How To Become A BI Developer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a bi developer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

If you've heard of "BI" but still wonder what it means, it's quite simply "Business Intelligence." Business Intelligence converts business data into visualizations and actionable reports with the help of various software technologies. It is a valuable asset for any modern company. According to a report, the global business intelligence market will reach $26.5 billion this year. To effectively integrate BI into its operations, a company will employ the services of a BI developer.

BI developers use software to present gathered data into an format that's understandable for businesses and organizations. This data can provide helpful insight which can greatly impact business decisions. These developers design and implement a variety of systems to improve organizational operations and processes.

Expert developers enjoy a salary of $41.05 per hour. To start down the BI career path, you'll first need a bachelor's or master's degree in computer science. The outlook for the BI field is strong with job opportunities expected to increase by 21% by 2028.

ScoreBI DeveloperUS Average

Salary

7.2

Avg. Salary $92,647

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

4.0

Growth Rate 21%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

4.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.17%

Asian 34.72%

Black or African American 4.22%

Hispanic or Latino 7.93%

Unknown 4.74%

White 48.23%

Gender

female 27.89%

male 72.11%

Age - 38

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 38

Stress Level

4.0

Stress level is moderate

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

7.9

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

6.6

Work Life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a bi developer

Explore bi developer education requirements

Most common bi developer degrees

Bachelor's

66.1 %

Master's

28.6 %

Associate

2.6 %

Start to develop specific bi developer skills

Skills	Percentages
Power Bi	20.24%
Dashboards	9.94%
ETL	5.39%
Visualization	4.97%
SSRS	4.91%

Complete relevant bi developer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New bi developers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a bi developer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real bi developer resumes.

Research bi developer duties and responsibilities

Modify several DB2 queries to accomplish the task.
Utilize TFS for code check-in and check-out and manage different versions of complicate codes.
Manage BO reporting servers for software patches, security upgrades and other maintenance activities.
Work with DBA to create jobs, store procedures and triggers in SSMS to automate database updating work.

Prepare your bi developer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your bi developer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a bi developer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable BI Developer Resume templates

Build a professional BI Developer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your BI Developer resume.

Apply for bi developer jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a bi developer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do bi developers rate their job?

-/5

5 Stars

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BI Developer reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Jul 2020

Pros

The challenges and opportunities offered by the role where I get to learn & apply new skills.

Cons

Mostly a sitting job with no opportunity to travel and interact with the business.