How do Power BI and Microsoft Dynamics 365 Dashboards Compare?

For the purpose of this blog, we are comparing Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Sales Online with Power BI.

So, as you read through, it’s important to keep in mind that other types of Dynamics 365 Dashboards will defer from this comparison.

However, it’s also important to note that no matter what version of Microsoft Dynamics 365 or CRM you’re on, whether it’s on-premise or online, you can connect Power BI into your system.

This means you can use Power BI to report off of any of Microsoft Dynamics 365/CRM system.

The particular differences you will find while using the technology are among features between Microsoft Dynamics versions.

Power BI, with the newer versions of Dynamics 365 (online), can be directly embedded, for example.

Therefore, if you’re on an older version of on-premise, the tips within this post are not applicable. Keep in mind, however, that you can still access Power BI through the Web via a unique URL that is provided to you once you purchase it.

Power BI can also be brought up inside of iframes for on-premise; though, the Web interface is the preferred option for use for Ledgeview’s own on-premise customers.

When you talk about sales, there are two main areas that sales reps, managers, and executives want to see, but, the top visualization request we often get is the quota.

Of course, as salespeople, you want to see how you’re doing and how far or close you are from achieving your end-of-year goals.

Salespeople want to compare where they are with where they should be at any given time, and Dynamics 365 and Power BI can help you see this more clearly. (Inside Dynamics, there is a Goal Module that allows users to access this information.)

The second most-requested dashboard visualization is the pipeline.

Sales reps, managers, and executives want to know the answers to these questions and see them in dashboard format: How do I look? What am I doing? How am I converting? Do I have enough leads to get where I need to go in my pipeline? Etc.

With these two main areas in mind, how you see them between Dynamics 365 and Power BI is unique …

Dynamics 365

With the standard dashboards inside of Dynamics 365, you will find the quota (or goal management).

There are some unique dashboards based by default in Dynamics 365.

Within them, you can see your goals, percentage of goals achieved, where you should be with your area, and a list of your actual goals.

It’s a simple way to manage and visualize dashboards inside of Dynamics 365.

Color-wise, you can assign different hues to goals vs. actuals.

This layout is easy to understand and operates straightforward.

Power BI

With Power BI, you’re still inside of your data source before entering the system itself. (Remember, if you’re on-premise, dashboards are only available through a Web URL.)

You can see similar data as you would with the original source, but it is visually more appealing and easier to read.

You can see business booked versus quota attained, for example.

Scrolling down, you can see your month-to-month progress broken down by rep.

It’s a very simple way for you to take a look at your data; and, keeping your dashboards simple is important. It will eliminate a lot of scrolling.

This also keeps your day-to-day functioning easy for a manager, execs, and reps to know what’s going on.

It shows one version of the truth, so to speak – one very clear version.

You could throw hundreds of different tiles onto your dashboards, but, instead, with Power BI you can drill into the details and still keep things laid out simply.

Inside Power BI reports, you can do a lot more than you can within Microsoft Dynamics 365, formatting them, adding logos, etc. 

It adds an element of branding to your business flows to make them more efficient.

You can break down and see how your industry looks by region within dashboards already created without having to add a whole new report, for example.

This is a very nice feature of Power BI that allows you to hover over your charts and keep gathering more relevant information.

It provides an easy way for you to see your information in a cleaner area while drilling down the details without appearing overwhelming.

Believe it or not, this is really just the start of what can be done with dashboards in Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Power BI.

To learn more, register to watch this Ledgeview Partners on-demand webinar that shows you the full scope.