Data is king and possessing it gives you power. But there’s no way that you can use it to rule your industry if you don’t turn this data into actionable insights. In order to make sense of the immense amount of digital information that your business generates these days, you need powerful business intelligence software. And one of the best options available, no matter what kind of data you’re dealing with, is Power BI. So let’s take a closer look at what this option has in store for you.
What is Power BI?
Power BI is a Microsoft flagship business intelligence product – it is a versatile platform with a number of tools for processing massive amounts of data, so you’re not only able to collect and aggregate all of your data, but you can also visualize it graphically, analyze the outcomes and share your insights with others. The platform consists of both local and cloud-based apps and services, and connects to a wide variety of Microsoft and non-Microsoft based data sources and business tools.
And because Power BI has such an intuitive interface and easy-to-use features that ensure a pretty low barrier to entry, even non-technical business users can use it. Now, let’s keep going and see how you can benefit from this solution.
7 main benefits of Power BI
It can improve the decision-making process
and make it more precise by providing detailed insights. When all the data is available in one place, the risk that something will be overlooked is significantly lower.
It allows users to extract “the truth” which can be hidden behind seemingly chaotic or huge data sets.
Power BI sorts all of this out in order to provide you with a clear overview of the information that you’ve gathered.
It has an interface that is simple enough
for end users to navigate and create their own visual reports and dashboards – so they can better make sense of the data.
It has built-in machine learning features
for spotting trends and making predictions. This way, you can always be a few steps ahead of the competition.
It can be highly personalized
, so users can quickly find what they are looking for.
It is extremely secure
.
Power BI allows you to grant certain levels of access to internal and external users, so your data can be properly protected. And regular updates make sure this software complies with all the recent regulations regarding cyber attacks and data leaks.
It integrates with many popular business tools
, e.g., Salesforce, SAP, Google Analytics, MailChimp and, of course, Microsoft-based products like Excel, so crucial information from different sources are no longer dispersed.
Plus, Power BI is pretty cost-effective, with two different pricing plans to choose from – Pro and Premium. You can even try the first one for free and then upgrade if you feel like you need the more advanced edition.
How Power BI can be utilized
There are a number of ways that businesses can leverage Power BI, no matter the size of the company. For example, it can be used to:
create pixel-perfect
data models
and
reports
which can be shared throughout the organization or published for all to review, regardless of what kind of data you want to present (e.g., team performance, financial KPIs, marketing statistics and sales targets, etc.);
collect, prepare and analyze
large volumes of data
and get insights quickly so that you can take the next operational steps;
build
machine learning models
to get insights from text and images – yet another source of information, great for detecting patterns and trends;
turns insights into
actionable intelligence
, so that the team can deliver what the company or its customers
really
need;
automate workflows
by detecting and removing bottlenecks to help make all the processes run more efficiently;
stream analytics
in
real time
so you can make precise and timely decisions.
Of course, since Power BI can be integrated with many different services and apps, and has a great variety of internal features, the sky’s the limit in terms of its applications. And speaking of features… there are at least 10 of them that deserve special attention.
Top 10 features of Power BI
One platform to rule them all
–
– you can combine all the data that you gather within one digital platform and get easy-to-read insights.
Interactive Q&A
Thanks to
, you can just ask a question about your data and receive an adequate visualization as a response.
Real-time streaming
Whenever something changes – you are instantly informed.
allow you to react quickly and solve issues on the go.
Mobile features
You can access your Power BI account whenever and wherever you need to from the
, which is available on Android, iOS, and Windows.
Integration with your app/service
– Thanks to the open-source Power BI
, you can also integrate your own app or service with the platform.
All of these features – and many more options that are available within the platform – help you create useful and actionable visualizations. These dashboards can be used for different purposes while allowing you to maintain full control over your organization, department, or project. The examples listed below speak for themselves.
5 powerful examples of Power BI applications
Wrap-up
Power BI is extremely versatile and can be used in a wide variety of situations. And while it can have a steep learning curve (after a pretty easy start) – it also allows you to create reports or dashboards that are elegant, clear, and easy to understand from the perspective of a decision-maker. And this is absolutely priceless since the ability to make adequate and timely decisions based on undeniable facts can quickly turn into real profits for a company and its customers or the society, depending on the kind of data you analyze and for whom.
Jakub Dąbrowski
Content Specialist