Stay Away from Guadalcanal, w/ Olivier Travers Raw Data By P3 Adaptive

For the second part of our 2022 New Year double feature, we sat down with Olivier Travers.  Olivier has had quite the data journey that has taken him from France to Germany, Portugal, Italy, and finally, to Chile where he serves clients all over the world as a Business Intelligence advisor and consultant...an expert in Power BI, he's focused on data visualization, SaaS integration, and software architecture! He also knows quite a bit about MMA and Brazilian JuJitsu, and a spirited discussion on who would win in a fight ensues!
Check out Olivier's website HERE!
References in this episode:
The Ascent of Money PBS Documentary
Narcos: Mexico
Raw Data with Shishir Mehrotra
Episode Transcript:
Rob Collie (00:00:00):
Hello friends. If you don't yet know why we're releasing two episodes in a single week, just go back and briefly listen to the intro at least, to the Jeff [McNeily 00:00:09] episode. Our guest for this episode is Olivier Travers. Now, Olivier is kind of like a Microsoft data platform international man of mystery. And of course that's the subtitle to Austin Powers. But I think Olivia is a little bit closer to the James Bond end of the spectrum that inspired that. He's just your average French citizen who moved his family to Portugal, and now has spent the last decade and a half in Chile. Pretty standard stuff. And that international flavor pulled us in some unexpected directions. We pretty quickly got into the topic of international trade and the role that different currencies from different nations play on that stage. There are some positively fascinating aspects of that domain that, believe it or not, citizens of basically every country on earth are familiar with, except for American citizens, because the dollar holds a very specific role in international trade. And it just never comes up in the USA.
Rob Collie (00:01:06):
Continuing that James bond-like theme, we talk a little bit about his jujitsu hobby and exactly how long it would take to make me give up. Spoiler alert, not long. In general, he's just a very calm and deliberate person. So as you're listening to this, try to imagine him wearing like a white tux sitting in Monte Carlo, playing baccarat.
Rob Collie (00:01:25):
On the technology front, we spend a pretty reasonable amount of time talking about Power Query, pros and cons. We talk a little bit about the idea of using Power Query as like a SQL macro recorder. We again lean on Tom to get him into Power Query. I feel like we got him a little closer this time, but still not quite over the edge. Just top to bottom a fascinating fellow, and I hope you agree. So let's get into it.
Announcer (00:01:52):
Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please?
Announcer (00:01:56):
This is the Raw Data by P3 Adaptive Podcast, with your host Rob Collie, and your co-host Thomas LaRock. Find out what the experts at P3 Adaptive can do for your business. Just go to p3adaptive.com. Raw Data by P3 Adaptive is data with the human element.
Rob Collie (00:02:20):
Welcome to the show. Olivier Travers ... that's a exactly how it's pronounced in the native tongue, yeah? What does it sound like when you say it?
Olivier Travers (00:02:28):
[foreign language 00:02:28] Well, that's only with other French speakers, so Travers is good enough.
Rob Collie (00:02:34):
I think you should deploy that more frequently than just with French speakers, because the French speakers won't be as impressed with it. It sounds so good.
Rob Collie (00:02:42):
Now, it does put a lot of pressure on the other person you're introducing yourself to, right? It puts a lot of pressure on them. But depending upon the situation, maybe that's appropriate. Damn. One more time.
Olivier Travers (00:02:53):
[foreign language 00:02:53].
Rob Collie (00:02:53):
Oh, so good. End of episode. Hang it up. Let's go.
Olivier Travers (00:03:00):
It's hard to top it.
Rob Collie (00:03:02):
All right. So you're just the average Frenchman livin