BI Analytics

Within your D&A Career, you will find several BI Tools.

In the end, its all about: the goal, not…the tools

StepPhaseActivity
1DiscoveryUnderstand client needs, goals, challenges, and expectations
2DataGather and analyze relevant data, perform cleaning and exploration
3HypothesisDevelop initial hypotheses based on client needs and data
4MethodSelect appropriate analytical methods and tools
5AnalysisPerform the analysis, document process and results
6InsightsIdentify key patterns, trends, and findings
7DesignOrganize insights into a coherent narrative
8IterateShare with client, gather feedback, refine
9PresentDeliver the final data story with clear visuals
10Follow-upMeasure success, determine next steps

Every KPI should follow the SMART framework:

CriterionDescriptionExample
SpecificClear and well-defined goals“Develop a KPI dashboard for sales” vs “improve analysis”
MeasurableQuantifiable metrics or observable outcomesTrack user engagement increase, time saved
AchievableRealistic given resources, skills, and timeChallenging but within reach
RelevantAligned with business objectivesDirect impact on key business areas
Time-boundSpecific deadline or timeframe“Complete by Q2” creates urgency

You will be building KPI across Categories:

CategoryFocusExamples
FinancialRevenue, profitabilityRevenue growth, profit margin, ROI
CustomerSatisfaction, retentionNPS, churn rate, customer lifetime value
OperationalEfficiency, qualityProcessing time, error rate, throughput
GrowthExpansion, reachMarket share, new customers, lead conversion

Most popular within enterprises are: all of these are paid products

  1. PowerBI
  2. Looker
  3. Tableau

Sometimes, the OSS BI Tools will come into the picture:

  1. Grafana
  2. Others like: Metabase, Redash, Superset…

Normally, these tools go plugged in the final stage of the data pipelines: aka gold

flowchart LR
    %% --- Styles ---
    classDef bronze fill:#EFEBE9,stroke:#8D6E63,stroke-width:2px,color:#3E2723;
    classDef silver fill:#ECEFF1,stroke:#78909C,stroke-width:2px,color:#263238;
    classDef gold fill:#FFFDE7,stroke:#FBC02D,stroke-width:2px,color:#F57F17;
    classDef ai fill:#F3E5F5,stroke:#8E24AA,stroke-width:2px,stroke-dasharray: 5 5,color:#4A148C;
    classDef source fill:#fff,stroke:#333,stroke-width:1px;

    %% --- Sources ---
    subgraph Sources [Data Sources]
        direction TB
        Logs[Logs / IoT]:::source
        DB[Databases]:::source
        APIs[External APIs]:::source
    end

    %% --- The Lakehouse (Medallion) ---
    subgraph Lakehouse [The Data Lakehouse]
        direction LR
        
        %% BRONZE: Raw
        Bronze[("BRONZE
(Raw Ingestion)
As-is Dump")]:::bronze %% SILVER: Cleaned Silver[("SILVER
(Refined)
Cleaned & Enriched")]:::silver %% GOLD: Aggregated Gold[("GOLD
(Curated)
Business Aggregates")]:::gold end %% --- AI Integration --- subgraph AI_Lab [AI & Machine Learning] direction TB Training(Model Training):::ai Inference(AI Agents / RAG):::ai Predictions(Predictions / Tags):::ai end %% --- Consumers --- BI[BI Dashboards
& Reports]:::source %% --- The Flow --- Sources --> Bronze Bronze -- "ETL / Cleaning" --> Silver Silver -- "Aggregation" --> Gold Gold --> BI %% --- Where AI Plugs In --- %% 1. Training happens on Silver (Granular but clean) Silver -.->|"Feeds Data"| Training %% 2. Inference (Agents) read Gold (Context) or Silver (Features) Gold -.->|"Context for RAG"| Inference %% 3. The Feedback Loop: Predictions go back into the Lake Training --> Predictions Inference --> Predictions Predictions -.->|"Enrichment"| Silver Predictions -.->|"New Insights"| Gold

Depending on your work environment, you could do fully custom BI proposals.

Custom BI Tools

For a PoC on BI Tools, just go for Streamlit: data centered plus its speed of iterations around a good data model is unmatched

ℹ️
Putting together a project like Streamlit_PoC allows you to consolidate the Rendering Plotly, MermaidJS, QR, ChartJS, ApexCharts, PyGWalker with OSM geolocation data…in one place

To build a BI Tools even more custom: with certain UI look and feel, you can try Flask

Or for stonks:

Flask web app DataInMotion Twitter

To create interactivity, we have the well known plotly, but also ApexCharts and ChartJS.

Astro real estate CSR ChartJS

Both can be combined and create some cool graphs within SSGs, like in HUGO components and also provide interactivity via CSR.

You can potentially make embedable BI components that work on websites or just get the full power of web apps when designing these.

You could also use these skills when building funnels during your entrepreneurial journey:

PS Reflex has very cool funnels: https://reflex.dev/docs/library/graphing/charts/funnelchart/

You can also create a quick mermaidJS sankey of on boarding flows.