Case Study: How OptionTrain College Transformed with Power BI

Background: OptionTrain College is a fast-growing educational institution that focuses on teaching technology and management. When college grew, attendants could not keep track of the students progress poorly in academics and did not get to maintain the students’ data well enough or to make wise decisions. Their current systems were outdated and it was taking too long for them to gather and report data.

After realizing that the best decisions and highest quality possible education for students would be made possible if they were handling their data better, OptionTrain's leadership saw the answer in the form of Power BI.

The Problem: Our process has been disconnected from our data and our reports are a time sink.

Before Power BI, OptionTrain College faced several issues:

a. Data silos: Each department (e.g. academic records, finance, admissions) had its own data storage system. The problem with this approach is it makes it difficult to get a comprehensive view of how the students carry out their operations and perform.

b. Manual Reporting: It was a lot of time to generate enrollment, financial information and student performance reports manually. Sometimes, getting the facts together for important gatherings or audits, could take days.

c. Absence of Real-Time Insights: Reports were seldom prepared when data were up to date. Partially as a result, the leadership team had to then make decisions on out of date or inadequate data.

d. Monitoring Student Performance: Neither faculty members nor students had simple access to current performance data, which made it difficult for faculty members to keep track of who was falling behind in their assignments.

The Solution: Implementation of Power BI at OptionTrain College

Step 1: To get Data from Various Sources

As the first thing, OptionTrain College connected all of their current sources of data to Power BI. We collected data from several systems, including on students, finances and academic achievement, and put it in one place. With all this visible by sight at once, it became unnecessary to sift through half a dozen databases for data.

Step 2: Creating Real Time Dashboards

Then we created different Power BI dashboards for different teams. To illustrate:

a. For administrators: It made real-time financial health tracking, graduation rates tracking, and student enrollment patterns tracking possible.

b. Faculty: Professors could see what dashboards showing student success looked like in their classrooms. That would have allowed them to step in quicker if they saw someone struggling.

c. For Admissions: Dashboards enabled the admissions staff to understand which marketing campaigns were resulting in the most applications and, if necessary, where the action could be taken to alter their application status.

Step 3: Reports Automation

Days before, reports that were prepared manually were automated. With Power BI, we were able to create weekly or monthly reports, which updated with the latest data. It didn’t matter if a board meeting report or a full financial assessment, the material was always up to date.

Step 4: Alerts in Real Time

The college configured notifications for a particular set of metrics using Power BI’s alert feature. An example of this would be that the administrative staff would be notified if, for example, student attendance dropped below a pre determined threshold. This meant they could track the things that mattered without having to constantly track the dashboard.

The Results: From More Efficient to Data Driven College.

OptionTrain College noticed significant improvements on every level after implementing Power BI for a short while:

a. Data Access for Everyone Improved

Now the needed data was available to all departments. Before, faculty had to ask the administrative office for performance reports, but with this technology, the student data could be seen in real time by the faculty without the assistance of the administrative office.

b. Faster Decision-Making

Leadership may not need to wait for days to receive reports before making choices. This also enabled the college to take care of other problems such as poor student participation and, recognize financial worries.

c. Better Student Outcomes

If a professor saw a problem with a student, they could help early because they would have near instantaneous access to that student's performance data. Brooding students overall academic performance improved as well as course completion rates.

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d. Cost and Time Savings

The manual data input is now automatically done and the educational institution can save hundreds of staff hours every semester. They also noticed a drop in mistakes people were bound to make when manually assembling data from separate sources.

e. Enhancing the Transparency and the Collaboration Factor

Power BI simplified sharing dashboards and results and there was more departmental cooperation. Everyone was on the same page, whether they were discussing what it took to push student achievement or enrollment methods.

Why Power BI is a Game Changer for Universities & Colleges

Power BI is a powerful tool for educational institutions like OptionTrain College because:

a. It simplifies complex data: You don’t have to go through multiple spreadsheets to read everything, because everything is there in a single, easy to read dashboard.

b. It saves time: Automating reporting and data collecting allows for staff members to focus more on what really counts – educating students.

c. It enables real-time insights: You don't have to wait for a quarterly report to learn what's going on. Power BI continuously updates data for quick, smart decision making.

d. It is cost-effective: Power BI can be utilized by institutions that want to manage data at a reasonable cost without having to incur the high expenses of enterprise level tools.

Conclusion: Better Education with Power BI as a Tool

OptionTrain College of Management & Technology benefited from using Power BI. Surprisingly, Power BI proved to be a game changer and effectively simplified the management of student data, improved decision making and increased academic achievement. If data management is an issue in your organization, Power BI may be your answer.

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