https://www.datatobiz.com/blog/advanced-analytics-with-data-integration/ SMEs are on the way to becoming data-driven enterprises by investing in data analytics and business intelligence. This move is to empower themselves to make better decisions based on reports generated by advanced data analytics tools. Revamping the business systems and processes by integrating the latest AI, ML software allows enterprises to collect, store, process, and understand the vast amounts of data generated every day. Historical and real-time data from numerous sources is gathered in one place and processed using BI tools such as Power BI to gather valuable and accurate insights. In this blog, we will learn about the need for data integration and how Power BI can be used to implement advanced analytics with data integration.

1. Implement Advanced
Analytics with Data
Integration Easily
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2. Power BI is a product of Microsoft used for data analytics and visualization. The
layout resembles an advanced version of Excel, belonging to the same company.
The main job of power BI is to bring coherence to your data and present it in a
visually appealing and compelling manner. It guarantees data accuracy,
consistency, and reliability.
Though the software belongs to Microsoft, many data analytics and BI consulting
firms are Power BI partners and help enterprises integrate the software into the
business systems. You can take the assistance of these firms to enhance your
business processes and become a data-driven enterprise.
What is Power BI?

3. Data integration is an inherent part of advanced analytics. What will the tools
process if there is no data available? But what exactly is data integration?
It is the process of bringing together data from various systems and sources within
and outside the enterprise. Any data that is considered valuable for the business is
collected from across the internet.
It is common for one department in the organization to ask permission to access
data collected and stored by another department. Data integration makes it easier
for employees in all departments to access any data they need to complete their
work. The process is automated and streamlined to reduce human error and
delays.
Advanced analytics is the process of examining data autonomously or semi-
autonomously using tools and techniques that are beyond the traditional business
intelligence tools. Advanced analytics is used to obtain deeper insights, make
accurate predictions, and provide recommendations to the top management.
What is Data Integration?

4. What are the Types of Data
Integration?

5. Data Consolidation
It is the process of physically bringing together data from different sources and
consolidating it in one place. This reduces the need for excess data storage at
multiple locations.
Data Visualization
It is the process of presenting data in an easy-to-understand and visually
appealing manner so that it becomes easier to interpret data based on
numerous factors.
Data Propagation
It is used for real-time data processing where information from one place is
copied to another (data sharing). This is usually two-way communication
between two systems or departments and is used for large amounts of data.

6. Data Warehousing
It is the process of cleaning, formatting, and storing data in data repositories
such as in-house servers, colocation centers, or remote cloud storage servers.
This is data integration.
Data Federation
It is a form of data visualization that uses data abstraction to facilitate a unified
view of data from multiple sources. This data is analyzed and presented using
tools like Power BI. Data federation is used when data consolidation is too
expensive for SMEs to invest in.

7. What are the Benefits of Data
Integration?

8. If data integration wasn’t beneficial, we would hardly see organizations willing to
invest in it, right?
So what are the benefits of availing the Power BI consulting services? How does it
help enterprises in becoming better than their competitors in the market?
SMEs have to work with limited resources that make it rather difficult to compete
with multinational enterprises. But data integration helps businesses become
efficient in optimizing the resources to get more efficient outputs.
When data is seamlessly available across the enterprise, it improves
communication and collaboration between different departments. It also leads to
better customer services as the support staff has all the details required to deal
with customers.
Any enterprise armed with data analytics tools is better equipped to deal with
competitors in the market. It gives you an edge over others and lets you expand the
business to newer markets.

9. When you can rely on reports and insights created by advanced software, you will
naturally become a better decision-maker. You have solid backing to support your
decision. There is no need to work with outdated reports or copy a competitor
without knowing how a decision will impact the business in the long term.
It is not easy to convince employees to adopt new procedures and systems at
work. Power BI services from offshore consulting firms help train employees and
make them understand the importance of working on advanced analytics. This
increases the willingness of employees to adopt new technology and digitally
transform the business.

10. How to Implement Advanced
Analytics with Data
Integration?

11. SQL database
Online platforms
Blank queries
Flat files
Azure cloud
OData feed
Active Directory, etc.
We have already talked about multiple sources, right? Power BI is known for its ability
to integrate different types of data from various sources. You can create a common
data model for data analytics.
There is a feature called Power Query editor. It lets you add new sources to the Power
BI to collect more data. This feature allows you to transform and edit data files even
before they are loaded into Power BI. Of course, the changes made at this stage will
not be reflected in the actual dataset. Your original data will remain the same until
you decide otherwise.
Power BI gathers data from-
1. Integration of Data from Multiple Sources

12. The interactive desktop Power BI tool is free to download. This lets you create reports
in less time by easily accessing data. Also, you don’t need to have the technical
knowledge to use this tool. Power BI consulting firms use this tool to import and export
data, make the necessary changes and use the data visualization features to present
the insights meaningfully.
Power BI is an effective tool that makes it easy to work on data integration and
analytics. It is one of the best business intelligence software solutions that can be
used in an enterprise of any size. SMEs, especially, find it easier to use this software as
it is not as complicated as a few other tools in the market.
2. Interactive Desktop Power BI Tool

13. We have already defined what data visualization is. Presenting data in colorful graphs,
charts, and models will help the top management understand the exact state of the
business without reading through pages and pages of complex calculations and
statistics.
Power BI, on its own, doesn’t offer too many features for data visualization. However,
you can access the custom library and design something exclusively for your
business. You can create your own visualizations that help present complex analytics
simply and effectively.
3. Customized Data Visualization

14. More than 120 data connectors can work with Power BI to collect data from third-party
sites and servers. And once you create the custom visual to present the processed
data, you will need to upload it to the dashboard. The custom visual will then work the
same way as the default visuals do. You can use filters, highlight the key points,
change the formatting, and do much more through the interactive dashboard. You
can contact the data analytics firms to assist you in data integration and
visualization. The Power BI consulting rates depend on the volume of data, the amount
of work in the process and the number of hours the consultants will spend on the
project.
4. Interactive Dashboard

15. Check out the
full in-depth article
https://www.datatobiz.com/blog/advanced-analytics-with-data-
integration/