Flexibility

[gijeet]

Hello, I just want to say I’m new to BI Desktop and I’m trying to figure this product out. Who is this for? Developers or end users? I need a scenario how this product is used. Let me tell you my current situation. I create reports in Excel for say the accounting dept. In Excel we have VBA, in VBA I can create a user form that will take input values from the user. I use these input values as parameters to call MS Sql Server stored procedures. Once I’m in the SP I have the full power of SQL to create temp tables, CTEs, Multi-level CTEs, unions, get 3 fields from table A, 2 from table B, I can user the input values to filter the data and return a result set into an Excel table on a worksheet. And I can name the worksheet to reflect the values selected like Compare Last Qtr or Compare 2 Months, etc. The user can then repeat with different values. Excel + VBA + SQL is powerful. I’m not sure how BI Desktop can compare to that. I like many of the menu tools in BID but how can the end user play around with different values once the report has been published? Can it go back to SQL server and get new input values or are the static once published? I don’t see the flexibility in BID I would need. If I am wrong, enlighten me please. Thx

[TheOckieMofo]

This question is likely more of a personal opinion question without any definitive right or wrong. However, I'll say that this product is excellent for the end users, or data consumers as I'll call them. From my experience, most data consumers are not Excel pros and want nothing to do with the data. What you just said about SQL server and parameters and the like would likely bore and/or scare most end users. PBI allows you to create a visual-intensive solution for you consumers rather quickly and easily as well as mashing up data from several sources.

From a developer's standpoint, the ability to use Power Query and DAX to wrangle, transform, and shape the data makes PBI a very powerful tool for us Excel dorks to be able to deliver a repeatable, user-friendly solution to the end user, without the need to know SQL or VBA.

But, again, every organization's data needs/demands are different. But so far, I think this product is excellent.

P.S. I'm just a run of the mill analyst with absolutely zero ties to Microsoft just in case I'm sounding too rosy.