Great reporting is what sets you up for informed decision making.
But creating and designing reports isn’t easy. There are a lot of great blogs out there on Power BI — whether it’s designing your data model, transforming data, building queries, or using certain visuals in your reports. However, I’ve always struggled to find content that specifically focus on the creation and design of the reports themselves — which, in my opinion, is just as critical as getting the backend right.
I think one of the biggest reasons for this is that the backend usually has clear paths for doing things right — or not. But when it comes to design, creativity enters the picture, and there can be many right answers, all depending on your requirements. So, what do we do? How do we guide ourselves in such unnerving territory?
In this blog, I will cover some of the basics in storytelling in reporting that will hopefully help you feel more comfortable when you’re staring at a blank page with a whole lot of data ready to go.
What I love most about building reports is the ability to tell a story with the data — taking the user on a journey that, ideally, leads to actionable insights. One of the key components to this is how you can use the design of the report to support the story being told.
One of the key principles I encourage you to follow is the Z-pattern. This isn’t my concept — it’s been around for a while and refers to the natural way people scan a page. As you can see in the image below, a ‘Z’ shape is followed — starting in the top-left and moving down to the bottom-right.
This means it’s usually a good idea to position your most important metrics or KPIs in the top-left corner of the report — you want users to see the key information straight away.
I try to follow this principle as much as possible, depending on the requirements. But what I often find missing in reports is the intentional placement of supporting visuals to help tell the full story.
Let’s look at an example.
Say I have a report based on financial data for all projects in my portfolio. My most important metric is EAC % (Estimated deviation % from original budget at completion). So naturally, I place that in a card at the top-left — easy to find, easy to read.
From there, the rest of the top row includes other key financials closely tied to EAC — things like budget, forecast, and actuals.
What’s important here is that, if EAC is the primary focus, the rest of the report should support it. So, as the user scans the page — following that Z-shaped eye path — they’re presented with visuals that expand on or explain what’s driving the EAC. That way, the design is working with the data to tell the story. I don’t need to explain it to the reader — the layout guides them. They see something interesting, and as they move through the report, the supporting information is right there, ready to explore — no digging required.
Designing great reports is more than making something look good, it’s about communication. With the right structure, visual hierarchy, and a bit of storytelling magic, your reports can do more than inform, they can inspire action.
So next time you’re staring at a blank report canvas, don’t just ask yourself what data needs to be shown. Ask yourself: What story do I want to tell?
Then use your design to tell it clearly, confidently, and with purpose.
