature selection and governance.

Get in touch:

Send in your questions or topics you want us to discuss by tweeting to @PowerBITips with the hashtag #empMailbag or submit on the PowerBI.tips Podcast Page.

Visit PowerBI.tips: https://powerbi.tips/

Watch the episodes live every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 730am CST on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/powerbitips

Subscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/230fp78XmHHRXTiYICRLVv

Subscribe on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/explicit-measures-podcast/id1568944083‎

Check Out Community Jam: https://jam.powerbi.tips

Follow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcarlo/

Follow Tommy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommypuglia/