Introducing new training courses for SQL Analytics and BI, with AI-powered self-service analytics

At Databricks, we recognize that organizations increasingly seek to enable their workforce to better understand and work with data. To achieve this, data and analytics professionals must better understand modern AI tools and enable line-of-business users to self-serve insights for decision-making. We’re thrilled to announce the launch of two new training courses designed to help data and business users develop essential skills in AI-powered analytics. These courses cover key areas to help explore, analyze, and visualize data effectively on the Databricks Data Intelligence Platform.

The Growing Need for Data Empowerment

Data literacy has become a top trend in 2024, as there is an increased demand for data teams to enable everyone in their organization to make data-driven business decisions. Nearly two-thirds of data decision-makers expect a democratization of access to insights in 2024, with 84% of survey respondents believing GenAI will help their organization access insights faster. Whether you’re a data analyst, business professional, or aspiring data expert, upskilling in analytics and business intelligence (BI) is no longer optional—it’s essential. Yet, many professionals lack the training to navigate these tools effectively.

Deep dive into the new training courses

Databricks is used by several thousand practitioners every day and understands the need to equip users with the skills to unlock insights from their data. The new courses address this need by equipping learners with the knowledge to utilize Databricks SQL, Delta Lake, and Databricks AI/BI Dashboards—key tools for turning raw data into actionable insights. 

The introductory Get Started with SQL analytics and BI course will help learners to:

• Use Databricks to complete common data analytics tasks
• Use Databricks SQL for data analysis and reporting
• Leverage Delta Lake capabilities to support data exploration and manipulation
• Create Databricks AI/BI Dashboards within Databricks to visualize your data
• Create AI/BI Genie spaces that allow business users to converse with their data, using questions to perform queries and self-serving their own analytics and visualizations

Upon completion, data and BI analysts can better leverage Databricks for common data analytics tasks and enable other users to visualize and interpret data. They also earn a completion certificate that can be shared on LinkedIn or their résumé.

We will also soon be bringing additional courses to enable data analysts, data consumers, and line of business users to upskill on using Databricks - these include: 

•  AI/BI for self-service analytics to help data consumers and business users understand how to leverage Databricks AI/BI to gain business insights. They will learn how to use AI/BI Dashboards and gain insights using natural language through AI/BI Genie conversational spaces. 
• A deep dive for data analysts on building analytics Databricks AI/BI Dashboards and AI/BI Genie Spaces.

These courses will also be available on Databricks Academy as self-paced or instructor-led, so users can choose the format that suits their needs.

“At T-Mobile, we have leveraged AI/BI to democratize access to critical datasets across our business. It empowers our users, even without SQL expertise, to independently analyze information and trends through natural language queries.”

— Arvind Krishnamoorthy, Senior Data Scientist, T-Mobile

Databricks’ new training courses mark a significant step in democratizing data skills, addressing the growing demand for data literacy in today's business landscape.  We encourage you to explore these courses and take the next step in your learning journey, positioning yourself for success in an increasingly data-driven world. Enroll today and transform your data skills with Databricks.

"At SEGA, we are using Genie to assist decision-makers around the organization by allowing them to ask ad hoc questions in real time about sales and player behavior without having to depend on our data experts to construct dashboards and queries."

— Felix Baker, Head of Data Services, SEGA Europe