Recently completed Power bi implementation for a client successfully and following are the top 7 factors that lead to a successful Power Bi report implementation ( as per our team’s experience).
Microsoft Power Bi is a powerful but relatively easier tools for developing business intelligence ( BI), but for a successful implementation of Power Bi project we need to be bit more careful and should have proper planning in place.
Top 7 Success factor for Power BI Implementation
- Proper requirement analysis and design This is cliché but still important. We have to spend a good amount of time on requirement analysis, still there would be some minor design changes comes up after we initiate report development.
- Customer reviews at different stages: It is not just during requirement analysis phase, but your team need to include customer reps ( or business users ) during requirement analysis, design, testing and UAT phases as well.
- Customer Sign off on design: This is very important if you want to stay within your budget. There are situations where customers might ask for design changes, that would change everything and shoot up your implementation cost.
- Ensure data correctness: While testing the reports for accuracy you would realize data mismatches and lack of master data. This will make it tough for you to prove your reports are accurate.
- Consider Testing time: If you haven’t prepared test cases for reports in the beginning, you would ended up spending lot of time on testing and eat up your budget.
- Ensure management Involvement: There would be situations where business users hesitate to test Power Bi reports in time or use the reports at all. In such situations make sure you have to reach out to the management to make everyone is serious about their Power bi implementation.
- Evaluate Hourly rate vs Fixed-bid billing: While most of the clients prefer fixed-bid billing, there are customers who are comfortable with hourly rate billing too ( once you convince the benefits). If the client is not very ‘IT savy’ they may take lot of time to finish reviews, testing and approvals that would delay your project and you would ended up in loss.
Other Power BI Implementation success factors
Proper requirement analysis and design: The first and most important step in any project is proper requirement analysis and design. This is true for Power BI projects as well. Power BI is a powerful tool, but it’s important to spend a sufficient amount of time on understanding the business requirements, gathering data, and designing the report. Even with proper planning, there may be some minor design changes that come up during the development phase. Therefore, it is important to plan for some contingencies in case of changes.
Customer reviews at different stages: Involving the customer or business users in different stages of the project is essential for a successful Power BI implementation. This includes the requirement analysis, design, testing and UAT (User Acceptance Testing) stages. This ensures that the customer’s requirements are met, and the final product is in line with their expectations.
Customer Sign off on design: This is crucial as it helps to stay within budget. There may be situations where customers ask for design changes, which can significantly increase the implementation cost. Therefore, it is important to obtain customer sign off on the design before proceeding with the development.
Ensure data correctness: While testing the reports for accuracy, it’s important to ensure that the data is correct. Data mismatches or lack of master data can make it difficult to prove the accuracy of the reports. Therefore, it is important to test the data thoroughly before proceeding with report development.
Consider Testing time: Preparing test cases for reports in the beginning of the project can save a lot of time during the testing phase. This is especially important as testing can take up a significant portion of the budget if not planned for in advance.
Ensure management Involvement: Business users may hesitate to test Power BI reports or use the reports at all. In such situations, it’s important to involve the management to ensure that everyone is serious about the Power BI implementation.
Evaluate Hourly rate vs Fixed-bid billing: Most clients prefer fixed-bid billing, but some customers may be comfortable with hourly rate billing (once the benefits are explained). If the client is not very ‘IT-savvy’, they may take a long time to finish reviews, testing, and approvals, which can delay the project and lead to a loss. Therefore, it’s important to evaluate the billing options and choose the one that best fits the client’s needs and budget.
In summary, Proper requirement analysis and design, involving customer representatives in different stages of the project, ensuring data correctness, preparing test cases, involving management when necessary and choosing the right billing method are key factors that can lead to a successful Power BI report implementation.
Hope this helps someone implementing Power Bi reports for their clients. Fee free to comment your thoughts, ideas and questtions.
Whats the next step?
Cheers,
Firoz Muhammed