Many management reports are still built by hand: export from the ERP, copy into Excel, adjust the formulas, distribute a PDF. That costs time and produces snapshots that are outdated the moment they are sent. A Power BI dashboard pulls the KPIs straight from your systems: one source, one state, the same for everyone.
Since 2015 I have built reporting and dashboards for a wide range of companies, with Power BI, SQL and Excel/Pivot. The most important step happens before the first chart.
Data basis and KPI definitions first, then the dashboard
A dashboard is only as good as the definitions behind it. So I first clarify which KPIs actually carry a decision, who receives them, and whether the underlying data supports them. Revenue is not just revenue: whether credit notes, down payments or internal revenue count has to be decided cleanly once; otherwise every meeting argues about the number instead of the consequence. Only when definitions and data quality are settled does the build start, tested against real data.
Automated: retrieval, calculation, distribution
Once the basis stands, data retrieval, calculation and distribution run on their own. A practical example: a finance team spends two to three days a month producing reports. Automated, the system takes over that path; setup takes two to three days, running costs are around €100–300 per month, and the investment pays for itself after roughly two months. Your team then reviews results instead of maintaining formulas, and takes over the dashboard after training and handover.
When the data lives in Projectile
If you work with Projectile, you often do not need a separate BI tool: reports on projects, hours and invoicing come straight from the ERP via the Projectile Abfrage Manager. Power BI remains the right choice when KPIs from several systems come together or management needs a visual cockpit. Contacts you can ask directly about my way of working are listed under references.