Bob Duffy

prodata.ie/author/bob

Bob Duffy is a SQL Server MVP from Dublin, Ireland who is MCA, MCM and now Analysis Services “Maestro” certified. Bob used to work for Microsoft Consulting Services a Senior Consultant and subject matter expert for BI/data. He now works at the Prodata SQL Centre of Excellence in Dublin, Ireland where he helps enterprise customers with design, performance tuning, benchmarking and pretty much anything to do with SQL Server or Business Intelligence.

Proposed Sessions for 2026

Automating Star Schemas in Fabric DW

This session shows how to rapidly build a Kimball star schema in Microsoft Fabric using minimal code, industry-standard T-SQL templates, metadata-driven design, and modern declarative patterns. You’ll learn how to automate dimension and fact loading, simplify orchestration, tune performance, and manage data quality and lineage—enabling faster, more scalable, and maintainable data warehouse solutions.

Diving Into Graph API with Fabric Notebooks

Microsoft Graph API is the unified gateway to Microsoft Cloud data, enabling powerful integration and automation. In this session, you’ll learn how to use Graph API with Microsoft Fabric to integrate SharePoint, analyze Power BI usage via Log Analytics, monitor Office 365 and OneDrive compliance, and interact with Azure services. We’ll cover core concepts, security best practices, and hands-on examples, plus provide ready-to-use GitHub templates so you can start building immediately. Join us to streamline cloud integrations and supercharge your Fabric workflows with Graph API.

PBI Financial Modelling Masterclass - Part 1 PL/BS

Learn how to build fast, scalable P&L and Balance Sheet statements by moving from measure-based DAX to a model-driven approach. We’ll cover dynamic modelling, flexible layouts, and advanced financial reporting—plus you’ll get a downloadable PBIX to try it yourself.

PBI Financial Modelling Masterclass – Part 2 AP/AR

Build AR and AP models that work across any ERP. Learn how to handle ageing, reconciliation, FX exceptions, and as-of balances—plus get a ready-to-use PBIX.

RAG + Fabric + Eventhouse: An End-to-End Pattern for Automated Contract Compliance

A practical walkthrough of building an auditable, scalable RAG-based contract compliance solution on Microsoft Fabric, from ingestion to insight.

Replacing ADF with Notebooks in Fabric

We replaced most ADF pipelines with Fabric notebooks. In this session, we explore why moving from pipeline-centric to notebook-centric ETL can improve performance, extensibility, and developer experience in data engineering.

Previous Sessions

EDW Automation in Synapse SQL Pools

DW Automation and Design Best Practices

Financial Modelling with Power BI

Bob will show the “secret sauce” to financial modelling for General Ledger (GL) structures such as Profit and Loss and Balance Sheet.

The European Economic Crisis and the Euro-A Data Tale

Gain insights into what is behind the media storm surrounding the Economic Crisis, by diving into publically available data using PowerBI . Learn how the use of analytical tools can empower us by answering the questions we need to ask.

Scaling the DVD Store from 100 to a million TPM

Come along to see us attempt to optimise and redesign the “Dell DVD Store” sample dot.net/SQL application from a modest 100 transactions per minute to a million transactions per minute.

When good SQL design goes bad

In this humorous session I’ll be contesting many of the so called "best practices" in SQL Server and demonstrating counter arguments. Come along to see how so called "pillars" of design are starting to break down.

Migrating to the Cloud

In one hour we will take a sample ecommerce application and database, show tools available for both schema and data migration and the demo performance, scalability and monitoring impacts.

Optimising Cube Processing

You don’t have to be an analysis services guru to gain a better understanding of how to analyse, configure and optimise cube processing.

The Irish Economic Crisis, Visualised with Power BI

In this session we will explore the Irish Economic Crisis from multiple perspectives, using Microsoft’s latest Visualisation tools including Power BI, Power Query, Power Map, Power View and Q&A.

SQL 2012 Always on Deep Dive

Always On Availability Groups offer a huge leap forward in terms of high availability. This sessions is a demo based introduction to the high availability changes in SQL 2012 emphasizing key features and benefits.

Windows Azure For SQL folk

We aim to cover the fundamental concepts that you should know on the Cloud and Windows Azure. In this demo based hour we will step through building Azure applications, deploying and managing them and what storage choices you will face.

SQL 2012 Always On-Deep Dive

Always On offers a huge leap forward in terms of high availability. This sessions is a demo based introduction to the high availability changes in Denali emphasising key features and benefits.

Load Testing Analysis Services

Ever deployed an Analysis Services cube that worked perfectly well with one user on the development server, only to find that it doesn’t meet the required volumes of user concurrency?

SQL Consolidation Planning

SQL Virtualisation using the Microsoft Assessment Planning tool and the SQL Consolidation Toolkit

SQL tuning from the dot.net perspective

So your customer's dot.net application is ready to ship and it is dog slow. This session focuses on the tools and methology that SQL consultants use to test and improve performance with dot.net applications.

Performance Management for SQL Server with SCOM 2007

Learn to love SCOM! Out of the box the SCOM Management Pack for SQL Server is not popular with DBA's. This demo based session will take you through the process of how you can extend SCOM to properly monitor and analyse SQL performance. Ultimately providing performance management scorecards and dashboards for your CIO.

Self Service Business Intelligence- Project Gemini

Microsoft Project Gemini brings data modelling and Business Intelligence in the hands of the end user - good or bad. This session demonstrates how to build and deploy an end to end business intelligence solution with project Gemini.