Reporting in the consumer goods industry with Microsoft Power BI
Companies in the consumer goods industry find themselves in an increasingly fast-paced and dynamic market environment. It is more important than ever for decision-makers to be provided with relevant information as quickly as possible and in processed form in order to make informed decisions and draw conclusions. Data is coming increasingly from different sources (ERP, CRM, CX systems, etc.) and must be harmonized and consolidated. This complexity can no longer be efficiently mapped using manual or partially digitalized reporting methods (e.g. classic Excel-based).
Microsoft Power BI is an excellent option for combining data from different sources and creating visually appealing reporting interfaces.
Why Microsoft Power BI?
The BI tool is a first-class solution for linking data from different sources and designing visually appealing reporting interfaces. In the following, we will show you good reasons why Power BI can be your business intelligence tool of choice for data management and reporting.
Connectivity
One of the great advantages of the tool is its enormous flexibility in connecting the required data sources. Power BI has a large number of predefined connectors on board, with which all common databases or cloud systems can be connected directly (e.g. SAP ERP & CX systems, DB systems and many more). Data can also be imported directly from Excel files, for example. This can be done as a manual import or automatically from a SharePoint path.
Data sources for reports can be requested “live” when the report is being run in order to display current data in the report. Alternatively, the data can also be “preloaded”. This means that the relevant data sets can be updated at intervals (e.g. at night) to minimize loading times when the report is called up. Which data is required in “real time” and which can be preloaded must be decided individually. Experience has shown that most data is not required at runtime (e.g. listing data) and the advantages of interval-controlled data updates outweigh the disadvantages, especially when it comes to large data segments.
Regardless of the mode selected, Power BI is also able to handle very large volumes of data with excellent performance.
Visualization
So Power BI has its advantages in terms of connectivity, but what about the crucial issue of data preparation and visualization?
This is another area where Power BI has been consistently convincing in our customer projects. Reports can be created efficiently (no-code, via drag & drop) and with a corresponding visual appeal. The days of complicated “data wallpapers” are over. Although this can also be provided on request, Power BI shows its true strength in the graphical presentation of data. A variety of charts, graphs and maps can be used to present a wide range of facts in a precise way. The data can be filtered directly in the report using filter options so that users can access the information they need as quickly and conveniently as possible.
User-friendliness and ecosystem
Power BI offers a very user-friendly interface and takes a lot of work off the user’s hands with a number of convenience features. Attractive reports can be created on existing data structures with comparatively little effort. In customer projects, we have found that users from the specialist departments also become active themselves. A deep understanding of IT is usually not required at this point.
Power BI as an application in the Microsoft ecosystem offers a complete range of functionalities. Reports can be integrated natively into PowerPoint slides, for example, with a full range of functions in terms of filters etc. (a popular feature for embedding data from reports seamlessly into presentations).
Collaboration with Power BI via Teams, Outlook and Office is also possible.
Exemplary use cases
Power BI offers a very user-friendly interface and takes a lot of work off the user’s hands with a number of convenience features. Attractive reports can be created on existing data structures with comparatively little effort. In customer projects, we have found that users from the specialist departments also become active themselves. A deep understanding of IT is usually not required at this point.
Are you ready?
Microsoft Power BI provides an excellent reporting solution that impresses with its broad connectivity and excellent user-friendliness. The creation of visualizations and reports is intuitive and easy to learn, even for users without an IT background. Furthermore, the pricing here is very competitive and, depending on the existing Office 365 license, even already available.
Do you have any further questions or would you like to evaluate how Microsoft Power BI can be integrated into your processes? Then please do not hesitate to contact us.