Microsoft Power BI is a suite of business analytics tools that allow you to visualize your data, share insights across your organization, or embed them in an app or website. According to Microsoft, Power BI is “a collection of software services, apps, and connectors that work together to turn your unrelated sources of data into coherent, visually immersive, and interactive insights.” You can find more details on Power BI directly from Microsoft's Power BI page.
By integrating with multiple data sources, including Excel, databases, and cloud-based applications, Power BI allows you to quickly turn raw data into interactive reports and dashboards, making it easier to uncover important insights, even across multiple entities or business units.
Why Microsoft Power BI for accounting?
Microsoft Power BI (Business Intelligence) solutions for accounting
Microsoft Power BI is transforming how businesses approach data across various functions, including sales, operations, finance, and even executive management. According to a report from the International Data Group, 69% of businesses are either planning or already in the process of implementing business intelligence solutions. If your business isn’t leveraging these innovative tools, you could be missing out on a significant competitive advantage.
Many smaller companies might assume that business intelligence tools are too costly or only suitable for large enterprises. However, Microsoft Power BI, through the Microsoft Power Platform, provides affordable, scalable, and accessible business intelligence solutions, even for growing businesses managing multiple subsidiaries or business units.
How Power BI can benefit accounting
Accounting departments often handle vast amounts of data, especially in multi-entity and multi-location businesses. Power BI makes managing and analyzing that data easier. Here are some key benefits:
- Real-time data:
One of the key benefits of Power BI is its ability to provide real-time data. For accounting departments managing multiple entities, having access to the latest financial data ensures you're always making decisions based on the most accurate information available.
- Streamlined reporting:
While Gravity Software's Advanced Financial Statements handles the core financial reports (such as balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow), Power BI reporting simplifies the process of visualizing these financials. Power BI provides interactive financial dashboards that offer a clear, real-time view of your financial performance.
- Customizable dashboards:
Accounting professionals can create customizable accounting dashboards to focus on the most important data, such as accounts payable, bank reconciliation, and general ledger across multiple entities. Power BI provides a holistic view of your financials, even if you're managing multiple locations, subsidiaries, or different currencies.
- Better decision-making:
Power BI allows businesses to spot trends, detect anomalies, and make better-informed decisions faster. With multiple entities or companies under your management, this capability becomes invaluable for consolidating data and identifying key performance indicators (KPIs) across various units.
- Multi-entity reporting:
For businesses with multiple entities or locations, Power BI enables easy consolidation of financial data. Whether you're consolidating balance sheets, income statements, or cash flow reports, Power BI makes it simple to merge the data and get clear insights into overall business performance.
Why choose Power BI for your accounting department?
For growing businesses with multiple subsidiaries or locations, Power BI offers a comprehensive solution for managing and analyzing financial data. Here’s why it’s an ideal fit for your accounting team:
- Affordability:
Power BI offers a low entry price, with plans starting as low as $14 per user per month, making it accessible for small to mid-sized businesses that need powerful reporting tools without breaking the bank. Gravity Software users receive one complimentary user Power BI Pro plan. If you need additional licenses for more users, they are available for $14 per user per month, as detailed in Power BI’s pricing.
- Built into Gravity Software:
Power BI is already included within Gravity Software and can be enabled with a simple click. Once activated, you gain access to real-time business intelligence, customizable reports, and powerful dashboards without any need for complex setup or integration. While Advanced Financial Statements handles detailed financial reports, Power BI is there to turn that data into insightful visualizations and dashboards.
- User-friendly:
Power BI is designed for non-technical users, making it easy to set up custom reports and dashboards for multi-entity businesses. You don’t need a technical background to start using it effectively.
- Scalability:
Power BI grows with your business. It handles larger data sets, more users, and more complex reporting needs as your business expands and your financial structure becomes more complicated.
Additionally, Microsoft Power BI is “a collection of software services, apps, and connectors that work together to turn your unrelated sources of data into coherent, visually immersive, and interactive insights,” according to Microsoft. This makes it an excellent solution for businesses with multiple entities, as it allows you to consolidate and analyze data in one place.
Power BI and Gravity Software: A seamless experience
Since Power BI is built into Gravity Software, users can simply turn it on and begin using it immediately to track and analyze financial data across multiple entities, locations, or subsidiaries.
- Real-time data:
With Power BI enabled in Gravity Software, your financial data flows seamlessly into Power BI, giving you real-time insights into your accounting operations, no matter how complex they may be.
- Custom reporting:
Customize your Power BI dashboards to include key financial metrics and reporting features from Gravity Software, allowing you to monitor your business health at a glance and tailor reports to your specific needs.
- Multi-entity accounting:
For businesses with multiple locations, subsidiaries, or entities, Power BI makes it easy to consolidate and analyze data across your entire organization. With Power BI’s customizable dashboards, you can manage financial performance at the corporate level, no matter how many entities you have.
- Multi-company consolidation:
Easily consolidate financial data from different entities or companies under the same umbrella. For businesses with multi-company financial management needs, Power BI simplifies the process of combining financial data from various sources, currencies, or tax rates, providing a clear, consolidated view of your operations at the corporate level.
How to get started with Power BI and Gravity Software
Getting started with Power BI in Gravity Software is simple. Since Power BI is already built into the platform, all you need to do is enable it and start generating powerful business intelligence reports for your accounting department.
If you’re ready to see how Power BI can transform your accounting processes, schedule a demo today and get a firsthand look at the capabilities of Gravity Software with Power BI enabled.
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