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A Power BI consultant reconciles first, visualizes second
A report that disagrees with the trial balance by a few thousand dollars does more damage than no report, because it teaches people to go back to their spreadsheets. The cause is almost always the data model: dimensions joined the wrong way, postings counted twice, dates taken from the wrong field.
We build a model on the ERP data that ties to the general ledger to the cent, document every measure, and then design pages around the decisions each person makes. Finance gets the numbers it can defend, and sales and operations get the same numbers cut their way.
Power BI reports we build most often for Dynamics 365
Cash and working capital
Cash position, receivables and payables aging, and a rolling forecast from open orders and due dates.
Margin
Gross margin by customer, item, salesperson and region, with the costing method explained on the page.
Stock
Stock value, turns, slow movers and stock-outs by location, fed from item ledger entries.
Sales performance
Orders, invoiced sales and pipeline against budget, with drill-through to the document.
Management pack
A monthly board pack with profit and loss, balance sheet and key ratios, refreshed automatically.
Operations
Production output, on-time delivery and service levels for teams running manufacturing or field service.
Purchasing
Spend by vendor and category, open purchase orders and supplier delivery performance against promised dates.
Project profitability
Budget, actual cost, billed and unbilled amounts per project, for firms that bill by the job.
How a Power BI consultant runs a Dynamics 365 reporting project
- 1
Decisions list
We ask each report owner which decisions the report should support, and which numbers they check today.
- 2
Model and reconcile Dynamics 365 data in Power BI
We build the data model and reconcile it to the ledger and sub-ledgers, then explain and fix any differences.
- 3
Design pages
Owners review page layouts before we polish them, so nothing gets built twice.
- 4
Publish and secure
Workspaces, refresh schedules and row-level security, so people see only their region or entity.
- 5
Hand over from your Power BI consultant
A measure dictionary and a short training so your team can extend the reports without us.
Questions for a Power BI consultant for Dynamics 365
Does Business Central come with Power BI reports?
Yes, Microsoft ships a set of standard Power BI reports for Business Central. They are a good start, but most companies need them adapted to their own dimensions, costing and management structure. We usually begin from those reports and add your own measures and hierarchies, so each figure matches what finance already reports.
Which licenses do we need?
People who build or share reports need Power BI Pro or Premium Per User, or a workspace in a capacity. People who only view reports need a license that matches how you share them: a Pro license, or free viewing of content hosted in a large enough capacity. We size this during scoping so nobody pays for the wrong tier.
Can Power BI combine ERP data with other systems?
Yes. We regularly combine Business Central with CRM, ecommerce and spreadsheet budgets in one model, with each source documented. Each source gets a scheduled refresh and a named owner, so when a number looks wrong, someone knows where it came from and who can fix it.
Talk to us about your project.
Tell us what you run today and what has to change. A senior consultant replies with a written next step.