Tableau Desktop Specialist Certification Guide

Learn to connect to data sources and prepare data effectively, saving time later. Explore the basics of database management and compare unions, joins, and data blends, including their differences.

Connect to data in Tableau by choosing Excel, Google Sheets, or Web data connectors; use data interpreter to clean inputs and create unions or joins across tabs.

Live connections pull from the data source; extracts copy data to the server for frequent updates. Extracts load faster and can be used offline; save as .hyper.

Combine data with joins, unions, and data blends in Tableau, linking item level, geo, and time series sources to analyze cost, sales, and in-stock metrics.

Learn to manage data properties in Tableau by renaming fields, creating aliases, adjusting default properties for measures and colors, and changing data types and geographic roles to optimize your visualizations.

connect three data tabs, blend data, rename category to assortment, alias colors to fire red, sky blue, pure white, and set margin aggregation to average.

Explore how Tableau transforms massive data sets into actionable visuals by building basic visualizations, customizing and formatting them, and applying visual analytics best practices to tell a compelling data narrative.

Create basic visualizations in Tableau, including a bar chart, a line graph, and a geomap, using Show Me, with assortment and sales data, and refine formatting and view options.

Create and customize a scatter plot to analyze in-stock percentage and weekly sales variance, using average calculations, axis edits, color by classification, and size by sales.

Explore the difference between combined and dual axis charts in Tableau and learn when to use each. See how to create a combined axis and when to apply dual axis.

Learn to create a stacked bar chart to compare total sales with subdimension sales by assortment, color by classification, and sort by sales to reveal category rankings.

Learn to answer business questions in Tableau with cross tables and highlight tables, showing sales by assortment and classification.

Learn how to create groups manually by classification and color in Tableau, then compare groups with sets that use conditional logic to dynamically shift top results by sales and stock.

Explore how to create and apply various filters in Tableau, including single value sliders and date filters, and learn how context filters boost performance on large datasets.

Learn to create effective data visualizations by sorting bar charts in Tableau, using the sort symbol or drop-down options, and applying manual sorts to prioritize hardware, electronics, and phones.

A trend line shows the general tendency of a line graph by smoothing peaks and valleys; in Tableau, right-click the line graph in time series view to show trend lines.

Explore how to create table calculations in Tableau. Use quick table calculations and options like running total, difference, and percentage of total to gain new data perspectives.

Explore how to visualize distributions with histograms in Tableau, using in-stock percentage data to identify how often stock levels fall into specific bins.

Learn how to create a calculated field in Tableau to derive profit from sales price minus cost, by using the analysis menu and dragging fields into view.

Explore how parameters empower end user to customize dashboards and toggle top N item views in Tableau. Build and use a parameter to reveal distribution and percentage of total insights.

Group handmade and vintage categories, create sales visualizations by month, and build a highlight table for hour of day and day of week, plus a margin by assortment bar chart.

Learn to share insights by combining visualizations into a dashboard, format it for end users, and explore the storyboard to communicate effectively with stakeholders.

Master formatting in Tableau to guide attention using color, size, text, and tooltips, and customize charts like bar and pie visuals to reveal assortment sales patterns.

Learn to build an interactive Tableau dashboard by creating three sheets: assortment sales, sales by state, and sales by class, then combine them with filters to drill down into insights.

Explore how Tableau actions add interactivity with filters, highlights, and go to URL links. Build sales by color and assortment charts, and link color filters to Wikipedia color pages.

learn how to create an interactive story in Tableau by building a two-point storyboard that combines a sales dashboard and in stock visualization, enabling real-time data exploration and client conversations.

Learn how to save workbooks in Tableau Desktop with twb and twbx formats, and understand Tableau Public limits on connections and exporting to pdf.

Explore a case study that connects data sources, builds visualizations, and formats a dashboard into a storyboard with profitability and sales timing insights to guide strategy.

Explore the differences between continuous and discrete measures, and between dimensions and measures, and learn to analyze and share data quickly with Tableau’s interface to improve timeliness.

Compare dimensions and measures in Tableau, with dimensions as qualitative categories and measures as quantitative values, shown in the data tab and illustrated by the bucket metaphor.

Explore discrete versus continuous fields in Tableau's time series, using year, month, and day; see blue and green pills differentiate discrete from continuous data in sales trend analysis.

Learn how aggregation in Tableau combines data points into sum, average, or count distinct, using in-stock percentage as an example; explore how dimensions like assortment bucket and refine the aggregation.

Improve timeliness in Tableau analysis by using filters and quick table calculations to quickly identify key metrics, drill down on data, and perform ad hoc reports for recurring metrics.

Apply discrete and continuous time concepts in Tableau to solve the timeliness quiz, using quick table calculations for percent difference and analyzing discounts and costs by month, state, and category.

Gauge readiness with the practice exam data sources, review uncertain sections, and explore bonus material on growing your analytics career as a tableau developer.

Use tactical exam-day strategies to raise your Tableau score. Prioritize easy multiple-choice questions, flag uncertain items, and finish the 60-minute, 30-question exam, using Google for tough items.

Discover three practical routes to land your first Tableau job: build a Tableau public page, earn the new $100 certification for beginners, and network via user groups and meetups.

Sean Miller shares practical tips for landing Tableau roles, building a Tableau Public portfolio, and leveraging Makeover Monday and Workout Wednesday to master data storytelling and dashboards.

Join the Sports Sunday community and explore data-driven storytelling with Tableau. Learn to source datasets, publish dashboards on Tableau Public, and receive constructive feedback.