What Does Microsoft Business Intelligence Do?

Information may be the most valuable asset of a modern business. While organizations today amass immense quantities of market information, the primary function of business intelligence (BI) is to analyze this data and identify trends and patterns, which the business uses to make strategic decisions. The business intelligence process thus creates immense value from the data the organization accumulates.

Microsoft Business Intelligence (BI) is a business analytics service that helps organizations process and interpret the vast amount of business intelligence data the company collects. Microsoft BI helps businesses make strategic decisions by processing and simplifying this information.

What Is Microsoft Business Intelligence?

One of the most popular BI solutions currently available, Microsoft Business Intelligence is a suite of Microsoft tools that helps organizations interpret large quantities of market data and convert results into simplified visual formats. Microsoft Business Intelligence tools offer a simple front-end interface allowing users to create custom reports and dashboards.

What Functions Does Microsoft BI Perform for Businesses?

Microsoft BI simplifies data processing by converting vast amounts of complex information into usable insights and forecasts. The tools enable companies to present massive quantities of data in an understandable format, such as a report, dashboard, graphs, spreadsheets, or other visual presentations. The user inputs specific parameters to generate the data display, and Microsoft BI completes the data processing and formats the desired layout.

Microsoft BI provides a comprehensive collection of functions and features, including:

• Data collection.
• Data storage.
• Data integration.
• Data management.
• Data processing.
• Intuitive reporting.
• Data sharing service.
• Data science capabilities.

What Are the Main Components of Microsoft BI?

Two primary pillars of Microsoft BI are Microsoft Power BI and Microsoft SQL Server.

Microsoft Power BI

Microsoft Power BI began as an Excel add-on and eventually grew into a cloud-based apps and services collection. These programs assist in collecting, managing, and analyzing data from various sources. It supplies a user-friendly interface to create understandable insights and information, using visually compelling charts and graphics. 

Power BI includes the following applications:

• Power BI Desktop.
• Power BI Service.
• Power BI Mobile Apps.
• Power BI Gateway.
• Power BI Embedded.
• Power BI Report Server.
• Power BI Premium.
• Power BI Visuals Marketplace.

Although Microsoft Power BI provides most of the information for enterprise data processing functions, SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) also uses other Microsoft Business Intelligence tools for data sources.

Microsoft SQL Server

Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft's relational database management system, is the driving database that stores and retrieves data for Microsoft BI processes. It works with BI tools such as Power Pivot, Power View, Data Quality Service, and xVelocity. It's deployable for on-site applications and the cloud, and it allows for processing with advanced analytics and AI capabilities. 

Azure SQL, which Microsoft describes as a family of cloud databases, is a part of the Microsoft SQL Server.

Business Intelligence Solutions

Modern enterprises need BI solutions to remain competitive and succeed in today's marketplace. Microsoft BI is one of the most robust and comprehensive business intelligence solutions available on the market, providing powerful results for organizations from small businesses to large enterprises at a very reasonable cost.