22-25 April 2026

Leslie Welch

Leslie Welch is the Principal Architect, Data & AI at SHI with over 18 years of experience in automation, data analysis and visualization, and strengthening organizations’ knowledge of data. Leslie is a Microsoft MVP and has worked end-to-end in the data arena from capture and ETL to database design/engineering to analysis and dashboard design to ML use cases with a focus on improving productivity, performance, and data quality. She has extensive experience in enterprise deployment of Power BI, both as an admin and Power BI architect, and as a trainer and technical community organizer. She is passionate about data governance, truth-telling in data, and creating collaborative environments across data practitioners and the numerous data stakeholders. Leslie co-organizes Power BI DC and frequently attends and speaks at data community meetups in the DC metro area, including but not limited to Data Viz DC, Data Science DC, Women Who Code DC, Washington DC Power Platform User Group, and Generative AI DC. Leslie was recognized as a 2023 New Power Woman in Tech by DCA Live, and on the RealLIST Engineers 2024 as one of 15 technologists helping the DMV ecosystem grow.

Sessions for 2026

Challenging the Norm: An Agile Approach to Data Visualization
 

Traditional waterfall BI development hides data modeling from stakeholders, causing rework. Learn an agile approach with iterative cycles & continuous feedback—align visuals with goals, save time, and build better reports through early, low-friction feedback loops.

Previous Sessions