BI Strategy and Reporting
Written By: Sajagan Thirugnanam
Last Updated on September 23, 2026
Data reporting is the process of collecting data, processing it, and presenting it in a structured format so a stakeholder can act on it without doing that work themselves. A data report can be a single table, a dashboard, or a scheduled export, and the format matters less than whether it answers a specific question.
What a data report actually needs
A useful data report rests on three steps done in order. Skipping the first two and jumping straight to a chart is the most common reason a report gets built and then ignored.
Collection. Pull the data from its source: a database, a CRM, an ERP system, or an API. The report is only as reliable as this step.
Processing. Clean and shape the data: remove duplicates, fix types, and join it into a structure that supports the questions the report needs to answer.
Analysis and presentation. Turn the processed data into a chart, table, or KPI card that states the answer instead of making the reader calculate it.
Five types of data reports, and how to build each in Power BI
Type | What it answers | How you build it in Power BI |
|---|---|---|
Descriptive | What happened | A table or matrix visual over historical data, often with a card showing a total |
Diagnostic | Why it happened | Drill-through from a summary page to a detail page filtered on the selected item |
Predictive | What is likely to happen next | A line chart with a forecast, or a trend measure using DAX time intelligence functions, such as SAMEPERIODLASTYEAR, that compare a period to a prior one |
Prescriptive | What to do about it | Conditional formatting or a measure that flags rows crossing a threshold |
Real-time | What is happening now | DirectQuery against the source, or a streaming dataset for sub-minute updates |
Most reports combine two or three of these on one page: a descriptive summary at the top, a diagnostic drill-through underneath, and a prescriptive flag on anything that needs attention.
A worked example: a sales report in Power BI
Say the question is "how is each region tracking against its sales target this quarter." Start with two measures:
DIVIDE returns a blank instead of an error if a region has no target set yet, so the visual does not break on incomplete data.
Put Total Sales and Sales vs Target % into a matrix with Region on rows. Turn on the matrix's native Fixed width column setting so the percentage column does not resize every time the region names change length, and add conditional formatting on Sales vs Target % so anything under 90% shows in red. That single matrix now answers the descriptive question (what sold) and the prescriptive question (which regions need attention) on one page. Our dashboard guide covers laying out a full page around a visual like this.
Choosing what to report
Start from the decision the report needs to support, not from the data that happens to be available. A report built by listing every column in a table usually gets opened once and ignored. A report built to answer "should we restock this SKU" or "which rep needs coaching next" gets used every week, because the reader does not have to translate raw numbers into an action.
Keeping reports usable
Keep it simple. Show the metrics the decision needs, not every metric the data supports.
Use consistent formats. The same color, the same date format, and the same layout across reports reduce the time it takes to read a new one.
Update on a schedule. A report with a known refresh time is trusted; a report with an unknown refresh time gets double-checked against another source, which defeats the point of building it.
Give context, not just numbers. A total on its own means less than a total next to a target or last quarter's figure.
For the specific case of monitoring operations in real time rather than reporting on a period after it closes, see our guide to operational reporting.
Sources
DIVIDE function (DAX) - Microsoft Learn
Matrix visual format settings in Power BI - Microsoft Learn
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