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Power BI Interview Questions in Pune

36 practice questions with answers for Power BI interviews in Pune.

Power BI jobs in Pune

Pune combines IT-services campuses in Hinjewadi and Kharadi with product, automotive and BFSI technology centres. It has a large mid-level job market for data and QA roles, and interviews are often practical and project-based.

Below are 36 questions that match the mix of service, product and domain employers hiring power bi developers in Pune.

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01

What are report themes and why use them?

Visualisation and Report DesignEasy
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A report theme is a JSON file that sets default colours, fonts, visual styles and backgrounds for all visuals. Using a company theme keeps reports consistent with brand guidelines and saves formatting time, since new visuals adopt it automatically. Themes can be built in Desktop's theme customiser or edited as JSON and shared across the team as a standard.
02

Write a measure that counts customers with sales above 10,000.

DAX FundamentalsMedium
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Big Customers = COUNTROWS( FILTER( VALUES(Customer[CustomerID]), [Total Sales] > 10000 ) ) Iterating VALUES of the customer key keeps the loop small and respects current filters such as year or region.
03

Each regional manager must see only their region, and the CEO must see everything. How do you implement this?

Power BI Service, Sharing and SecurityMedium
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I would build dynamic RLS with a security table of Email and Region, related to the Region dimension, and a role filter Security[Email] = USERPRINCIPALNAME(). The CEO and other full-access users get an 'All' flag handled in the rule, or are placed in a separate role with no filter. I would test with View as role in Desktop and in the Service before publishing the app.
04

When would you use a custom visual and what are the risks?

Visualisation and Report DesignMedium
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Custom visuals from AppSource add chart types not built in, such as Gantt charts, sankey diagrams or advanced KPI cards. Risks include performance issues, limited support, export and accessibility gaps, and data security, since some visuals may call external services. Prefer certified visuals, check organisational policy, since admins can restrict them, and use built-in visuals where they meet the need.
05

What is the difference between Group By in Power Query and summarising in DAX?

Power Query and Data TransformationMedium
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Group By in Power Query aggregates rows at refresh time and stores only the summarised table, reducing model size, which is useful when detail is never needed. Summarising in DAX through measures keeps detail in the model and aggregates dynamically for any filter at query time. Use Power Query grouping for fixed summaries such as monthly snapshots, and DAX measures when users need flexible slicing.
06

What is the difference between sharing a report, publishing an app and using a workspace?

Power BI Service, Sharing and SecurityMedium
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A workspace is where creators collaborate. Direct sharing gives one person or group access to a single report, which is quick but hard to govern at scale. An app packages reports and dashboards from a workspace for consumers, with audiences controlling who sees which content, and updates only when republished. Apps are the recommended way to distribute content to large business audiences.
07

Users need to filter a report by 5,000 product names using a slicer, and it is slow. What do you do?

Performance Optimisation and AdministrationMedium
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A slicer with thousands of values sends heavy queries and is hard to use. I would add a hierarchy so users pick category and subcategory first, enable the slicer search box, and consider a text filter visual for direct search. Apply buttons in query reduction settings stop queries on every click. If the slicer depends on a measure-filtered list, I would simplify that logic.
08

How do you design a KPI card that shows value, target and variance?

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Use the new Card visual or a KPI visual with a main measure such as Total Sales, a target measure and a variance percent measure. Add conditional formatting so the variance turns red below target and green above it, and include a small trend if space allows. Keep labels short, such as Sales vs Target, and show the comparison period in the subtitle.
09

A report must be embedded in a customer-facing web portal for users without Power BI licences. What approach do you take?

Power BI Service, Sharing and SecurityHard
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I would use Power BI Embedded with the 'embed for your customers' pattern, also called app owns data. The application authenticates with a service principal, generates embed tokens and passes customer identity for RLS, so each customer sees only their data. It needs Fabric or embedded capacity. I would design RLS carefully, test token expiry and monitor capacity load as the customer base grows.
10

What is Copilot in Power BI and what should you watch out for?

Power BI FundamentalsMedium
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Copilot in Power BI uses generative AI to help create report pages, summarise visuals in narrative form, suggest DAX and answer questions about data in natural language. It needs supported capacity and tenant settings enabled by admins. Results depend heavily on a clean model with clear names, descriptions and synonyms, and outputs must be checked for correctness before sharing, especially generated DAX.
11

Your source data is 2 billion rows in a cloud warehouse and users need near real-time numbers. Which mode do you choose?

Power BI FundamentalsHard
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Importing 2 billion rows is heavy and refresh-bound, so I would use DirectQuery or, on Fabric with data in OneLake, Direct Lake. To keep reports fast I would add aggregation tables in Import mode for common summary queries, keep detail in DirectQuery, and use a composite model. I would also make sure the warehouse has good indexing or clustering for the filter columns.
12

What is a semantic model in Power BI?

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A semantic model, earlier called a dataset, is the published data model behind reports: tables, relationships, measures, hierarchies, security roles and refresh settings. Many reports can connect to one shared semantic model, which keeps business logic and numbers consistent across teams. Certified or promoted endorsements help users find trusted models. Build permission controls who can create new reports on it.
13

Explain row context and filter context.

DAX FundamentalsMedium
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Row context means DAX is evaluating one row at a time, which happens in calculated columns and iterators like SUMX, so you can refer to column values of the current row. Filter context is the set of filters applied to the model from slicers, visual rows, columns and CALCULATE. Measures are evaluated in filter context. Row context does not filter the model unless converted by context transition.
14

Rewrite a slow measure to use variables and avoid repeated calculation.

Performance Optimisation and AdministrationMedium
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Before: Growth = IF([Sales PY] = 0, BLANK(), ([Total Sales] - [Sales PY]) / [Sales PY]) After: Growth = VAR cur = [Total Sales] VAR py = [Sales PY] RETURN DIVIDE(cur - py, py) The previous year measure is now evaluated once instead of three times, and DIVIDE handles zero safely.
15

What is DAX?

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DAX, Data Analysis Expressions, is the formula language for Power BI, Analysis Services and Power Pivot. It is used to create measures, calculated columns, calculated tables and security rules. DAX looks like Excel formulas but works on tables and columns with filter context. Key functions include SUM, CALCULATE, FILTER, ALL, RELATED, time intelligence functions and iterators like SUMX.
16

What is the grain of a fact table and why does it matter?

Data ModellingMedium
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Grain is the level of detail of one fact row, such as one row per order line per day. It must be defined clearly before building measures, because mixing grains in one table, for example daily sales and monthly targets, causes double counting and wrong totals. Facts at different grains should be separate tables related to dimensions at the matching level.
17

A slicer on Product Category does not filter the Targets visual. What do you check?

Data ModellingMedium
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I would check the relationship path in model view: whether Targets is related to the Product or Category dimension at all, whether the relationship is active, and its cross-filter direction. If Targets are at category level, it needs a relationship to a Category table that also filters Product. Also check whether visual interactions were turned off for that slicer and whether the measure uses ALL or REMOVEFILTERS.
18

What licence types exist for Power BI?

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Power BI Free lets a user build in Desktop and use My workspace but not share content. Power BI Pro is needed to publish to shared workspaces and share with other Pro users. Premium Per User adds larger models, more refreshes and premium features per user. Fabric capacity (F SKUs) provides dedicated capacity; at F64 and above, viewers with a free licence can consume shared content.
19

How do you configure incremental refresh on a sales table?

Power BI Service, Sharing and SecurityHard
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In Power Query create RangeStart and RangeEnd parameters of type Date/Time, and filter OrderDate so it is greater than or equal to RangeStart and less than RangeEnd. Confirm the step folds to the source. In Desktop right-click the table, choose Incremental refresh, set to archive, say, 5 years and refresh the last 10 days, optionally detect data changes. Publish, and the Service creates partitions on first refresh.
20

Write basic measures for total sales, total cost and profit margin percentage.

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Total Sales = SUM(Sales[Amount]) Total Cost = SUMX(Sales, Sales[Qty] * Sales[UnitCost]) Profit = [Total Sales] - [Total Cost] Margin % = DIVIDE([Profit], [Total Sales]) Format Margin % as a percentage. Building measures on other measures keeps logic in one place and easy to change.
21

What is a calculated table and when would you use one?

Data ModellingMedium
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A calculated table is created with a DAX expression and stored in the model, recalculated at refresh. Examples are a date table using CALENDAR, a disconnected parameter table for what-if analysis, or a summary table. It is handy but adds memory, and it cannot use Power Query folding. For most shaping tasks, creating tables in the source or Power Query is preferred.
22

What are deployment pipelines?

Power BI Service, Sharing and SecurityMedium
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Deployment pipelines move content through stages, typically Development, Test and Production workspaces. Creators deploy reports and semantic models from one stage to the next, compare differences, and use deployment rules to change data source connections or parameters for each stage. This supports controlled releases and testing before users see changes. They work alongside Git integration for version control in Fabric workspaces.
23

What are field parameters in Power BI?

Advanced DAX and Time IntelligenceMedium
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Field parameters let report users switch which measure or dimension a visual shows using a slicer, for example choosing between Sales, Profit and Units, or switching the axis between Region and Category. They are created through Modeling, New parameter, Fields, which generates a calculated table. They reduce the number of duplicate visuals and bookmarks needed for dynamic reports.
24

Tell me about a time a user rejected your report design. What did you do?

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Situation: sales managers stopped using a dashboard I built. Task: find out why. Action: I watched two managers use it and found they needed weekly target gaps first, which were hidden on page three. I moved those to the top, removed four rarely used charts and added drill-through for details. Result: weekly usage in the activity log tripled within a month.
25

Tell me about a time you redesigned a data model.

Data ModellingMedium
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Situation: a finance report took 40 seconds per page with a 2 GB file built on joined flat tables. Task: improve speed. Action: I split it into a star schema with Date, Account, Cost Centre and fact tables, removed unused columns, turned off auto date/time and replaced bi-directional filters with single direction. Result: model size dropped to 450 MB and pages loaded in under 4 seconds.
26

Why do you want to work as a Power BI developer?

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I like turning raw data into clear answers that people can act on. In my projects I enjoyed the full flow: cleaning messy Excel and SQL data, designing a proper model, writing DAX and making reports that users actually open every day. Power BI is widely used across Indian companies and global clients, so the role offers strong growth into data analytics, data engineering with Fabric, or BI architecture.
27

How do you mark a table as a date table and why?

Data ModellingEasy
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In Table view or Model view, select the date table, choose Table tools, Mark as date table, and select the date column, which must be unique, contiguous and without blanks. This tells Power BI to use it for time intelligence and disables the auto date hierarchy for that table. Also turn off Auto date/time under Options, Data Load to avoid hidden date tables for every date column.
28

A business user asks to merge customer and sales into one table to make it easier. How do you respond?

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I would explain that a star schema with separate Customer and Sales tables is easier for them in practice: slicers are cleaner, totals are correct and reports run faster. To keep it user-friendly I would hide key columns, organise measures in display folders and name fields in plain language. I would show them the field list so they see simplicity on the surface.
29

How do you create a fiscal year column starting in April?

Data ModellingMedium
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Fiscal Year = VAR m = MONTH('Date'[Date]) VAR y = YEAR('Date'[Date]) RETURN "FY " & IF(m >= 4, y, y - 1) & "-" & RIGHT(IF(m >= 4, y + 1, y), 2) For April 2026 this returns FY 2026-27, which matches the Indian financial year. Add a fiscal month number column for sorting too.
30

A stakeholder insists on a 3D pie chart with 12 slices. How do you handle it?

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I would understand what they want to see, usually share of total by category, then show a quick comparison: a sorted bar chart beside the pie, explaining that bars make small differences readable while 3D distorts sizes. Offering a donut with top five plus Others is a compromise. Usually seeing both side by side convinces them, and the final choice remains theirs.
31

What is KEEPFILTERS?

Advanced DAX and Time IntelligenceHard
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KEEPFILTERS changes how a CALCULATE filter argument combines with the existing filter context: instead of replacing filters on that column, it intersects with them. For example, CALCULATE([Sales], KEEPFILTERS('Product'[Color] = "Red")) shows blank for Blue rows in a colour table, while without KEEPFILTERS every row would show Red sales. It is useful for measures that should respect user selections.
32

Your measure returns an error that a table of multiple values was supplied where a single value was expected. How do you fix it?

DAX FundamentalsMedium
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This happens when an expression like VALUES or a column reference returns several rows where a scalar is needed, for example in IF or comparison. I would use SELECTEDVALUE with a fallback, wrap the column in an aggregation like MAX or SUM, or use HASONEVALUE to check first. If iteration is needed, use SUMX or another iterator over VALUES instead.
33

What is the difference between ALL, ALLEXCEPT and REMOVEFILTERS?

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ALL returns all rows of a table or column ignoring filters, and as a CALCULATE argument it removes filters, useful for percent of total. REMOVEFILTERS does the same removal but only as a CALCULATE modifier and reads more clearly. ALLEXCEPT removes all filters from a table except the listed columns, such as keeping the Year filter while removing others. ALLSELECTED keeps filters from outside the visual, like slicers.
34

How do you set up an app with different audiences?

Power BI Service, Sharing and SecurityMedium
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In the workspace choose Create app or Update app, add the reports and dashboards, then in the Audience tab create audiences such as Sales Managers and Finance, choose which content each audience sees and grant access to the right Entra ID security groups. Publish the app and share the link. Remember RLS still controls rows inside reports; audiences only control which items are visible.
35

What is cross-filter direction and why is bi-directional filtering risky?

Data ModellingMedium
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Cross-filter direction controls which way filters travel across a relationship. Single direction, from the one side to the many side, is the default and safest. Bi-directional lets the fact table filter the dimension too, which can be useful for slicers showing only relevant values, but it can cause ambiguous paths, unexpected results and slower queries. Prefer single direction and use CROSSFILTER inside specific measures when needed.
36

A YTD measure returns blank for future months on a chart. Users want the line to stop at today. How?

Advanced DAX and Time IntelligenceMedium
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The issue is the opposite for many teams: YTD repeats the last value for future months. I would add a condition so the measure returns BLANK when the period starts after the last date with data, for example IF(MIN('Date'[Date]) > [Last Sales Date], BLANK(), TOTALYTD(...)). Alternatively add a column flagging dates up to today in the date table and filter the visual on it.

Companies with offices in Pune (13)

IT services

TCS

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 4 rounds

Mumbai, Chennai, Pune +2

View questions
IT services

Infosys

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 4 rounds

Bengaluru, Mysuru, Pune +2

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IT services

Wipro

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 4 rounds

Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune +2

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Consulting

Accenture

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 4 rounds

Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune +2

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IT services

Cognizant

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 4 rounds

Chennai, Bengaluru, Pune +2

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IT services

Capgemini

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 4 rounds

Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune +2

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Consulting

Deloitte

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 4 rounds

Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Mumbai +2

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IT services

Tech Mahindra

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 4 rounds

Pune, Hyderabad, Bengaluru +2

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Consulting

KPMG

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 4 rounds

Gurugram, Bengaluru, Mumbai +2

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IT services

LTIMindtree

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 4 rounds

Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru +2

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Analytics

EXL

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 4 rounds

Noida, Gurugram, Bengaluru +1

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Product

Microsoft

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 5 rounds

Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Noida +2

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Analytics

Fractal Analytics

Power BI interview questions

  • 30 questions
  • 5 rounds

Mumbai, Bengaluru, Gurugram +1

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Frequently asked questions

Which companies hire Power BI professionals in Pune?

Companies with large offices in Pune include TCS, Infosys, Wipro, Accenture, Cognizant, Capgemini, Deloitte, Tech Mahindra, KPMG, LTIMindtree. Use their company pages below to practise employer-specific sets.

Are Power BI interviews in Pune different from other cities?

The questions depend more on the company than the city. Pune's mix of employers decides the style: It has a large mid-level job market for data and QA roles, and interviews are often practical and project-based

How do I find Power BI jobs in Pune?

Shortlist companies with Pune offices, keep your CV focused on Power BI projects, apply on company career pages and job portals with the Pune filter, and practise the questions on this page before each interview.

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