Database Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 15-2.
BI Reporting Categories
Category
Description
Pros
Cons
Personal BI
Software used
to create ad
hoc reports for
individuals or
small groups
of users in
a self-serve
environment.
Development time in hours.
Everyone creating and
viewing these reports needs
read access to the BI views,
stored procedures, or cubes.
Immediate access to reports.
Encourages data exploration
and what-if scenarios.
Conflicting reports are a
common occurrence.
Training required to create
basic reports is in days.
No standard look or feel,
and reports are often very
basic.
Often created by
managers and
leads for quick
glimpses of
current events.
Often the person who
creates the report is the only
person who will use it.
Departmental BI
Software used to
create reports for
small to midsize
groups with a mix
of self-served and
delivered reports.
Development time of days.
Reports are not
immediately available.
Access to views, stored
procedures, and cubes can be
limited to only report developers
and power users.
Requires at least peer
testing and validation time.
Discourages data
exploration and what-if
scenarios.
Conflicting reports are less
common.
One report is used by many users.
Requires team members
to dedicate some or all of
their time to creating and
maintaining reports.
Departmental look and feel
builds confidence.
Reports tell a single story
throughout the department.
Training required to create
advanced reports can take
weeks.
Reports are often advanced.
Organizational BI
Software used
to create reports
used by multiple
departments
within an
organization.
Access to views, stored
procedures, and cubes can be
limited to only report developers.
Development time takes
weeks.
Reports are not
immediately available.
One report is used by many users.
Conflicting reports are rare.
Requires a dedicated testing
and validation team.
Organizational look and feel
builds confidence.
Discourages data
exploration and what-if
scenarios.
Reports tell a single story
throughout the organization.
Requires a dedicated
development team.
Reports can be made available
outside of organization with
condence.
Training required to create
very advanced reports takes
months.
Reports are often interrelated and
very advanced.
