Item: Microsoft Power BI
Rating: 10
Author: Verified User

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

[We use it] to find insights within our company's data records. Microsoft Power BI helps connect disparate data sets, transform and clean the data into a data model and create charts or graphs to provide visuals of the data. Additionally, we partner with SEER interactive to build out our digital shelf dashboard and gain insights on our coverage across google SERPs and our retail partners.

Pros and Cons

Data warehousing
Dynamic data visualisations
Robust reporting options

Help Desk / Support
Can sometimes be slow to load
Ability to assign tasks

Return on Investment

Collect and organize google and retail coverage data
Gain insight into where we can improve our digital shelf coverage
Implement actions based on findings in Microsoft Power BI report

Alternatives Considered

Qlik Analytics Platform and Tableau Desktop

Qlik is very similar and we actually use that in house as it is our legacy program, but I would say Power BI has the advantage because it is easily integrated with our other Microsoft solutions. Tableau is also nice but it does not seem to have quite as many features or the ability to create data warehouses like the other two.

Key Insights

Do you think Microsoft Power BI delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Microsoft Power BI's feature set?

Yes

Did Microsoft Power BI live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Microsoft Power BI go as expected?

I wasn't involved with the implementation phase

Would you buy Microsoft Power BI again?

Yes

Other Software Used

Tableau Desktop, Qlik Analytics Platform, Domo

Usability

I think with any business intelligence platform there is going to be a steep learning curve since it requires a data analyst or data scientist to really get the full benefits of the program since an "architect" will be needed to build out the dashboard, and help with onboarding the users. But the functional use of the tools are really straightforward and have the potential to make a big impact on the organization.

Support Rating

I have only had limited experience with support for this tool, but I found the response time slow and the support I received was in the form of a templated response with links to their help section. Other than that, the support I've received is pretty standard, being able to troubleshoot this software on your own is more useful.

Likelihood to Recommend

This has been such a great tool for our digital shelf strategy, but I think there are really endless applications that it could be used for. Having a pro user or a data scientist working with your team is key to realizing all the benefits though, otherwise, there is a steep learning curve.

Game changer for organizing sales data, identifying metrics, insights, and arriving at actionable outcomes

Software Version

Overall Satisfaction with Microsoft Power BI