Acknowledgments

First, thanks to the hundreds of thousands who have read our Toolkit books, attended our courses, and engaged us in consulting projects. We have learned as much from you as we have taught. Collectively, you have had a profoundly positive impact on the data warehousing and business intelligence industry. Congratulations!

Our Kimball Group colleagues, Bob Becker, Joy Mundy, and Warren Thornthwaite, have worked with us to apply the techniques described in this book literally thousands of times, over nearly 30 years of working together. Every technique in this book has been thoroughly vetted by practice in the real world. We appreciate their input and feedback on this book—and more important, the years we have shared as business partners, along with Julie Kimball.

Bob Elliott, our executive editor at John Wiley & Sons, project editor Maureen Spears, and the rest of the Wiley team have supported this project with skill and enthusiasm. As always, it has been a pleasure to work with them.

To our families, thank you for your unconditional support throughout our careers. Spouses Julie Kimball and Scott Ross and children Sara Hayden Smith, Brian Kimball, and Katie Ross all contributed in countless ways to this book.