WHAT'S IN THIS CHAPTER?
- Identifying who uses Reporting Services
- Using dashboards, reports, and applications
- Understanding application integration
- Using Business Intelligence (BI) reporting
- Using mobile reports and KPIs
- Choosing a report tool
- Optimizing report performance
Welcome to SQL Server 2016 Reporting Services. This chapter provides an overview that includes a high-level introduction featuring not only concepts and capabilities of this powerful reporting tool, but also of the Microsoft data analysis platform. Reporting Services embodies a rich history as a rock-solid reporting tool. Although many features have been part of the product for more than 12 years, some features are new, have changed, or were introduced in later versions.
This is the fifth edition of this book. Reporting Services was officially released in early 2004. Since that time, I gained assistance from trusted and experienced colleagues who contributed to previous book editions, and this edition draws upon that foundation of expertise. In areas where the product has matured and evolved forward, I share advanced capabilities and patterns for solving new business problems. The book includes material and techniques using the new or existing features more effectively.
As a Microsoft Data Platform MVP, a specialist, and a respected contractor for Microsoft, I spend considerable time working with different organizations to design reporting solutions. For many years, I frequently have had the opportunity to work alongside the Reporting Services product team. Through leadership changes, product development cycles, and industry trends, the development team has maintained a relevant and durable reporting product that focuses on the needs of the modern business. As you continue to read, you will learn to appreciate the depth of this product.
In 2003, a few months before the product was released, I started using pre-release versions of Reporting Services. At the time, I was doing web development and database work, and found Reporting Services to be a perfect fit for the reports I needed to add to a web application. Since then, SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) has grown to become the de facto industry standard reporting tool. SSRS provides a foundation upon which you can construct complete report, scorecard, dashboard, and mobile solutions for business users. Today, it does everything from simple ad hoc data reporting to delivering enterprise-ready, integrated reporting into business portals and custom applications. In 2016, the product expanded beyond classic āpaginated reportsā to add mobile reporting, key performance indicators (KPIs), and integration with cloud-based and on-premises dashboard and self-service analytic tools.
The information technology (IT) group for a large financial services company wanted to make sure that they were using the best reporting tool on the market. My team was assigned to evaluate every major reporting product and give them an unbiased analysis. We worked with the client to identify about 50 points of evaluation criteria. Then I contacted the major vendors, installed evaluation copies, explored features, and spoke with other customers and with those who specialized in using these various products. It really helped the team see the industry from a broad perspective, and resulted in a valuable learning experience. There are some respectable products on the market, and all have their strengths, but I can honestly say that Microsoft has a unique and special platform.
WHO USES REPORTING SERVICES?
The various titles given to someone who creates reports in different organizations is an interesting topic. An observation I have made over the years and in different work environments is the perception of this role. In some places, people who write reports are called report developers. In some environments, application developers assign the name report users to people creating reports.
Business users fit into a few categories when you consider how they use reports. Some are report consumers only. They're content to use reports that have been written and published for them. Others prefer to create their own reports without becoming mired in the intricacies of programming code and complex database queries. Maybe they just want to browse information to look for trends and to understand how the business is measuring up against their goals. In recent years, a new generation of data consumers has changed the landscape of self-service reporting and business data analytics. These are the data scientists and the data analysts who collect, wrangle, sculpt, model, and explore data using analytic reporting tools like Power BI and advanced add-ins for Excel.
Traditional roles have changed. New reporting and analytic tools have matured to accommodate the business climate. Not long ago, a typical IT group at most large organizations had three common roles: system administrators, application developers, and project managers. Where does the report designer fit in the organization? People who design business reports often don't come from a common pool of IT professionals. In fact, many people who spend the majority of their time creating reports are part of the bus...
