Chapter 1. The Value Proposition of MicroStrategy

Sometimes when we hear about Business Intelligence platforms and related technology, our first reaction is a web report with tons of data to analyze and review, which has a slow and poor response time. Such platforms require IT-savvy personnel to enable them, as they are complicated to use. However, innovations in information technology have completely transformed the user experience and the way technologies are implemented.

When we implement technologies by ourselves with a do-it-yourself approach, the phenomena is called IT consumerization: technology for the final consumers without the complication of typical IT systems in corporations.

Imagine the same concept and approach translated to the Business Intelligence arena: a BI platform ready to use, simple to install, without specialized training or personnel to enable it, and ready to use our data in order to help us take business decisions.

In this chapter you will learn the scope of the MicroStrategy platform and how to enable it in a do-it-yourself approach without any specialized knowledge or training. Fortunately, MicroStrategy understands this consumerization trend and offers a platform and services that are easy to enable and be used by a business user. In a few hours, a business user is able to analyze information as well as generate reports and dashboards. Also, business users will be able to share their reports in a collaborative schema with their business colleagues, and also on a mobile platform for portability.