Chapter 1: Understanding Business Intelligence and Power BI
Power BI is a powerful ecosystem of business intelligence tools and technologies from Microsoft. But what exactly is business intelligence, anyway? Simply stated, business intelligence is all about leveraging data to make better decisions. This can take many forms and is not necessarily restricted to just business. We use data in our personal lives to make better decisions as well. For example, if we are remodeling a bathroom, we get multiple quotes from different firms. The prices and details in these quotes are pieces of data that allow us to make an informed decision in terms of which company to choose. We may also research these firms online. This is more data that ultimately supports our decision.
In this chapter, we will explore the fundamental concepts of business intelligence, as well as why business intelligence is important to organizations. In addition, we will take a high-level tour of the Power BI ecosystem, licensing, and core tools, such as Power BI Desktop and the Power BI service.
The following topics will be covered in this chapter:
- Exploring key concepts of business intelligence
- Discovering the Power BI ecosystem
- Choosing the right Power BI license
- Introducing Power BI Desktop and the Power BI service