Looking for Power Query samples

How would you like to make your data famous?  Or at least – how would you like a solution built for your own data using Power Query… for free?

I have a couple of Power Query related things I’m working on right now, like these:

• M is for (DATA) Monkey: An Excel Pro’s Guide to the M Language in Power Query (available for pre-order on Amazon)
• An upcoming Power Query course in Victoria and Kelowna, BC this May (learn more and register here.)
• Something else cool that we’ll be announcing VERY soon

Now, if you’ve ever been to one of my courses, you’ll know that one of the most important things to me is to use data that is modelled on real world examples.  That’s right, no canned AdventureWorks samples.  I like data that real users face in the real world.

To that end, I’m looking for Power Query samples.  Specifically, for sample files of data to use as examples for my Power Query blog posts, courses and other educational products.  And while I’ve got lots of great data sets of my own, I’m particularly interested in stuff that I haven’t seen or demonstrated on the blog before.

So if you’ve got a nasty file that’s painful to import, or you have a few files that you’re having trouble combining, or you just can’t figure out a starting point with Power Query, I’d like to have a crack at your scenario.  It’s super easy… you email me the file, I’ll take a look at it, and cook up a solution.  And any new or interesting techniques that are needed become the subject of a future blog post, article, or even sample in the courses I teach.

I hope it goes without saying, but for legal reasons I’m going to say it anyway… any files you send me can and will be used in public.  In order to use them in my materials, by sending them to my you are, by default, assigning me copyright to those specific source files.  Because of that, it is VERY important that the data you include is not sensitive.  To be fair, I’m not interested in your data specifics, as much as the form and shape of it, how it starts out, and what the end product should become.

“Okay, that’s great for you, Ken, but what do we get out of sending you our files?”

How about a working solution?  Does that sound reasonable?  You send me your data, and I send you back something that uses Power Query to complete the goal?

If you’re interested (and who wouldn’t be), here’s what you need to include:

• A sanitized copy of your source data.  (i.e. Do a mass find/replace on employee names/numbers, phone numbers, addresses and such.  If you have particularly troubling data that is interesting, I may be willing to even help here.)
• A copy of what you want the output to look like.  (I’ll build to that end goal.)
• A summary of any “rules” you use along the way to determine if something needs to change one way or another.  (I’d rather not spend my time guessing about your end goals.)
• Your direction as to whether you’d like your/your company name included or withheld should I decide to publish a post using your data.

In return for that, I will send you a copy of the solution once I’ve crafted it.  This may happen days/weeks before any solution is posted publicly, or it may come in the form of an email to let you know that the post is live, at my discretion.

Please be aware that I also reserve the right to NOT use your submission at my discretion.  This could happen if my inbox gets overloaded with requests, if I’ve already dealt with your scenario on the blog, if your data would be better handled in another fashion, if I get too busy with paying projects, if the data is just too difficult to work with, or any other reason that I haven’t listed. (I’ll do my best, but this is free work, so it’s totally at my schedule and discretion.)

If that sounds interesting to you, my email is ken at excelguru dot ca.  I’m going to limit this to the first 10 data sets that land in my inbox, so if you want to try and take advantage of it, act quick!