FEEDBACK ON OUR EXPERIENCE SINCE 2015 ON THE MICROSOFT POWER BI COMMUNITY

First Quebec partner specializing in Microsoft BI, EXIA has been involved in Microsoft Power BI since the very beginning, with our first commercial projects completed in April 2015.  Since that time, we have introduced Microsoft Power BI to more than 1,800 people out of a total of 56 “Dashboard in a Day” training sessions. The tool, which was initially mainly focused on advanced visualization capabilities, has become a complete platform for the transformation, visualization and secure distribution of information. Today we want to present to you a portrait of these 1,800 people, and how their profiles have also changed over these years.

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What is a DIAD?

A Dashboard In A Day (DIAD) is a full-day introductory session dedicated to Microsoft Power BI. It is free training which is sponsored by Microsoft and which is given regularly in Microsoft offices by selected partners (in virtual mode since 2020). This interactive training introduces basic concepts and guides students with practical exercises towards creating a first dashboard.

The years of evangelization (2015-2017)

The first years of DIAD were first marked by the arrival of technical people, who specialized in the field of reporting and who wanted to get a quick idea of the capabilities of Power BI. This purely IT clientele was made up of 98% men, most of the time with a few years of experience on other reporting technologies such as Cognos, Business Objects, Oracle Discoverer or Tableau. They were the first evangelists of Power BI in organizations, as well as our first customers in what we can call the era of emergence where Power BI began to establish itself as a serious tool.

Les expansion years (2018-2019)

This phase is propelled by the rise in maturity of Power BI, which has now firmly established itself as the leader in visualization tools. Microsoft's aggressive pricing has gradually pushed other competitors out of the market. The demand for Power BI specialists increased significantly as smaller organizations could now begin to equip themselves with advanced analytical capabilities. These years were marked by the massive arrival in the DIAD of "reconverted", these technical people with experience in technologies related to reporting, such as Sharepoint, Excel, or SQL Server. These new followers launched themselves opportunistically into a world then in full turmoil, smelling the promise of better salaries and incomes. It was at this time that we began to encounter the first “slip-ups” of Power BI projects completed by people who had some knowledge of the tool but had never worked in the field of business intelligence and did not mastering neither good practices nor basic concepts. We were therefore asked to catch up on these projects which often required an overhaul of the architecture and the implementation of governance. From then on, deploying Power BI analytical solutions has become a major part of our activities.

The Emancipation Years (2019-2022)

Microsoft Power BI has become the essential leader for data visualization during this period. In large organizations, often pioneers and having already introduced the tool, the priority is more focused on issues such as governance and the animation of the user community. For SMEs, the priority is on the need to ensure the sustainability of know-how in a context of increased mobility of qualified labor. Access to this tool has led to a change in organizations. It resulted in a diversification of the DIAD clientele. In fact, for the past 2 years, it has been mainly professionals working in business lines, and mainly women, who have participated in our events. Our role among our clients is also changing. Much emphasis is placed on activities related to change management as well as the mitigation of associated risks. Preparing the deployment of Power BI in the organization, with governance management, animation of the user community, skills enhancement, and technical support then become the key element for the success of a Microsoft implementation Power BI in an organization.

Conclusion

EXIA has been present since the very beginning of Microsoft Power BI. The DIADs are a showcase of the evolution of the use of information in organizations. Over the years, we have deployed numerous Power BI analytical solutions and we have adapted to our clients' challenges, whether technological, organizational or human. It is possible to benefit today from all the expertise required for the effective implementation of a Microsoft Power BI analytical solution.

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