What is our primary use case?
We primarily use the solution to run our industry reports. We get the data from data warehouse we are creating. I use it to export the data.
We have been using Microsoft BI for one of the customers. That was completely in the customer environment. That's all. We did not have that solution for us in-house. However, we are working towards introducing it for our own purposes in the near future.
What is most valuable?
The product is very user-friendly.
The solution can be used with any BI tool you have.
The initial setup is pretty straightforward.
The solution has been very stable for our customers.
It appears the solution has the capability to scale, although we have yet to try to do so.
What needs improvement?
We have yet to implement the solution completely. We're still exploring features and capabilities. It's too early to discuss items that may be lacking.
It seems that the solution could use more analytics to help users draw more contextual business insights. Right now, you need other solutions for that.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution for the past five years now. It's been a while.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The product has been quite stable so far. The performance is good. It's reliable. There aren't bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have not attempted to scale the solution yet. We are in the initial stage of exploring different features on it. We believe it to be a scalable product, however, we have not attempted it ourselves yet. We might in the future.
We don't have any customers on the solution right now as we are just trying to figure things out.
How are customer service and technical support?
We haven't used technical support. I wouldn't be able to speak to how helpful or responsive they are.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We are also using Tableau. We use Tableau right now, and we are likely introducing Microsoft BI in-house in the near future. For now, we just have customers that use it.
How was the initial setup?
We found the initial setup to be straightforward. It's not a difficult implementation and I wouldn't describe it as complex. A company setting up the solution for the first time shouldn't have any problem doing so.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We're still in the process of licensing the model. We don't have it set up yet. My understanding is that we will pay for licensing on a yearly basis. I don't have the exact figures in terms of the costs.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Right now, I am looking to do a comparison between Tableau, Power BI, MicroStrategy, and Pyramid Analytics. I have not had a chance to really dig too deep into research.
What other advice do I have?
We are just customers and end-users. We don't have a business relationship with Microsoft.
We are using the most recent version of the solution at this time.
We're still exploring the solution and haven't fully implemented it yet.
I would rate the solution at an eight out of ten. It's very user-friendly and so far I have had a good experience.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Private Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
