Business Intelligence Architect

Aprio; Atlanta (GA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

401k with Profit Sharing

Parental Leave

Tuition Assistance

CPA support program

Job summary

Aprio’s Information Technology team seeks a highly skilled Business Intelligence Architect to lead semantic modeling and governance across Microsoft Fabric and Power BI. You will translate complex requirements into scalable data models, coach a BI team, and drive AI-ready analytics, NLQ capabilities, and Copilot integration within Aprio’s reporting ecosystem.

As a senior contributor, you will shape enterprise data products, collaborate with IT and stakeholders, and champion responsible AI

Qualifications

• 5–8 years designing and publishing Power BI semantic models in enterprise environments.
• Proficiency in DAX, Power Query (M), and data modeling concepts (star schema, relationships, cardinality).
• Hands‑on experience with Microsoft Fabric (OneLake, Lakehouses, Dataflows Gen2, Direct Lake mode).
• Experience with Power BI Q&A, linguistic schema authoring, and synonym configuration for NLQ.
• Familiarity with AI integrations (Copilot, Azure OpenAI) in Fabric data sources.
• Ability to translate business requirements into data models and AI-ready roadmaps.

Responsibilities

• Design and build enterprise semantic models in Microsoft Fabric to optimize performance and AI readiness.
• Lead requirements sessions, translate needs into data models and AI analytics roadmaps.
• Mentor and coach a team of report developers on model design, DAX, and BI patterns.
• Collaborate with IT, data engineering, and stakeholders to ensure governance and quality.
• Architect models to support NLQ, Copilot, and AI-driven insights with accurate metadata.
• Establish governance standards, naming conventions, and data security controls.

Skills

Power BI semantic models

DAX

Power Query (M)

Microsoft Fabric

NLQ / Q&A design

AI governance

Stakeholder communication

Mentoring

Tools

Fabric (OneLake)

Power BI Copilot

Azure OpenAI Service

Job description

Work with a Top 20 CPA and advisory firm that Accounts for Anything. Aprio has 40 U.S. office locations, as well as international office locations and more than 3,200 team members that speak 60+ languages across the globe. By bringing together proven expertise, deep understanding, and strategic foresight for fast-growing industries, Aprio ensures clients are prepared for wherever life or business may take them. Discover a top-rated culture, vast growth opportunities and your next big career move with Aprio.

Join Aprio's Information Technology team and you will help clients maximize their opportunities. Aprio Advisory Group, LLC is a progressive, fast-growing firm looking for a Business Intelligence Architect to join their dynamic team.

Aprio’s Insights & Analytics team is expanding its Microsoft Fabric platform capabilities and is seeking a skilled Power BI & Fabric Semantic Model Architect to lead the design, development, and governance of enterprise‑grade semantic models. This role bridges the gap between raw data and business insight—translating complex stakeholder requirements into well‑structured, performant data models that power decision‑making across the firm.

The ideal candidate is both technically deep and interpersonally strong—someone who can lead and coach a team of report developers, facilitate requirements sessions with business stakeholders, and architect scalable solutions within Microsoft Fabric and Power BI. As Aprio accelerates its AI strategy, this role will play a central part in enabling natural language query (NLQ) capabilities, AI‑powered analytics, and Copilot integration across the firm’s reporting ecosystem.

Responsibilities:

Semantic Modeling & Architecture

• Design and build enterprise semantic models in Microsoft Fabric using Direct Lake mode, Power BI Datasets, and Dataflows Gen2
• Develop well‑structured star and snowflake schemas optimized for Power BI performance, NLQ discoverability, and Copilot compatibility
• Author complex DAX measures, calculated columns, and KPI logic following organizational standards; ensure measure naming and descriptions support AI‑assisted querying
• Establish and maintain a governed, reusable semantic layer across reporting domains (finance, operations, marketing, HR, growth)
• Evaluate and implement incremental refresh, aggregations, and query reduction strategies
• Architect semantic models to support natural language query (Q&A, Power BI Copilot, Azure OpenAI integration) by enforcing descriptive field names, synonyms, and measure annotations
• Define and maintain Q&A synonyms, linguistic schemas, and field‑level descriptions that enable accurate AI‑driven query interpretation

AI, Natural Language Query & Copilot Enablement

• Lead Aprio’s adoption of Power BI Copilot and Microsoft Fabric AI features, including AI‑generated report summaries, smart narratives, and anomaly detection
• Design semantic models and data products with AI‑readiness in mind—ensuring metadata quality, field descriptions, and schema consistency support large language model (LLM) integrations
• Collaborate with IT and data engineering to evaluate and implement natural language query interfaces, including Power BI Q&A, Copilot for Microsoft 365, and Azure OpenAI Service connections to Fabric data
• Develop prompting strategies and governance guardrails for AI‑generated insights to ensure accuracy, auditability, and alignment with firm standards
• Evaluate emerging Microsoft AI capabilities (Fabric Workload Hub, Copilot Studio, OneLake AI catalog) and provide architectural recommendations for phased adoption
• Partner with business stakeholders to identify high‑value use cases for AI‑assisted analytics, self‑service insights, and conversational BI
• Educate and upskill team members and business users on responsible use of AI tools within the BI ecosystem

Team Coaching & Development

• Mentor and coach a team of 4+ report developers, providing technical guidance on best practices, model design, DAX, and AI‑era BI patterns
• Conduct code and model reviews, establishing a culture of quality and continuous improvement
• Create internal documentation, standards guides, and reusable component libraries for the team
• Support onboarding of new team members and facilitate skill development in Power BI, Fabric, and emerging AI analytics tools

Business & Stakeholder Engagement

• Lead requirements‑gathering sessions with business stakeholders, translating needs into data model specifications and AI‑assisted analytics roadmaps
• Serve as a trusted advisor, clearly communicating model design decisions, tradeoffs, and AI capability opportunities to executive and non‑technical audiences
• Collaborate with data engineers, DevOps, and business analysts to ensure analytical models support downstream use cases including Copilot and self‑service BI
• Champion data literacy and responsible AI use across the organization in collaboration with the data governance manager and data governance committee

Fabric Platform & Governance

• Own the semantic model layer within the Aprio Microsoft Fabric Lakehouse architecture (OneLake, Lakehouse, Notebooks)
• Define and enforce naming conventions, model governance standards, certification processes, and AI metadata standards for published datasets
• Coordinate with the data engineering team to ensure clean, well‑documented source data is available for modeling and AI consumption
• Monitor model health, performance, and usage via Power BI Admin portal and Fabric Monitoring Hub
• Ensure compliance with data security, row‑level security (RLS), and data privacy requirements across all published models and AI‑accessible data products
• Establish AI governance practices including prompt auditability, output validation standards, and acceptable use policies for AI‑generated content within BI workflows

Qualifications:

• 5–8 years of experience designing and publishing Power BI semantic models in enterprise environments
• Proficiency in DAX, Power Query (M), and data modeling concepts (star schema, relationships, cardinality)
• Hands‑on experience with Microsoft Fabric (OneLake, Lakehouses, Dataflows Gen2, Direct Lake mode)
• Demonstrated experience with Power BI Q&A, linguistic schema authoring, and synonym configuration for natural language query
• Familiarity with Power BI Copilot, Microsoft 365 Copilot, or Azure OpenAI Service integrations with Fabric data sources
• Demonstrated ability to gather, document, and translate business requirements into data models and AI‑readiness roadmaps
• Experience coaching or mentoring junior analysts or developers
• Strong communication skills with the ability to explain technical concepts—including AI capabilities and limitations—to non‑technical audiences
• Familiarity with data governance, RLS, dataset certification, and Power BI deployment pipelines
• Understanding of responsible AI principles, data privacy considerations, and AI output auditability in enterprise analytics contexts

Preferred Qualifications:

• Microsoft certifications: PL-300 (Power BI Data Analyst), DP-600 (Fabric Analytics Engineer), or DP-100 (Azure Data Scientist)
• Experience with Azure OpenAI Service, Semantic Kernel, or LangChain in analytics or data product contexts
• Exposure to Copilot Studio or Power Automate AI flows for automating insight delivery
• Experience in a professional services or accounting firm environment
• Familiarity with Microsoft Purview for data cataloging, lineage, and AI governance

Core Competencies:

• Data Modeling Proficiency
• Performance Optimization
• AI & NLQ Enablement
• Translating to Tech and Non-Tech
• Analytical Thinking
• Coaching & Mentorship
• Attention to Detail
• Internal/External Team Collaboration
• Strong Communication
• Continuous Learning Mindset
• Business Acumen
• Responsible AI Judgment

Why work for Aprio:

Whether you are just starting out, looking to advance into management or searching for your next leadership role, Aprio offers an opportunity to grow with a future‑focused, innovative firm.

Perks/Benefits we offer for full‑time team members:

• Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance on the first day of employment
• Flexible Spending Account and Dependent Care Account
• 401k with Profit Sharing
• 9+ holidays and discretionary time off structure
• Parental Leave – coverage for both primary and secondary caregivers
• Tuition Assistance Program and CPA support program with cash incentive upon completion
• Dis