What Is Business Intelligence? A Guide for Mid-Sized Companies Looking to Scale
At a certain point in a company’s growth, gut decisions and siloed spreadsheets start holding you back. You need clarity. You need coordination. And most of all—you need data you can trust and act on. That’s where Business Intelligence (BI) comes in.
At Louisville Geek, we help mid-sized businesses turn raw data into strategic insight—not just by handing over dashboards, but by managing and administering the entire BI environment for you. We bring the infrastructure, tools, and expertise, so your team can focus on making better decisions without wrestling with back-end complexity.
Why Business Intelligence Matters for Mid-Sized Organizations
Most growing companies face the same challenges:
- Multiple systems that don’t talk to each other
- Manual reporting that takes days (and still feels off)
- No visibility into real-time performance
- Teams making decisions in silos
Business Intelligence solves these issues by centralizing data, automating reporting, and uncovering insights that would otherwise be buried in the noise. But the real value comes when BI is managed strategically, with your business goals in mind.
What Business Intelligence Looks Like—When It’s Done Right
When you partner with an MSP like Louisville Geek, Business Intelligence becomes more than just a software purchase—it becomes a fully managed service designed to scale with your growth. Here’s what that includes:
Data Architecture
We design and implement the secure, scalable architecture your business needs to integrate and manage data from multiple sources—whether it’s your CRM, ERP, finance tools, or other business systems. Our approach ensures that data flows seamlessly and is easily accessible for strategic insights, without getting bogged down by back-end complexity.
Dashboards Tailored to Leadership
We design and maintain dashboards that align with your team’s KPIs—whether it’s executive snapshots, department-level trends, or real-time metrics. Your leadership team doesn’t just get visibility—they get clarity.
Data Extraction, Transformation, and Loading (ETL) & Data Integration
We connect your systems, extract data from various sources, clean and transform it to ensure consistency and accuracy, and then load it into a centralized system where it can be easily accessed for reporting and analysis. This process eliminates manual data handling and ensures that your information is unified and reliable.
Governance & Administration
We implement the guardrails—access controls, audit trails, and validation rules—so your data remains accurate, secure, and compliant. And we manage it all on your behalf.
Why Partner with an MSP for BI?
Implementing BI in-house can take months—or even years—without the right skillsets and infrastructure. But with Louisville Geek, you don’t need to hire data engineers, architects, or Power BI developers. You get:
- A fully managed BI environment
- Ongoing maintenance and optimization
- Strategic insight from a partner who understands your industry
- Faster time-to-value from your data investments
What Microsoft Plan Includes Power BI License?
When considering Business Intelligence solutions like Power BI, it’s important to choose the right Microsoft plan that includes the necessary licenses. Microsoft offers several Power BI options, each catering to different needs and sizes of businesses.
Power BI Pro
Power BI Pro is the most common plan for businesses looking to use Power BI for collaboration and sharing insights. It’s included in several Microsoft 365 plans, such as:
- Microsoft 365 E5
- Microsoft 365 Business Standard (with add-on)
- Microsoft 365 Enterprise plans (E3, E5)
With Power BI Pro, your team can create and share interactive reports, dashboards, and datasets with real-time data collaboration. If your business needs to access data across multiple systems and share insights quickly, this plan is essential.
Power BI Premium
For larger teams or companies requiring advanced capabilities like larger data models, advanced AI features, and enterprise-level governance, Power BI Premium offers an even more robust solution. Premium licenses are typically included in:
- Microsoft 365 E5
- Standalone Power BI Premium (for organizations not using Microsoft 365)
Premium features such as Power BI’s dedicated cloud resources, on-premises reporting, and more extensive data models make it an ideal solution for larger companies or those scaling quickly.
At Louisville Geek, we understand that choosing the right Power BI license can be a challenge. That’s why we’re here to help you assess your business needs and recommend the best Microsoft plan to ensure you get the most out of your Business Intelligence investment. Whether you’re looking for basic collaboration with Power BI Pro or need the scalability and advanced features of Power BI Premium, we can guide you through the decision-making process.
Data Should Work as Hard as You Do
At Louisville Geek, we believe your data should be a growth asset, not a maintenance headache. Our Business Intelligence Services are built for mid-sized businesses ready to level up—without the overhead of building a BI team from scratch.
If you’re looking to gain a competitive edge, improve decision-making, and scale with confidence, we’re ready to help you get there.
Let’s talk about how we can make your data work harder for you.
