Item: Microsoft Power BI
Rating: 8
Author: Christian Maxwell

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We needed a way to pull large amounts of data from our construction management software and create reports that we could use to set and measure expected metrics for project team performance. Being able to track these and create configurable reports that company executives could view from anywhere and see historical performance helped us set and track company performance goals.

Pros and Cons

Configurable reporting figures that can be set and adjusted to meet your needs.
Historical data comparisons and progress tracking.
Ease of access. Being able to access the reports online is awesome.
Being able to dive into the data and break it down from high levels to small is helpful as well.

There is a bit of a learning curve to fully use the software.
It requires a pretty strong data analysis background to be able to use.
Troubleshooting data issues is not super easy.

Return on Investment

It helps us track and achieve company goals.
It shows us [our] performance in areas we could not previously track and allows us to see and work on how to improve their performance.
Quick easy access for executives to use in helping teams and addressing issues.

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?

I wasn't involved with the selection/purchase process

Did implementation of Microsoft Power BI go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Microsoft Power BI again?

Yes

Other Software Used

TIBCO Live Datamart, Procore, Bluebeam Revu

Usability

It is a great product, but unless you already have a lot of experience with similar software it can be a little difficult to really get going in using the software. Once you get the hang of the UI and the data importing/sync, it is pretty simple to build the reports you need and to manage and update those reports.

Support Rating

I did not have a ton of interaction with the Power BI support team. When we ran into some minor issues my co-worker was the one who was working with support to get that resolved and get our questions answered. From his experience it seemed like the process went well and the support team was responsive and helpful.

Likelihood to Recommend

I think it is well suited to pull large masses of information into a usable report that can be used to analyze trends and current standings. It is a much more powerful, configurable, and easier to use Excel pivot table. I don't think it would be as appropriate to use for smaller data if you only have a few hundred points of data; Excel is probably still better to use.

Reporting Super Program

Software Version

Overall Satisfaction with Microsoft Power BI