Superpower Power BI. Many organizations, BI professionals and data analysts have now recognised this and used it to their advantage. And the number is growing. In addition to the actual users who create data-based reports and dashboards with Microsoft Power BI in their daily business, it is above all board members and managers who appreciate the interactive data visualisations to track important key figures in real time, identify trends, and make strategic decisions based on sound data. 

In addition to business and data teams, Power BI also has practical applications in other core areas such as finance, marketing and IT departments. Whether you are a large, medium-sized or small organisation, if you want to keep up with the competition or even grow, you need to keep a close eye on the most important key figures. 

Did you know how versatile Power BI can be in an organisation? 

• Corporate management: monitoring turnover, costs, profitability and other business metrics

• Business analytics: analysing data and creating reports and dashboards to identify and present patterns and trends

• Finance department: creating financial reports to track and analyse sales, expenses, budgets, etc.

• Marketing and sales: analysing marketing KPIs and measuring the success of specific campaigns to identify target groups and recognise sales opportunities

• IT department: monitoring and analysing technical data including network data, server performance, system usage, and problem detection

• HR department: analysing employee data including fluctuation, performance, salary etc. to support personnel decisions

• Project management: planning and monitoring of projects including project progress, resource utilisation, budget tracking, etc.

These are just a few examples, because in principle, Microsoft Power BI software can be used by any organisation and any person who wants to use data analyses and visualisations for decision-making. 

Typical industries that use Power BI

The list of organisations and industries that use Power BI for data analysis and business intelligence is virtually inexhaustible. 

1. Industries in which Power BI is widely used are, for example Retail (e.g. Zalando, Rewe)

2. Financial services (e.g. Deutsche Bank, ING DiBa)

3. Healthcare (e.g. Charité, AOK)

4. Technology and IT (e.g. SAP, Deutsche Telekom)

5. Manufacturing and production (e.g. BMW, Siemens)

These examples show how companies of different sizes and industries use Power BI to perform data analyses, gain insights and make informed business decisions.

How retail giant Meijer used Power BI as a strategy for success

Challenges such as economic fluctuations, online competitors, and changing consumer habits are commonplace for many organisations today. In order to meet these challenges, it is important to first analyse the status quo and identify trends at an early stage. The case study Power BI and Meijer explains how Power BI was able to put the US retail company back on the road to success. A seemingly impossible task for the retail giant Meijer, which, with over 300 employees per store, struggled to gather all the important information in a timely manner - despite using a variety of different technologies. Dependencies on IT departments and third parties led to long decision-making processes. They needed a way to create more autonomy in various areas and to be able to retrieve data in real time. With Microsoft Power BI, they were able to tick both boxes and dramatically increase their profitability. A true SuperPower (BI)!