> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://academy.pentaho.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://academy.pentaho.com/business-analytics-path-sandbox/business-analytics/level-1-practitioner.md).
# Level 1 — Practitioner
The entry level of the Business Analytics path: 15 lessons across 6 modules — the User Console, Interactive Reports, Analyzer, Dashboard Designer and the APAC Sales Pack capstone.
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**🧪 SANDBOX — draft content.** For review only. Items marked REPLACE-ME need an owner's confirmation.
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Start here if you're new to Pentaho Business Analytics. By the end you'll be comfortable browsing, reporting on and presenting data through the full BA toolset — and you'll have built a complete sales pack of your own to prove it.
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:file-lines:
15 lessons
across 6 modules
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:flask:
10 workshops
hands-on labs
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:clock:
~7h 05m
a full day, or a few short sessions
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Every workshop is hands-on and runs on Pentaho's hosting platform. The Lab Guide is embedded in each lab and loads automatically when you open it — nothing to install.
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***
Before you start
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**What you'll need**
REPLACE-ME — confirm whether prior Pentaho experience is assumed, and whether familiarity with reporting or spreadsheet concepts helps.
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**Built against**
REPLACE-ME — confirm the Pentaho Business Analytics version the hosted labs run, so screens and menus match the guide step for step.
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***
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#### What you'll build
Everything runs on the Steel Wheels sample data. You'll browse it in the User Console, build ad-hoc reports on it with Interactive Reports — Sales Territory, Orders for NA and EMEA, Ships and Trains — slice and pivot it with Analyzer, and assemble the Vendor Sales, Inventory and Product Performance dashboards in Dashboard Designer. The capstone brings it all together for the APAC regional director: an Interactive Report with prompts and totals, an Analyzer report with a calculated measure, and a dashboard that links them. Its checks decide your course accreditation.
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```mermaid
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flowchart TB
classDef input fill:#dbeafe,stroke:#1d4ed8,color:#1e3a8a,text-align:left,rx:6,ry:6
classDef tool fill:#dbeafe,stroke:#1d4ed8,color:#1e3a8a,text-align:left,rx:6,ry:6
classDef check fill:#fef3c7,stroke:#b45309,color:#78350f,text-align:left,rx:6,ry:6
classDef browser fill:#fef3c7,stroke:#b45309,color:#78350f,text-align:left,rx:6,ry:6
SW[("Steel Wheels sample data
already published:
a metadata domain and a cube ")]:::input
PUC["Pentaho User Console
browse data sources, open reports,
manage schedules "]:::browser
IR["Interactive Reports
ad-hoc reports on the metadata domain
Sales Territory · Orders NA and EMEA
Ships and Trains "]:::tool
AN["Analyzer
slice, dice and pivot the cube
Sales Analysis · EMEA Quantity "]:::tool
DD["Dashboard Designer
reports, charts and filters on one page
Vendor Sales · Inventory
Product Performance "]:::tool
CAP["Capstone: the APAC Sales Pack
an Interactive Report with prompts
and totals, an Analyzer report with
a calculated measure, and a dashboard
that links them "]:::check
SW --> PUC
PUC --> IR
PUC --> AN
IR -->|"placed on "| DD
AN -->|"placed on "| DD
DD --> CAP
```
The Level 1 toolset on the Steel Wheels data, and how the capstone draws on it.
***
What you'll learn
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* Find your way around the Pentaho User Console (PUC) — browse data sources, open reports and manage schedules
* Build ad-hoc business reports with Interactive Reports
* Slice, dice and pivot OLAP data with Analyzer
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* Assemble interactive dashboards that combine reports, charts and filters
* Work a real reporting use case end to end — the APAC Sales Pack capstone — and hand it in for your accreditation
* Read and present report and dashboard output the way a business user will
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***
Course outline
:file-lines: reading · :flask: hands-on workshop
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Full lessons unlock once you're enrolled — this is the outline only. Times are the lab guides' own estimates.
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| Module | Reading | Workshops | Time |
|---|
| Getting Started | 1 | — | ~25m |
| User Console | 1 | 1 | ~25m |
| Interactive Reports | 1 | 3 | ~1h 10m |
| Analyzer Reports | 1 | 2 | ~1h 05m |
| Dashboard Designer | 1 | 3 | ~2h |
| Capstone Project | — | 1 | ~2h |
| Total | 5 | 10 | ~7h 05m |
{% stepper %}
{% step %}
### :rocket: Getting Started
`1 reading · ~25m`
Set up your environment and orient yourself with the Pentaho Business Analytics tooling before diving into the hands-on labs.
See the full breakdown
| Lesson | Time |
|---|
| :file-lines: | Before You Start | ~25m |
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{% step %}
### :display: User Console
`1 reading · 1 workshop · ~25m`
Tour the Pentaho User Console (PUC) — the browser-based home for browsing data sources, opening reports, and managing schedules.
See the full breakdown
| Lesson | Time |
|---|
| :file-lines: | Overview of PUC | ~10m |
| | |
| :flask: | Pentaho User Console | ~15m |
{% endstep %}
{% step %}
### :chart-line: Interactive Reports
`1 reading · 3 workshops · ~1h 10m`
Build ad-hoc reports for business users with Interactive Reports. Three guided exercises: Sales Territory, Orders for NA and EMEA, and Ships and Trains.
See the full breakdown
| Lesson | Time |
|---|
| :file-lines: | Overview of Interactive Reports | ~10m |
| | |
| :flask: | Sales Territory | ~20m |
| :flask: | Orders — NA and EMEA | ~20m |
| :flask: | Ships and Trains | ~20m |
{% endstep %}
{% step %}
### :chart-pie: Analyzer Reports
`1 reading · 2 workshops · ~1h 05m`
Slice, dice, and pivot OLAP data with Analyzer. Two exercises: Sales Analysis and EMEA Quantity.
See the full breakdown
| Lesson | Time |
|---|
| :file-lines: | Overview of Analyzer Reports | ~10m |
| | |
| :flask: | Sales Analysis | ~30m |
| :flask: | EMEA Quantity | ~25m |
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{% step %}
### :gauge-high: Dashboard Designer
`1 reading · 3 workshops · ~2h`
Assemble interactive dashboards combining reports, charts, and filters. Three exercises: Vendor Sales, Inventory, and Product Performance.
See the full breakdown
| Lesson | Time |
|---|
| :file-lines: | Overview of Dashboard Designer | ~10m |
| | |
| :flask: | Vendor Sales | ~35m |
| :flask: | Inventory | ~30m |
| :flask: | Product Performance | ~45m |
{% endstep %}
{% step %}
### :trophy: Capstone Project
`1 workshop · ~2h`
Bring it all together for the APAC regional director: an Interactive Report with prompts and totals, an Analyzer report with a calculated measure, and a dashboard that links them. Its checks decide your course accreditation.
See the full breakdown
| Lesson | Time |
|---|
| :flask: | APAC Sales Pack | ~2h |
{% endstep %}
{% endstepper %}
***
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{% hint style="warning" icon="file-certificate" %}
**Course accreditation**
Course accreditation applies to Levels 1 and 2. Finish the lessons and workshops, hand in the capstone and pass the exam embedded in the guide, and you'll automatically be able to download your course accreditation. It states your name, the course, and the Pentaho version you studied against. Unlike certification, this exam is self-paced and not proctored.
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**Certification**
Certification is only available at Level 3 — Certified — not this level. It's a separate, proctored credential that organisations look for when engaging Pentaho consultants: the more advanced courses feed into it, the capstone project is peer reviewed by the Pentaho team, and the exam itself is proctored — unlike the embedded exam for course accreditation.
REPLACE-ME — link to Business Analytics Level 3 once that page exists, and confirm whether Speciality courses apply to this path too.
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***
Back to the Business Analytics path
---
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