MicroStrategy Reviews

It's useful if you need to create dashboards that you check every day. Also, we can create a queue, but it will be updated every day with scheduled updates. We use MicroStrategy as an architect to call some tasks and procedures to update data or delete data. 

I am the user to check data in dashboards.

It's a good tool.

There is room for improvement in customer support. 

Another area of improvement is stability of this solution. 

I've been using MicroStrategy for one year.  

I would rate the stability an eight out of ten. Sometimes Power BI is better than MicroStrategy.

I would rate the scalability an eight out of ten. We have a small team, so we have around two end users using this solution. We use the solution regularly. 

We had some problems. We have technical support for my clients because it's a big company. So, our technical service connected to the technical service of MicroStrategy, and they decided how to fix some problems. For example, we needed to add the time sort MicroStrategy to update the end date of the full time, top dates view from a specific time.

We evaluated Oracle BI and Power BI.

We saw a return on investment.

It is not an expensive solution. We need to pay for a license.

Overall, I would rate the solution an eight out of ten.

Public Cloud

There are two use cases. One is on the transactional side. As we're doing insurance transactions, we're using the transactional side to assess risk on each transaction. On the portfolio side, we're looking at the whole portfolio of insurance risk.

Underwriters love the transactional side. 

The performance: We've thrown a lot of data at it, and now we're trying to improve the performance. But the underwriters love the content that's being delivered. On the portfolio side, we're just starting the launch, but underwriters seem to be responding well to it.

The goal is for all of our underwriters to see the risk of a property the same way. If I have 30 underwriters, they should all see and measure the same risk. With all of our modeling, we create a lot data. But with these dashboards, we're giving the same direction. So, underwriters are coming to the same risk conclusions on all of our risks.

Delivery, meaning the ability to create aesthetically pleasing information by providing dashboards.

In terms of self-service, we have an ad-hoc platform, where you can build portfolio reports on your own, so that's already released.

The capability of MicroStrategy that I believe we are going to be utilizing most in 2018 is mobile. We're trying to get to launch. We're having issues with legal, around the app store, those types of things.

• Tighter mapping integration.
• More Writeback capabilities that would allow our IT department not to be worried about the wild, Wild West of Writeback.

We did have issues with stability, and that was because we were co-located with another business unit, and we outgrew them on the unit. So we had to get to a separate physical instance.

There have been scalability issues which I attribute more to architecture than the tool. Meaning, we weren't leveraging capabilities that allow for the scalability, so we're incorporating them now.

I'm on the business side, the design of the metadata and the like; on the hardware and that type of stuff, I don't get involved.

We favor a single platform for this type of solution, versus a many-points solution like Cognos. Single point is always easier.

What I appreciate most in a vendor is when they bend over backwards. MicroStrategy does that, when I approach them.

I give it a seven out of 10, and the reason is, underwriters love the content. The performance isn't where I need it to be. When I get to the less than five seconds per click, it will be a 10.

In terms of advice, you need to think abstractly enough so that it becomes a metadata layer that's usable for all of the things you want.

The primary thing that we are planning on using it for in the near future is analyzing healthcare trends and providing more visibility into what is going on within our healthcare spend. 

Getting more data to people more quickly. Providing more flexibility for how they use the data, so speed up the time and flexibility in how they are getting to use the data.

We primarily use it to support more internal departments. Those are our customers. We have different areas which we support from a healthcare data standpoint. The plan is to enable them to use the data, so we would use some configuration and setup, but then the customers would go in and look at the reports that we have set up or be able to do ad hoc stuff based on those data sets which we have built. 

I really like the visualizations. I like how you can put large data sets in there, then the user can quickly go through the data and drill down at various levels to understand things. 

It is definitely customizable. We have been able to put in key metrics and performance indicators, thus it is customizable. 

There are features which we are not using as far as some mapping and geography things which we could be using more broadly. That is in the current capabilities. 

I also went to a class on some statistic stuff, R, and all that integration that I think we would like to use. As far as additional things that are not currently a part of the capabilities, I am not sure, because I do not know all the capabilities yet. 

Less than one year.

Throughout the set up of some large data sets that we use, we have had to learn more about how to use MicroStrategy in the right way. At the beginning, there were things that we set up a certain way, and it might not have been the best way from a speed perspective. We have had to go back and adjust things accordingly, but so far the changes that we have made have gotten us to a place where we are comfortable with the speed and usability. 

My team has a little bit, I have not personally. I know they have used support for some administrative stuff, but I do know our team is very hands-on. They will go research stuff on their own, too. They use a combination of the two, but I have not heard of any specific issues per se. I would say one thing that I probably get from a lot of customers is that based on our industry, they do not necessarily understand our industry as much as we do. Therefore, when we come to them with a problem, they might know more of a generalized solution, but not one targeted to our industry. 

We are currently using a combination of Excel, SQL, and ad hoc queries.

I am new to this position. I have been there a year. I got a glimpse of some of the things we were using it for initially and realized that the tool is a lot more powerful than what we were using it for. I do not believe we were leveraging it to its full capabilities. Being able to get the right data to the right people in a timely manner is really important, and I saw a lot of opportunity to use that tool to solve some problems that I currently had. I do not know where it is going to end, but we are trying to leverage it as much as possible and build out the capabilities. 

Some stuff is easier than others. Throughout this big project that we are working on now, there have been challenges and hurdles. We have worked through those one at a time. It is user-friendly in some aspects, but in others, you definitely have to do some research to figure out the right way to fine-tune things. 

When I took the position we were already using MicroStrategy. We actually looked at Tableau 2 as an alternative, but we decided to stick with Micro Strategy because we thought it was a better solution for our business. 

Make sure you have the right people and the right training going into the development aspect of it. Really understand the tool, its capabilities, and features before you start doing large scale development. 

I like the capabilities MicroStrategy offers. I do not know if it would be the only solution, but it has a lot of capabilities that we are still learning to understand better. We are probably looking at investing in mobile analytics at some point in the future.

Most important criteria when selecting a vendor: Attention to the customer's needs and having support here when we need it. 

Hands-down: Object-oriented metadata architecture.

Why? Allows the re-use of objects throughout the platform, resulting in fast development, need for smaller staff, and faster ROI.

Example: Create a filter for Latest Month.

You can add that filter to any metric, use that filter in any report, add that metric into any other metric (such as Latest Month Highest Performers). Any metric can be added to any report. Reports can even be used as filters within other reports.

It can be used in any platform MicroStrategy offers: Developer, Web, Office, Mobile, Dashboards, Data Discovery… This is the same for metrics, reports, dashboards, etc. Build it once, use it anywhere (no need to create duplicate objects for Web and for Mobile, for instance).

If a change is needed in an object, the change is permutated throughout the system. For instance, if the definition of the Sales metric changes, you change the Sales metric and wherever the metric is used, the change is expressed.

This feature saves a lot of time in development and support because you don’t need to keep re-creating objects (and in re-creating them, introduce possible errors). A very small team can support many more users than any other platform, saving the organization money in the long run. In my opinion and experience, this gives MicroStrategy the edge over any other BI system.

Truly provides a single version of the truth. Once you create a metric or report that is correct, it is always correct, no matter where it is deployed. When a company I used to work for first rolled out MicroStrategy, there was a lot of suspicion by the existing DBAs and the traditional SQL report developers about the system’s results. If a report would show incorrect results one month, there was a lot of finger-pointing at MicroStrategy and ‘AHA!’s. In every case, the MicroStrategy team was able to prove that the error was due to incorrect data in the database.

Over time, the MicroStrategy system grew to be the ‘system of record’ and used to validate data loads for other systems.

Documentation and training: Though the basics of the platform are well documented and the in-house training offerings are the best software training classes I have ever attended, MicroStrategy falls a little short when it comes to some of the lesser-known/used features. For most, this will not cause a problem. But if your situation calls for the need to work with System Manager (a workflow application), for example, you'll be stuck searching thru Google and YouTube looking for information.

I have used it since version 5 (1998); 18 years off and on.

I occasionally encountered stability issues. If the metadata becomes extremely large, I have seen instances in which there are internal inconsistency errors. By this, I mean that it’s not that the system suddenly returns incorrect data but rather the internal definition of an object (could be any object: metric, filter, fact, report, hierarchy, etc.) becomes ‘corrupt’. MicroStrategy provides an easy-to-use tool, ScanMD, that finds and fixes these issues should they occur.

The inconsistency is due to the way the MicroStrategy metadata is structured. It is a relational database with many tables. These tables have foreign keys to the other metadata tables. For example, an Object table and a Where Used table. Sometimes the deletion of an object or an update in an object might not be cleanly expressed throughout the metadata database and the relational integrity is broken for that object, throwing an error message when the object is used.

I have not encountered any scalability issues.

Like any technical support group, it depends on which individual you are working with. Some have been stellar. Others make you wonder if they’ve ever really worked with the software beyond basic training. Overall, they are better than most I’ve dealt with.

I did not previously use a different solution.

Set up can be complex, though not as complex as SAP, for example. The most important thing, the very most critical thing, is that the data model is correct. Attributes need to be clearly understood and their relationships to each other and the various facts needs to be carefully defined BEFORE you begin. An ER diagram, be it in Visio or a tool like ERwin, is invaluable and in my personal opinion a must have. Going back to redefine attribute relationships and table structures can be very difficult. Do not think you can ‘figure it out as we build’. You’ll need a person who is an experienced data modeler on the team.

Software installation and hardware configuration is fairly straight forward.

MicroStrategy can be very expensive compared to other platforms – at first blush. The cost of purchasing the software and licenses has frequently been identified in numerous surveys as the factor most often cited for not going the MicroStrategy. The initial buy-in can be expensive; however, the platform is so much cheaper to run over the long haul than most other enterprise systems. A very small dedicated team of developers and quick development times (after initial setup) result in a much-lower yearly platform cost than other systems.

From a licensing viewpoint, there are basically two ways to go: per CPU or per user.
Per CPU: If you will have more than a few hundred users on your system or foresee a very dynamic user base where the number of system users can grow rapidly then shrink then grow again – use per CPU. You can have virtually unlimited users.

Per user: If you have a well-defined user base that you anticipate to stay roughly the same or grow slowly over time this may be your best option. Also, if you anticipate a very high workload (many thousands of reports run per day), this option allows you to add hardware without incurring licensing costs.

FYI It is easier to renegotiate your licensing with MicroStrategy if you go from per user to per CPU than to go the other way around.

I do not know if/what other products were evaluated prior to MicroStrategy.

• Do not attempt to ‘learn as you go’. It is a powerful platform and thus complex to understand. Attend MicroStrategy training classes. MicroStrategy offers on-line and in-house options, but take the classes at a MicroStrategy-sponsored training center; you need to be fully immersed. Those who’ve attempted ‘learn as we build’ are never satisfied.
• Your team needs to have at least one person who is an experienced data modeler and that person needs to take MicroStrategy Architect training and should become MicroStrategy certified in that.
• Your team should have a medium proficiency in SQL. They don’t need to be SQL wizards but they should have a solid base.
• Your initial developers will need to be dedicated MicroStrategy resources. Do not expect them to be supporting and developing a variety of other software/platform initiatives.
• Have a very good working relationship with your DBA staff. Communication is key.
• Document, document, document. Documentation is not for you and your staff – it’s for the poor developers that come in afterwards. Have an ER diagram available for all your source databases. Have flow diagrams showing data loads, schedules, events, outputs. Maintain your system server diagrams (including ODBC connections, etc.). Besides helping new staff with on-boarding, it will help analyze impacts of system changes and is a virtual requirement when doing upgrades.
• In your project plan, expect to utilize at least 25% of the timeline in building the data model (if one does not already exist).

• In-memory cubes (aka Intelligent Cubes)
• Intelligence Server capabilities (SQL/analytical/etc. engines)
• Web
• Developer

Creating objects/reports in MicroStrategy is quite easy and is one of the main reasons for its success. The product also allows non-technical folks to create reports/dashboards with relative ease, which would explain its high adoption rate.

With MicroStrategy, organizations can allow their end-users to create their own ad-hoc reports/dashboards/visualizations, which greatly reduces their dependence on a dedicated development team. While a development team is still necessary for designing the schema and long-term solutions, this product reduces the burden on developers by empowering end-users to be self-sufficient.

The administration tools (primarily System Manager, Enterprise Manager and Operations Manager) need a major overhaul. These tools are generally used by MicroStrategy administrators to monitor the usage and bottlenecks in the system.

Enterprise Manager is one tool which is provided out-of-the-box by MSTR. It's basically a pre-built MSTR project with reports/dashboards to monitor usage at the user, project and system levels. This is primarily useful to see which objects are used most frequently and which reports need to be modified for improved response times, etc. Setting up Enterprise Manager can be cumbersome and it's a buggy product. A ground-up redesign of the EM project would be ideal. It is still a very powerful tool for its current design.

System Manager is also buggy (various workflows don't work as expected, documentation is lacking, etc.).

Operations Manager was a tool that MSTR released a couple of versions ago, but it was riddled with issues (a lot of errors during setup mainly). I believe OM has been scrapped in newer releases, if I'm not mistaken.

I have used it for 6+ years.

While the core feature (Intelligence Server) does encounter stability issues on rare occasions, it's still a very stable product.

I have not encountered any scalability issues. MicroStrategy has been quite friendly when it comes to scalability.

I would rate technical support 8/10. I used to work in tech support at MSTR. It is a very well-run department; very efficient, lots of smart and hardworking people (from technical and non-technical backgrounds). The support engineers aren't always given all the tools necessary to do their jobs and sometimes; they're working with certain black-box components, which makes troubleshooting very difficult. This in turn can increase the case/issue resolution times. But these are only a small percentage of all cases. All things considered, it's a terrific department/team to work with as an employee and customer.

We have always used MicroStrategy.

The initial setup is straightforward but can get complex as the requirements change. The product is quite flexible when it comes to accommodating special requirements.

Before purchasing licenses, be absolutely sure about the number of users that will be using the product. This will be useful when deciding to go with a named-user license (better for a small user base) or a CPU-based license (better for a large-er user base).

I wasn't involved in evaluating the various options. I joined when the decision was made to go with MicroStrategy.

Make use of their manuals and user community. There's a vast amount of knowledge out there in their community.

The ability of the end user to be able to design and modify their own solutions, as well as the ROLAP architecture that provides almost unlimited scalability.

With MicroStrategy's focus on end user empowerment, a business analyst can make any modifications needed to follow wherever their analytical thought process leads them. With a multi-dimensional cube solution (Cognos, for example), if the analyst falls into the "white space" between cubes he/she needs to stop and request a new cube from the IT shop, interrupting the analytical thought process, possibly for a significant amount of time.

Data access could be improved. MicroStrategy has a data import capability but it only works for data in a Excel spreadsheet or a CSV file. It would be helpful if one could point the data importer at a web site, or provide it a URL of a data source and have it import the data.

I have followed MSTR's development for nearly 20 years and find the totality of the product to be the best in the business because of scalability, single metadata, SQL generator, and end user usability. I organized a review of 6 then-current BI applications in 1996, including MicroStrategy, Holos, Information Advantage, Essbase, Oracle Express, and Cognos. Only MicroStrategy, OBII (formerly Oracle Express) and Cognos are still standing.

Not on my personal WIndows 7 Pro 64-bit machine. I've never deployed the Server product.

Not on my personal WIndows 7 Pro 64-bit machine.

Not on my personal WIndows 7 Pro 64-bit machine.

Customer Service: Unknown.Technical Support: Unknown.

One customer was using Cognos and I advised them that they may want to consider switching to MicroStrategy for the reasons I stated above.

On my personal Windows 7 Pro 64-bit machine. I don't know how different it might be on an enterprise server, although an acquaintance who has deployed it says that there are no issues.

I've also looked at Tibco Spotfire and Pentaho, and read reviews and evaluations of Tableau. All of these are seductive, but their solutions ignore the challenges of dealing with masses of data. MicroStrategy's single metadata also makes it possible to track every object and action in the system, and to autogenerate documentation.

Look at the complete package, considering TCO, administrative ease and end user usability/empowerment.

The solution is primarily used for customer management, Salesforce organization, and product purchasing analysis. 

The solution has excellent features available on mobile.

Their subscriptions are very good.

The solution offers us a strong SQL engine and enterprise tools.

Overall, the solution offers a strong set of features.

The solution lacks good visualization. They should work on the user interface to make it more slick and modern.

They could improve the maps they have on offer.

There needs to be more customization in the SQL engine.

The technical support on offer could be better.

I've been using the solution for ten years.

The solution offers very good stability. We find it to be reliable. there aren't bug or glitches. There isn't freezing. It doesn't crash.

The scalability the product offers is excellent. If a company want to expand outwards, they can do so with relative ease.

The technical support is okay. It could use some improvement. We aren't overly satisfied with their level of service.

The initial setup is not straightforward or complex. It has a moderate amount of difficulty.

I cannot disclose our licensing costs due to privacy concerns.

We're partners with MicroStrategy.

We're using the MSQL 2019 version of the solution.

I'd rate the solution seven out of ten.

On-premises

Our primary use case for this product are analytics and visualization. 

It has allowed us to standardize the reporting so that everybody is looking at the same view of the data.

The most valuable features are ad hoc reporting and the ability to create dashboards.

The product could be improved by adding additional visualization.  Also, another feature to consider in the future would be adding some additional offline capabilities without using desktops. In addition, continued development of mobile reporting. 

One to three years.

I have not encountered issues with stability. 

 I have not encountered any issues with scalability. 

We have used CognitiveScale in the past. 

The implementation was fairly straightforward. 

Make sure to do your due diligence and understand that the tools meet your needs. 

The licensing is a bit high per user. 

Yes, we considered Tableau, SAP Business Objects and Cognitive Scale.