PDF version of this report
You must have Adobe Acrobat reader to view, save, or print PDF files. The reader
is available for free
download.
Microsoft Power BI
Copyright 2019, Faulkner Information Services. All Rights Reserved.
Docid: 00021084
Publication Date: 1906
Report Type: PRODUCT
Preview
Business intelligence (BI) is a technology-driven process for analyzing
enterprise data and presenting actionable information to executives and other enterprise end users for the purpose of
facilitating informed decisions. Microsoft’s entry into the BI
product space is Power BI, a suite of business analytics tools designed to drive
smart enterprise actions (and reactions) in response to a
fluid, often unpredictable, business atmosphere.
Report Contents:
- Description
- Related Faulkner Reports
- Vendor
- Applications
- Environment
- Support
- Pricing
- Competitors
- Web Links
Related Faulkner Reports |
Business Intelligence Solutions Market Trends Market |
SAP Business Intelligence Solutions Product |
Description
[return to top of this report]
Business intelligence (BI) is a technology-driven
process for analyzing enterprise data and presenting actionable information (or
"actionable intelligence") to executives and other enterprise end users for the
purpose of facilitating informed business decisions.1
Vendor |
Name: Microsoft Headquarters One Microsoft Way Redmond, WA 98052-6399 Phone: (425) 882-8080 Fax: (425) 706-7329 Web: http://www.microsoft.com/ Type of Vendor: Operating System and Application Software Provider Founded: 1975 Service Areas: Global Stock Symbol: MSFT (NASDAQ) |
Microsoft’s entry into the BI product space is Power BI, a business analytics
service designed to drive smart enterprise actions (and reactions) in
response to a fluid, often unpredictable, business
atmosphere.
Power BI users can:
- Connect to hundreds of different data sources
- Simplify the process of data preparation (data
prep) - Conduct ad hoc data analyses
- Produce readable reports, which can be shared
locally, on the web, or across mobile devices
Each user can craft
personalized dashboards, providing a unique, 360-degree view of their business. Also, Power BI can scale across the enterprise, with security and governance
built-in.
The Power BI environment consists of:
- The Power BI Desktop, a
Windows desktop application - The Power BI service, a
software-as-a-service (SaaS) application - Power BI Mobile apps, available on Windows phones and tablets, along with iOS
and Android devices
The Power BI Desktop is used to produce reports, while the Power BI service
and Power BI Mobile apps are used to distribute them.
Power BI Desktop
The Power BI Desktop is a free
application which users can install on their local computer to access,
transform, and visualize their business or other data.
The most common uses for the Power BI Desktop are:
- Connecting to data
- Transforming and cleaning the data, to create
a data model - Creating charts and graphs, to provide visual
representations of the data - Generating reports from the visuals, for
subsequent distribution - Sharing the reports with others using the
Power BI service or Power BI Mobile apps
While data analysts and other business intelligence
professionals use Power BI, the product is designed for individuals whose job
description does not include BI; in other words, for regular enterprise
employees with data to analyze.
Developer Options
Developers can use the Power BI service (SaaS) and the Power BI Embedded
service in Azure (PaaS) to embed Power BI dashboards and reports in their
applications.
They can also create custom visuals for use within Power BI reports, and use the
Power BI API to push data into a dataset.
Product Analysis
Power BI is a well regarded business intelligence tool.
Gartner gives Power BI high marks for:
- Low cost, even crediting Microsoft for
"[putting] downward pricing pressure
on the analytics and BI market"2 - Ease of use, citing Microsoft’s
first five-minute experience
, which aims to have users
registered and
wowed
within five minutes3 - Product vision, particularly "in terms of
making better information and insights available to more users"4
SelectHub endorses Power BI for its:
- Low cost, "one of the lowest per-user pricing
options to companies looking for cloud-based analytics and business
intelligence … apps" - Low TCO, "companies
selecting Microsoft Power BI do so because of the low Total Cost Of
Ownership (TCO)" - Ease
of use - Availability of skilled resources5
Applications
[return to top of this report]
Power BI has broad utility across the enterprise, as itemized in these
Microsoft examples.
Sector |
Applications |
---|---|
Finance |
|
Marketing |
|
Sales |
|
Human Resources |
|
Information Technology |
|
Operations |
|
Environment
[return to top of this report]
As illustrated in Figure 1, the Power BI environment consists of three
primary elements:
- The Power BI Desktop, a
Windows desktop application - The Power BI service, a
software-as-a-service (SaaS) application - Power BI Mobile apps, available on Windows phones and tablets, along with iOS
and Android devices
Figure 1. The Power BI Environment
Source: Microsoft
A common Power BI workflow might look like this:
- An analyst connects to data sources and builds
a report in the Power BI Desktop - The report is then published from the Power BI
Desktop to the Power BI service - From the Power BI service, the report is
shared with other users of the Power BI service, and via Power BI Mobile
apps
(A fourth element,
Power BI Report Server
,
allows users to publish Power BI reports to an on-premises report server.)
Support
[return to top of this report]
Microsoft offer a variety of support options, specifically:
- Guided Learning – Videos and articles
on how to accomplish common Power BI tasks. - Samples – Examples of dashboards,
reports, and desktop files which illustrate how Microsoft partners employ
Power BI. - Documentation – In-depth articles
describing Power BI’s features and functions, from getting started to
advanced techniques. - Ask the Community – An opportunity to
solicit answers and tips directly from other Power BI users. - Submit an Idea – An opportunity to
suggest enhancements to Power BI. - Report an Issue – An option for reporting a Power BI problem or concern
to Microsoft support.
Pricing
[return to top of this report]
Product |
Audience / Capabilities |
Price |
---|---|---|
Power BI Desktop |
Author
|
Free |
Power BI Pro |
Share and Collaborate
|
$9.99
Monthly price per user |
Power BI Premium |
Scale Large Deployments
|
$4,995
Monthly price per dedicated cloud compute |
Competitors
[return to top of this report]
Microsoft’s principal competitors are Qlik and Tableau Software. According to Gartner:
- "Qlik offers governed data discovery and agile analytics and BI via its
lead product Qlik Sense. - "Tableau offers an intuitive interactive visual-based exploration
experience that allows business users and any content author to access,
prepare, analyze and present findings in their data without technical skills
or coding. Tableau offers three primary products: Tableau Desktop,
Tableau Server and Tableau Online (its cloud offering)."6
References
1 TechTarget.
2 Cindi Howson, Rita L. Sallam, James Laurence Richardson, Joao Tapadinhas,
Carlie J. Idoine, and Alys Woodward. "Magic Quadrant for Analytics and Business
Intelligence Platforms." Gartner, Inc. February 26, 2018.
3 Cindi Howson, James Richardson, Rita Sallam, and Austin Kronz.
"Magic Quadrant for Analytics and Business Intelligence Platforms." Gartner,
Inc. February 11, 2019.
4 Cindi Howson, Rita L. Sallam, James Laurence Richardson, Joao Tapadinhas,
Carlie J. Idoine, and Alys Woodward. "Magic Quadrant for Analytics and Business
Intelligence Platforms." Gartner, Inc. February 26, 2018.
5
“Tableau vs. QlikView vs. Power BI.” SelectHub. 2018.
6 Cindi Howson, Rita L. Sallam, James Laurence Richardson, Joao Tapadinhas,
Carlie J. Idoine, and Alys Woodward. "Magic Quadrant for Analytics and Business
Intelligence Platforms." Gartner, Inc. February 26, 2018.
Web Links
[return to top of this report]
- Microsoft: http://www.microsoft.com/
- Qlik: http://www.qlik.com/
- Tableau Software: http://www.tableau.com/
About the Author
[return to top of this report]
James G. Barr is a leading business continuity analyst and business writer
with more than 30 years’ IT experience. A member of Who’s Who in
, Mr. Barr has designed, developed, and deployed
Finance and Industry
business continuity plans for a number of Fortune 500 firms. He is the
author of several books, including How to Succeed in Business BY Really
Trying, a member of Faulkner’s Advisory Panel, and a senior editor for
Faulkner’s Security Management Practices. Mr. Barr can be reached
via e-mail at jgbarr@faulkner.com.
[return to top of this report]