Organisations are increasingly using the insight gained from their data to make informed business decisions. The ability to perform data analytics that can be easily communicated and understood, throughout the company is becoming a necessity.
These are just two of many reasons for the continual enhancement of reporting platforms. We are constantly helping our clients upgrade to the latest offerings from the top data tools within the market. We’re often asked:
- What the differences are between the platforms?
- Should we make the transition to a new tool?
- What should that tool be?
- Can you help us manage the migration and train our staff in the new tool?
We thought we’d share some high-level views on tool comparisons. In this article we will be focusing our attention on Microsoft’s SQL Server Reporting System and the increasingly popular Power BI.
Overview
SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) is a comprehensive reporting platform from Microsoft. It’s mostly server based and can be used to build, test and deploy manual and automated reports to your business.
Power BI is Microsoft’s latest user-friendly tool designed to empower your business analysts and produce more graphical content from the simplest of data sets to huge and complicated unshaped data.
[km-cta-block block-classes=”has-dark-teal-background-colour has-white-colour” label=”Contact us to discuss your requirements”]
Want to know more?
Our data experts would love to hear from you
[km_button link=”https://www.dufrain.co.uk/contact/” classes=”cta-2″]Contact us[/km_button] or [km_button link=”tel:08001303656″ classes=”cta-2″]Call us on 0800 130 3656[/km_button][/km-cta-block]
So, what are the key differences?
Both Power BI and SSRS are reporting tools used to create BI and MI reports from your data. They’re both designed to help you make the most of the data you’ve collected and to put it to work for you. Here we compare some key differences between the two.
 |
 |
|
| History | Introduced back in 2004, since then it’s greatly increased in power and capability. | Power BI is relatively new, having only been in general use since 2017. It’s designed to empower business analysts to produce engaging reports. |
| Cost | Comes as part of the overall Microsoft SQL family, which means licensing costs vary by size and complexity of deployment. | For the desktop versions it free! Although some a lot of businesses will want to upgrade to the pro or premium versions to take advantage of the additional collaboration and distribution features. This starts at around £7.50 per user per month |
| Components | It’s an enterprise visualisation tool which is based on older technology. | This is an HTML 5, open-source app-enabled and cloud-enabled software service package. |
| Implementation | It is a server-based product that needs dedicated hardware hosted by the user business. | Very flexible, so it can run in-house or be hosted in Microsoft’s cloud with secure data access. It has massive processing power that grows as you need it. |
| Benefits |
|
|
| Accessibility | Designed for the desktop with the possibility of viewing reports in a web portal. | Available on desktop, web, and mobile apps thanks to its cloud-centric design. |
| Learning Curve | CHALLENGING – The user is required to design and code the reports. This can take longer but the data can be handled in exactly the way that the developer wants it to be. This gives the developer a better understanding of what’s happening to the data and a more complete picture of the process. |
EASY – The drag and drop nature of Power BI interface means it’s very easy for new users to pick up, but its internal workings are hidden so you can’t get to see how it’s processing your data under the hood. |
| Data | All data needs to be structured as SSRS uses modelled data tables to get the best of performance and automation. | Power BI can work modelled and structured or unstructured data, it’s great for diving into information that’s been taken directly from a source system if no data warehouse has yet been implemented. |
| Example | If you’re already using the full MS SQL Server stack and have your data in a modelled data warehouse you might be better sticking with SSRS, taking advantage of it’s highly customisable data work and the skills you most likely already have in house. | If your data landscape is less mature and you’re looking to roll out a reporting solution to your users that can quickly take advantage of data from many different sources, then Power BI might be the best option for you. |
The Dufrain view
Overall, it’s not a clear-cut case, every software implementation needs careful examination and analysis to ensure you’ve made the right choice and to be a success.
Both Power BI and SSRS have their place, dependent on the needs of the company and project.
At Dufrain we’re seeing more and more organisations either making a switch to Power BI, attracted by its lower costs and user-friendly design, or implementing it alongside their existing SSRS environment.
If you’re thinking of moving to Power BI or you think it could improve your existing BI infrastructure, be sure to get in touch so that we can provide an end-to-end service.
We’ll take you from initial investigation and analysis to ensure the package can meet your goals, right through to implementation and post-implementation support and training.
As with anything data related, make sure you do it the Dufrain way and get it right first time!