Process
What sits underneath the charts
A dashboard is only as good as the model behind it. This page shows the data model, the DAX measures, and the check figures I use to prove the dashboards match the source data.
01 · Data model
A star schema with one fact table
Each deal is one row in the fact table. It points to the company that raised the money and to the investor that led the round. Both relationships are one to many, so filters flow from the dimensions into the deals and every measure aggregates correctly.
02 · DAX measures
The measures behind the Power BI report
These are written in the semantic model, so every visual uses the same definition. A few of the important ones:
Exit Rate =
DIVIDE ( [Exited Companies], [Company Count] )
Exited Companies =
CALCULATE ( COUNTROWS ( Companies ), Companies[Outcome] = "Exited" ) + 0
Median Exit Multiple =
MEDIANX (
FILTER ( Companies,
Companies[Outcome] = "Exited" && Companies[Funding Raised ($M)] > 0 ),
DIVIDE ( Companies[Exit Value ($M)], Companies[Funding Raised ($M)] )
)
Backed Companies =
CALCULATE ( DISTINCTCOUNT ( Deals[Company ID] ),
Deals[Capital Type] = "Funding Round" )
Backed Exit Rate =
DIVIDE (
CALCULATE ( [Backed Companies], Companies[Outcome] = "Exited" ) + 0,
[Backed Companies]
)Why "+ 0". Without it, a sector with no exits returns a blank instead of 0% and silently disappears from the chart. Why only funding rounds in Backed Companies. Acquirers appear as the lead on the acquisition itself, which would give them credit for exits they bought rather than backed.
03 · Check figures
Every headline number reconciles to the source
Before publishing, I recalculate the key figures independently in Python from the raw CSV files and compare them with what each dashboard shows.
| Check | Source (Python) | Tableau | Power BI | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of deals | 197 | 197 | 197 | Ties |
| Total deal value ($M) | 8,481.5 | 8,481.5 | 8,481.5 | Ties |
| Funding rounds ($M) | 5,320.2 | n/a | 5,320.2 | Ties |
| Exit value ($M) | 3,161.3 | n/a | 3,161.3 | Ties |
| Series A rounds | 58 | 58 | n/a | Ties |
| Median Series A step up | 3.55x | 3.6x | n/a | Ties (rounded) |
| Companies | 60 | n/a | 60 | Ties |
| Exit rate | 22% | n/a | 22% | Ties |
| Median exit multiple | 4.47x | n/a | 4.47x | Ties |
| Median years to exit | 4.3 | n/a | 4.3 | Ties |
n/a means the figure is not shown in that dashboard.