Technical Analyst at a energy/utilities company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Accurate, with good frequency, and has a wide range of features
Pros and Cons
  • "ou can pull reports, visualize them in real-time, and connect them to a variety of other data sources."
  • "Integrating it with the physics build model or the engineering model should be included."

What is our primary use case?

I mostly work in the oil and gas industry. Microsoft BI is primarily associated with surveillance, optimization, product, and forecasting-related items. While I am not currently using Microsoft BI, I have prior experience, and in my current position, I am guiding the team on a larger scale. I don't use it myself frequently, but I am the lead for that team, and when I do use it, I use it for reporting purposes.

What is most valuable?

Microsoft BI has a multitude of additional features. Overall it's an EDA tool, from which you can extract, transform, and load data. You can pull reports, visualize them in real-time, and connect them to a variety of other data sources.

When I compare other analytical tools to Microsoft BI, I believe Microsoft BI is far more accurate, and the frequency is also better.

It has additional features, which are very much useful. The most important thing I like is that it is just a data platform connecting to the overall process and it can be utilized in any sector.

What needs improvement?

Integrating it with the physics build model or the engineering model should be included. When we use engineering models linked to Microsoft BI or Salesforce, the engineering models are from a third-party application.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with Microsoft BI for the last three and a half years.

We are using the latest update.

I have used it both on-premises and on the cloud.

Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Power BI
March 2024
Learn what your peers think about Microsoft Power BI. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2024.
765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

In terms of stability, I have seen some cases where it is difficult as well as some cases where it is very easy. Overall, it is a stable and reliable product.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is easy to scale Microsoft BI.

We have a larger team. Microsoft BI specifically, is not limited to any subset or any team. I believe we have 1,000 plus users in my company currently who are using this application.

How are customer service and support?

I have been in touch with the technical team, but not specifically for Microsoft BI. Based on my experience with Microsft technical support, I would rate them a four out of five.

Technical support is pretty decent.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I use a variety of tools, including Salesforce, and I have developed a number of Python-based tools.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was simple. However, when I did it the first time, it was complex. Once I understood the process it was simple.

My field was small due to the type of setup required. I scheduled it for one week, during which we also tested.

Definitely, it requires maintenance in terms of quality checking of the data, as well as whether or not the run times or schedules are working properly.

What about the implementation team?

I had some assistance when I deployed the first time, but I am now able to complete the deployment on my own.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

In terms of licensing, I've never worked on the contractual side of their license. However, I believe that the number of licenses currently in use is appropriate for our organization. It also adds value to the team. I have never worked on licensing, but I have heard that it is reasonable.

What other advice do I have?

I have not used it on the mobile app. I'm not sure how Microsoft BI works on a mobile app. 

Mobile apps are sometimes third-party apps that are difficult to configure and use. As a result, mobile apps are something that will be required in the future, upcoming data transformation.

Before implementing Microsoft BI or any other analytical tool, we must first understand the domain. Basically, how the data is linked, what data you want to transform, and what output you need for the finished product. Then you proceed with your deployment in a sequential manner. It will be very simple.

I would rate Microsoft BI an eight out of ten. I haven't explored many other items that are feasible or possible, or the analytical part of Microsoft BI's functionality, which I haven't personally used, so there's a gap. Otherwise, I would have given it a ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Senior data Engineer at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Allows you to create full ETL workloads and build dashboards
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature is definitely the visual aspect and the DAX capabilities to virtually do anything."
  • "One opportunity for improvement would be on the Power Query side. As a consultant, I know Power Query is not the main strength of Power BI. It is not where Power BI shines, but many customers use Power Query to do full ETL workloads for deliverable cookies."

What is our primary use case?

We have many use cases, from creating full ETL workloads for supporting some dashboards to only building dashboards by themselves. For example, there is one stage where we had to do some data integration from several sources to assess the quality of the data that we are consuming for our projects. We had to ingest data and convert it using Power BI, which is useful but isn't the best ETL tool, and I understand that that is not its purpose. Finally, we built out a schema model and built reports upon that. It's a full project. 

We also have another project, where we are attempting to do some incremental refresh because we are ingesting a lot of data from lake sources and SQL sources. We are doing direct query and applying some optimization from Synapse.

I am currently using the latest version of Power BI.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature is definitely the visual aspect and the DAX capabilities to virtually do anything.

What needs improvement?

Something that everyone has suggested and that we are currently implementing and testing is the ability to export tables with the same format. That is something many customers were seeking, and right now it is possible to do that. Focusing on table support is a huge opportunity.

One opportunity for improvement would be on the Power Query side. As a consultant, I know Power Query is not the main strength of Power BI. It is not where Power BI shines, but many customers use Power Query to do full ETL workloads for deliverable cookies.

When you try to process a lot of data from one million records, it breaks. The computer runs out of CPU and memory. It's terrible, but I know it's not its main purpose, so that would be my suggestion.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It's stable, but the desktop is not so stable. I have experienced several crashes. I would say there is a lot of opportunity for improvement on that.

A couple of people are needed for deployment and maintenance. You always need a developer who is proficient on Power Query and maybe some other DevOps guy who sets up the pipeline. So, maybe two people at most. It's very easy.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Scalability on the ETL side is not so good. When you run the workloads on service, you can fail almost anything, but it's not exactly the best for scaling.

On the virtualization side, I would say it's good.

How are customer service and support?

I haven't actually needed much technical support. I know there are forums and people respond, but I haven't really sought that out. There is so much documentation online, there are books online, and there are YouTube channels from guys that provide solutions to issues and to some other stuff. The community is very proficient.

How was the initial setup?

It is very easy. Even non-IT professionals use it and deliver value to the company.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate this solution 8 out of 10. 

My advice is to just jump right into it, download the Power BI desktop and start looking at YouTube channels. There are lots of people who have made wonderful things on YouTube.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Power BI
March 2024
Learn what your peers think about Microsoft Power BI. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2024.
765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Associate at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Affordable but a little complicated to get used to
Pros and Cons
  • "Connectivity, installation, and configuration are pretty fast and seamless compared to Cognos."
  • "For someone who is new, I think that Power BI can be a little complicated."

What is most valuable?

Compared to Cognos, Tableau and Power BI are pretty fast. 

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is very quick. Connectivity, installation, and configuration are pretty fast and seamless compared to CognosPower BI eradicated dependency on a framework model. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Power BI is cheaper than Tableau and Cognos.  Power BI Desktop comes free and the Pro license is $10 per month whereas Tableau desktop would cost you $70 per month. Cognos is mostly suited for large and medium size companies 

What other advice do I have?

For someone who is new, I think that Power BI can be a little complicated. Overall, on a scale from one to ten, I would give Power BI a rating of seven. 

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Data Science Intern at Clockworkx Gmbh
Real User
A business analytics solution that handles a large amount of data, but the types of plots you can use are limited
Pros and Cons
  • "I liked that Microsoft Power BI handles a large amount of data. I can handle hundreds of rows from Postgres in a few minutes. I also like how it detects the relationship between the tables without explicitly saying that. It just detects the relationship automatically. That made it easier to work with the data."
  • "It's not really complicated, but I didn't find the things I was looking for. The ones I used to work with within Dash are more open, and there are more choices. But with Power BI, there are only limited types of plots that I can use. For example, when I wanted to put the plots in Power BI, there was no extendable space. You have a limited page where you can place a maximum of three plots in that, and you can't do more than that on a single page. You have to create a new page, a different page for that. That made it a bit annoying, and the filtering part is limited, with basic functions. If you want to make custom filtering or custom functions, you can't do that."

What is our primary use case?

We have some monitoring data from turbines, and we want to plot the data to monitor the health state of turbines in different time stamps. I tried to download some data from the Postgres database and then do some plotting with that. I also tried to link different plots with each other to filter them and things like that.

What is most valuable?

I liked that Microsoft Power BI handles a large amount of data. I can handle hundreds of rows from Postgres in a few minutes. I also like how it detects the relationship between the tables without explicitly saying that. It just detects the relationship automatically. That made it easier to work with the data.

What needs improvement?

It's not really complicated, but I didn't find the things I was looking for. The ones I used to work with within Dash are more open, and there are more choices. But with Power BI, there are only limited types of plots that I can use.

For example, when I wanted to put the plots in Power BI, there was no extendable space. You have a limited page where you can place a maximum of three plots in that, and you can't do more than that on a single page. You have to create a new page, a different page for that. That made it a bit annoying, and the filtering part is limited, with basic functions. If you want to make custom filtering or custom functions, you can't do that.

Suppose you want to code a plot, Python available. You can code the plot you want, and you don't have to use a predefined one. But when you want to plot it and you want to import like five or ten packages in Python, there are limitations. It doesn't support all the libraries that Python has. Microsoft BI only supports a few, like three or four libraries at most. When I want to use my old code in Power BI, it doesn't handle it, and that was also annoying.

In the next release, it'll help if they added a coding area where you are more open to make custom things. Especially for a developer, it needs to be improved. For a Power BI person, it's fine, I think, because it doesn't require much technical knowledge, but a developer will need it. Maybe they should create a space for that.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Microsoft BI for the last three months. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It's stable, but it's so slow. Sometimes it takes some time to respond, especially when you put two or three plots with big data. It becomes very slow.

How are customer service and technical support?

I didn't contact technical support as I used the support on the internet. I'm satisfied with the documentation, but I didn't find what I was looking for.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I was using Dash Open Source, but when I discovered that it would take a lot of time, I wanted to define a platform for that. So, Power BI was the solution. Now I want to try Tableau, but I haven't had a chance to do that yet.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I used a two months free trial to see if it had what I needed. I can pay later for a full license, but I don't think I will do that.

What other advice do I have?

On a scale from one to ten, I would give Microsoft BI a six.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
PeerSpot user
Web Developer at a energy/utilities company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
We switched from Crystal Report Server because it was crashing regularly.

What is most valuable?

The ease of implementation and reliability of SQL Server Reporting Services far exceeded the solution originally implemented with Crystal Report. The Crystal Report Servers (3 of them) were crashing on a weekly basis at one of the companies where I worked.

How has it helped my organization?

We were able to reduce costs by consolidating the 3 Crystal Report Servers down to just one server running SSRS (with one backup just in case). The time it took to run some reports in Crystal were exceeding 5 minutes. The same report in SSRS not only was significantly faster (down to 30 seconds) and the licensing cost savings allowed for a quicker return on investment (less than one year).

What needs improvement?

The build in Report Builder for end users needs improvement. But for someone that has some training on SSRS, its very straightforward.

For how long have I used the solution?

The solution was implemented and still in use to this day to my knowledge.

What was my experience with deployment of the solution?

No. Following the installation guide was a help with setting up SSRS to use single sign on as well as SQL accounts. The overall setup of the server took about an hour. The conversion of over 200 Crystal Reports to SSRS took some more time but was done with one user and completed within 3 months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

No. SSRS has been rock solid and the server never needed rebooting unlike the Crystal Report Servers.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

No. In fact we were able to decommission servers and switch to using a virtual server for SSRS.

How are customer service and technical support?

Customer Service:

Never had to use their support. But, the few times I have had to contact Microsoft, there were very knowledgeable and able to resolve the problem quickly.

Technical Support:

9, see above.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Yes. We used Crystal Reports, see above.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
it_user6858 - PeerSpot reviewer
BI Expert with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
Taboo? Microsoft in Higher Education

In a recent post, I discussed the changes in the business intelligence landscape as outlined by Gartner in their 2013 Magic Quadrant.  Today, I wanted to focus solely on Microsoft as a vendor in this space.  Yes, I mentioned Microsoft – and I work in Higher Education!

In working with a number of higher education institutions over the years, I often hear direct concerns about “Microsoft.”  In the academic world, we are concerned about the most open way of doing things.  We like to share – and you may have noticed by the adoption of Sakai and the Open Source Portfolio (OSP).

The emergence of open-source tools was prevalent over the last few decades.  You now see many organizations running miscellaneous versions of Linux, open source wiki tools, Drupal-type content management systems – and now many have implemented Google (Google Drive, Google Docs, GMail).  If you mention “Microsoft” – you’d better start running.  You’ll have someone from IT chasing after you pretty quickly – and not in a good way!

Ok – you’re not Jack Sparrow, so you can relax a bit!  But, you can imagine the feelings of many of these IT organizations when you start to implement enterprise-level software that holds a significant cost and the source is proprietary.  Think Sungard’s Banner (now Ellucian), or PeopleSoft, and maybe even Workday now in some cases.  Somehow, Oracle has slipped through the cracks as many of these large ERP vendors require Oracle’s database platform.  Oracle was also smart and acquired mySQL – so they have an almost natural support of the open source community.  Oracle is an investment, too.

You’re probably asking – what’s your point?  My point is that Microsoft isn’t bad.  It’s actually very, very GOOD!  Besides the educational licensing, and the obvious love for Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, et al) – let’s look at some of the benefits of Microsoft’s SQL Server platform.  Let’s start with a basic point that is often overlooked.  It is a suite of tools, not simply a database platform.   I have listed a basic table below, but you can read more on Microsoft’s website.

Server components Description
SQL Server Database Engine  SQL Server Database Engine includes the Database Engine, the core service for storing, processing, and securing data, replication, full-text search, tools for managing relational and XML data, and the Data Quality Services (DQS) server.
Analysis Services (SSAS) Analysis Services includes the tools for creating and managing online analytical processing (OLAP) and data mining applications.
Reporting Services (SSRS) Reporting Services includes server and client components for creating, managing, and deploying tabular, matrix, graphical, and free-form reports. Reporting Services is also an extensible platform that you can use to develop report applications.
Integration Services (SSIS) Integration Services is a set of graphical tools and programmable objects for moving, copying, and transforming data. It also includes the Data Quality Services (DQS) component for Integration Services.
Master Data Services Master Data Services (MDS) is the SQL Server solution for master data management. MDS can be configured to manage any domain (products, customers, accounts) and includes hierarchies, granular security, transactions, data versioning, and business rules, as well as an Add-in for Excel that can be used to manage data.

The great part of purchasing Microsoft SQL Server is that these tools come out of the box – and are included with the license for the database platform.  There are several different editions which provide more or less horsepower as your project requires, but this is an added bonus that Microsoft bundles these tools.

Here are a few thoughts from my experience and why I enjoy working with Microsoft BI tools:

Technical Benefits:

  • Relatively easy to deploy and installation is wizard-based
  • Learning curve to adopt SSRS and SSIS is reasonable in comparison with other tools
  • Direct integration with Windows operating system and Active Directory (this is great if you have a nice active directory structure already in place; not so helpful if you do not).
  • Direct integration with Team Foundation Server (TFS) for version control
  • Platform is sophisticated enough to handle complex tasks (i.e. stored procedures, SSRS data driven subscriptions)

Functional Benefits:

  • All-in-one solution (combine with SharePoint for full functionality)
  • End-user tools are intuitive and within a familiar Microsoft interface
  • SharePoint can be used to pull information together in a one-stop-shop
  • Office integration (i.e. Excel, PowerPivot)

Cost Benefits:

  • Educational and non-profit discounts are a nice way for Microsoft to give back.
  • License costs, on average, are lower than combining multiple tools from multiple vendors (this always depends on your situation and the license agreements that you have in place).
  • Total cost of ownership (TCO) tends to be lower.  This is due to the license fees and also the availability of technical resources that are familiar with the Microsoft platform.  Again, this is completely dependent on your situation, but this is what I have seen with other clients.  It may also be indirect, but by having all of these tools with one vendor, you spend less time managing 4 or 5 invoices for maintenance and renewals as well.  And, if you need to renegotiate anything – it is again done with a single vendor not 4 or 5.

My Favorite Features:

  1. SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) – it seems silly, but this a great tool and I enjoy testing my queries within SSMS prior to loading them into SSRS.  It has some really nice features built-in for ETL developers as well (i.e. the ability to script the creation/deletion of a table with a mouse click)
  2. SSIS Package Variables – I use them frequently to make dynamic filenames in my SSIS routines.  They are flexible and allow SSIS routines to handle a number of complexities that would otherwise be very difficult to address.
  3. Data-driven subscriptions – this is a great way to deliver tailored content to your user base.  Same report…different content.  In a previous consulting organization, I used data-driven subscriptions to improve internal processes and implementation times for external projects.
  4. PowerPivot – Let’s be honest.  It’s just cool!  In-memory BI is a hot topic.  We also like tools like Tableau and Qlikview.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
it_user1068 - PeerSpot reviewer
it_user1068Tech Support Staff at a tech company with 51-200 employees
Vendor

I am a fan of Microsoft and totally love this write-up. Thanks Robert. Giving back to education and organizations that run for non-profits is a good way of giving back to the society at large.

Information Technology Architect at a financial services firm with 201-500 employees
Real User
A good solution that supports the Microsoft ecosystem and is easy to install
Pros and Cons
  • "It is very good, and it supports the Microsoft ecosystem, including Excel, etc."
  • "The handling of the workspaces can be made more granular for user access rights. It can be managed a little bit better in terms of the connection to Active Directory so that we have more granular access rights. I am not sure if this is really possible or if we can solve it differently, but we need a lot of workspaces, and we are not sure how we can deal with it from the access rights perspective."

What is our primary use case?

We are using Power BI for reporting.

What is most valuable?

It is very good, and it supports the Microsoft ecosystem, including Excel, etc.

What needs improvement?

We have been using it only for a couple of months, and we are at the beginning of our learning. The area of improvement is difficult to say. The handling of the workspaces can be made more granular for user access rights. It can be managed a little bit better in terms of the connection to Active Directory so that we have more granular access rights. I am not sure if this is really possible or if we can solve it differently, but we need a lot of workspaces, and we are not sure how we can deal with it from the access rights perspective.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for a couple of months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We are not sure because we currently have a simple installation on the PC, but the idea is to scale it via Office 365 cloud implementation.

It seems suitable for small, medium, and large enterprises. It should be able to scale up. Based on the marketing slides, it should be able to handle all kinds of enterprises.

How are customer service and support?

We have not had any problems, so we had no requirement to use technical support. 

How was the initial setup?

It is quite easy. You just need to install a program and use the connectors and drivers, and that's it. 

What about the implementation team?

I did it myself.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

We are end-users, and we don't take care of the prices and accounting. We get a product and pay the fee to our internal service provider, but its price should be reasonable. Otherwise, they wouldn't have bought it.

What other advice do I have?

We are not very experienced in it. So, I don't know if I can recommend it, but we are using it because it is very good.

I would rate it an eight out of 10.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Rahul  Chauhan - PeerSpot reviewer
Business Intelligence Developer at lagozon technologies private limited
Real User
Helpful community support, easy for new users, and scalable
Pros and Cons
  • "When we are introducing Microsoft BI to our clients, if they're familiar with Excel, the transition phase will be much easier for them. They can easily switch from Microsoft Excel to Microsoft BI. The core foundation or the base technology is the same in both tools. There are a few limitations in Microsoft Excel, and this is where Microsoft BI comes in."
  • "Microsoft BI can improve some of the visual level filters or visual functionality, that are available in other BI tools, such as Tableau or Qlik Sense."

What is our primary use case?

We are providing BI services to clients in India who are using Microsoft BI. We are able to provide the clients with data-driven decisions by the use of the reports that we are creating using Microsoft BI. The reports are usually graphical and intuitive.

What is most valuable?

When we are introducing Microsoft BI to our clients, if they're familiar with Excel, the transition phase will be much easier for them. They can easily switch from Microsoft Excel to Microsoft BI. The core foundation or the base technology is the same in both tools. There are a few limitations in Microsoft Excel, and this is where Microsoft BI comes in.

What needs improvement?

Microsoft BI can improve some of the visual level filters or visual functionality, that are available in other BI tools, such as Tableau or Qlik Sense.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have used Microsoft BI within the past 12 months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability of Microsoft BI is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Microsoft BI is a scalable solution. Here in India, it is a popular tool for people to implement.

The client that we are working with has approximately 500 to 600 users.

How are customer service and support?

The support from Microsoft is helpful. If you're facing any sort of issue or error, you can raise it to the Microsoft BI community.

How was the initial setup?

We work on a very concise team of three to four members for the deployment. We will be requiring only a data engineer, Microsft BI developer, business analyst, and project manager. 

If the user requirement is high, we can increase the number of members in the team. However, if you have a team of four, then you can deploy the project. A minimum of four people is required.

What about the implementation team?

For its maintenance of Microsoft BI, you require only two people. If there are some backend data issues, then you will require a data engineer. However, if the issue is related to the frontend or BI report, then you only need one developer for that.

What other advice do I have?

My advice is for the companies who want to make data-driven decisions or to share the report with the security feature in it, they should opt for Microsoft BI services.

I rate Microsoft BI a nine out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Microsoft Power BI Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: March 2024
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Microsoft Power BI Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.