Analytics Engineer · Instructor · Author · Community Builder
Juan Manuel Perafan
A decade of experience helping organizations make their data resemble their business, not forcing their business to fit a data model. Welcome to my corner of the internet, where I keep my books, talks, videos, podcasts, and blogs.
What You'll Find Here
Conference Talks
Slides and recordings from live events
Video Tutorials
Technical deep dives and how-tos
Podcasts
Conversations about data and community
Blog Posts
Articles on analytics engineering
Let's Work Together
Speaking
Looking for a speaker for your conference or meetup?
Training
Want to train your team on data skills? I design and lead workshops.
Consulting
Building a data strategy? I help organizations design data architectures.
Podcast Appearances
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O stakeholder te pediu um Dashboard. Qual é o seu próximo passo?
Gabriela Costa and Juan Manuel Perafan discuss the importance of discovery in data projects. Rather than jumping directly to SQL or BI tools, professionals should first understand the stakeholder's underlying business problem.
Foundations of Analytics Engineer Role: Skills, Scope, and Modern Practices
In this episode, we discuss the Analytics Engineer role. What it includes and how it complements data engineers, data scientists, and business teams
From Psychology to Analytics Engineering
In this episode, Bolaji interviews Juan Manuel Perafan, a psychology major turned analytics engineer, who shares his journey from Colombia to the Netherlands and his transition into the data field.
Recent Videos
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DE Zoomcamp 4.2.1 - dbt Core vs dbt Cloud
In this video, you'll understand the key differences between dbt Core and dbt Cloud, the evolution of dbt from an open-source tool to a comprehensive platform, and why this course focuses on dbt Core. You'll learn about dbt Fusion, the new engine rewriting dbt's future, and how to choose the right dbt setup for your needs. 🔗 Course materials: https://github.com/DataTalksClub/data-engineering-zoomcamp/tree/main/04-analytics-engineering 💬 Join the community: https://datatalks.club/slack What You'll Learn: - The origins of dbt Core (2016) as a free, open-source command-line tool - How dbt Cloud emerged as a SaaS platform with managed infrastructure - The introduction of dbt Fusion and its impact on the dbt ecosystem - Adapter support considerations when choosing between Core and Cloud - Why this course uses dbt Core with DuckDB and how it translates to dbt Cloud Timestamps: 🔗 dbt Core vs Cloud comparison: https://www.getdbt.com/product/dbt-core-vs-dbt-cloud
DE Zoomcamp 4.5.3 - dbt Packages
In this video, you'll discover the power of dbt packages - reusable dbt projects that extend your capabilities with pre-built macros, tests, and models. You'll learn about the most valuable community packages, how to find them on dbt Hub, and how to install and use them in your projects. 🔗 Course materials: https://github.com/DataTalksClub/data-engineering-zoomcamp/tree/main/04-analytics-engineering 💬 Join the community: https://datatalks.club/slack What You'll Learn: - What dbt packages are and how they work like Python libraries - Essential packages: dbt utils for cross-database SQL functions - Codegen for automatic YAML file generation (huge time-saver!) - Audit helper for safe refactoring and model comparison - dbt expectations with pre-built tests for almost any scenario - How to install packages and integrate them into your project Timestamps: 🔗 dbt Hub: https://hub.getdbt.com/
DE Zoomcamp 4.6.1 - dbt Commands
In this comprehensive video, you'll master all essential dbt commands and flags needed for daily analytics engineering work. You'll learn when to use each command, understand the powerful dbt build workflow, and discover how to efficiently work with specific models using selectors and state-based deployments. 🔗 Course materials: https://github.com/DataTalksClub/data-engineering-zoomcamp/tree/main/04-analytics-engineering 💬 Join the community: https://datatalks.club/slack What You'll Learn: - Setup commands: dbt init, debug, and deps for project initialization - Feature-specific commands: seed, snapshot, source freshness, and docs - Core workflow commands: compile, run, test, and the all-in-one dbt build - Essential flags: full-refresh, fail-fast, target switching, and model selection - Advanced selectors: upstream/downstream dependencies with + syntax - State-based workflows for CI/CD: detecting modified and new models Timestamps:
Recent Blog Posts
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From Psychology to Data
People often ask me how I ended up working in data. So I made a graph about it.
The WriteOps Manifesto: DevOps for Writers
Why technical writers need CI/CD pipelines, version control, and automation just as much as developers do.
AsciiDoc > Markdown
AsciiDoc is objectively better than Markdown for technical writing. Here's why you should make the switch.