Compare Business Intelligence Tools in PSA & project-based ERP
First published on September 23, 2025 , updated on September 26, 2025Which platforms give you real-time visibility, safe self-service, and scalable analytics? Here’s how VOGSY (Looker) stacks up against Power BI, Tableau, Sisense, Oracle Analytics, and Cognos.
Why analytics makes or breaks your ERP
In project-based businesses, dashboards aren’t just for reporting—they’re how you control margin, capacity, and cash flow across your entire company. The right BI foundation makes all the difference. You need:
Fresh data – so decisions reflect what’s happening now, not last week
Safe self-service – so users can explore without breaking definitions
Scalability – so reports work across countries, currencies, and entities
What BI tools power each platform?
| PSA / ERP Platform | Embedded BI Tool |
|---|---|
| VOGSY Dashboards | Looker (Google Cloud) |
| Forecast.app | Sisense |
| Kantata (Kimble / Mavenlink) | Tableau |
| Microsoft D365 Project Opa | Power BI |
| NetSuite + OpenAir (end of life) | Oracle Analytics |
| Deltek (Ajera, Costpoint) | IBM Cognos |
| Certinia (FinancialForce) | Salesforce Analytics |
| Productive.io | Polaris (custom SQL-based) |
Evaluation Criteria: What Really Matters
To assess embedded BI tools, we focus on 6 dimensions that directly impact your ability to run and grow a project business:
1. Data Freshness
Are the dashboards updated in near real time, or only once a day?
VOGSY: Syncs changes to BigQuery every 15 minutes. That means live, actionable visibility on margin, billing, DSO, and project health.
Power BI: Can use DirectQuery for near real-time, but often scheduled refreshes.
Certinia: Embedded dashboards in Salesforce; refresh cycles not clearly documented.
Productive.io: Claims real-time reporting, but underlying refresh model unclear.
Others: Tableau and Oracle Analytics rely on batch exports or scheduled refreshes—they are often 24 hours behind. Sisense (Forecast.app) and Cognos are configurable but slower.
2. Governed Semantic Layer
Regardless of who builds the report, is there a consistent, trusted definition of your KPIs?
VOGSY: VOGSY predefines all the required business metrics, dimensions, and logic in Looker's semantic layer. This ensures consistency and accuracy, making data accessible, reliable, and trustworthy for business users.
Power BI / Tableau: Semantic models are possible but require significant setup and governance effort.
Certinia: Implicitly governed via Salesforce objects, but limited flexibility.
Productive.io: SQL-based dashboards; governance depends on technical skill.
Others: Sisense lacks a clear semantic layer. Cognos is rigid and outdated.
3. Self-Service
Can your teams explore data without risking compliance or chaos?
VOGSY: Enables safe exploration for non-technical users, within guardrails. You can drill, filter, and build without breaking definitions.
Certinia: Record-based dashboards are embedded in Salesforce pages; some filtering is possible.
Productive.io: Some self-service, but requires SQL for advanced changes.
Power BI / Tableau: Powerful, but often chaotic without strong governance.
Sisense: Limited, analyst-led.
Cognos: Admin-driven, little flexibility.
4. Multi-Entity & Multi-Currency Support
Do dashboards support operations across countries, currencies, and legal entities?
VOGSY: Yes. Dashboards can show local performance in native currency and consolidated group-level views in your base currency—using current exchange rates.
Power BI / Tableau: Possible with custom setup.
Certinia: Possible, but it depends on Salesforce object configuration.
Productive.io: Not native; multi-entity support is unclear.
Oracle Analytics: Strong support but heavy configuration.
Others: Sisense and Cognos offer limited support.
5. Workflow Integration
Is BI built into your day-to-day experience, or does it live in a separate tool?
VOGSY: Fully embedded. Dashboards live inside the workspace—contextual, permission-aware, and available instantly.
Certinia: Embedded dashboards on Engagement, Resource, and Practice record pages.
Productive.io: Native dashboards inside the app.
Power BI / Tableau: Often opened externally or partially embedded.
Sisense: Separate portal.
Cognos / Oracle: Separate applications.
6. Admin Effort & Technical Overhead
Who owns report creation—your teams or an analytics team?
VOGSY: Dashboards are available out of the box, so no setup is required. Admins can expose additional dashboards with minimal training.
Certinia: Requires Salesforce admin setup.
Productive.io: Requires SQL knowledge for new reports.
Power BI / Tableau: Specialist knowledge required.
Oracle / Cognos: IT-driven, heavy lift.
What is the bottom line?
Microsoft Power BI and VOGSY are your best options if you want affordable, flexible self-service dashboards. However, Power BI is aimed only at Microsoft 365 users, whereas VOGSY is agnostic.
Of the two, only VOGSY offers proper out-of-the-box governance and allows you to scale without technical expertise.
Here's a summary table:
| Platform | Summary |
|---|---|
| VOGSY Dashboards (Looker) | Fresh data, strictly governed, safe, and scalable self-service, multi-national, seamless UX, zero overhead |
| Microsoft (Power BI) | Near real-time, governed self-service needs setup, multi-national after configuration, separate interface in Microsoft suite, specialist needed |
| Kantata (Tableau) | Good visuals, time investment for governed self-service configuration, requires BI specialist to be effective |
| Productive.io (Polaris) | Data refresh and governance unclear, self-service for basic dashboard, technical skill needed for custom reports. |
| Certinia (Salesforce) | Native feel for Salesforce users, data refresh unclear, self-service via Salesforce pages, limited flexibility unless high investment |
| Forecast.app (Sisense) | Slower data refresh, governance unclear, limited self-service, requires a separate portal |
| NetSuite (Oracle) | Data freshness depends on batch or refresh choices, requires heavy configuration, a powerful but older generation external tool |
| Deltek (Cognos) | Early generation tool, high level of expertise required, IT-driven customization which limits flexible, governed self-service |
Frequently asked questions
Why does VOGSY embed Looker?
Looker is the only enterprise-grade BI tool that combines embedded dashboards, governed semantics, and safe self-service in one package.
How often is VOGSY Dashboards data refreshed?
Every 15 minutes via Google BigQuery. That means your dashboards reflect near real-time project, financial, and resource data.
Can I build my own dashboards?
Yes. The 'Viewer' Looker licenses provide access to prebuilt dashboards. 'Standard' licenses let users create and customize dashboards while still using VOGSY’s governed semantic layer.
How do VOGSY Dashboards compare on self-service?
Unlike Tableau or Sisense, where ungoverned dashboards can lead to conflicting metrics, VOGSY enforces consistent definitions mapped to its API. Non-technical users can explore safely without breaking logic.
Do VOGSY Dashboards support multi-entity, multi-currency?
Yes. Local teams see performance in their native currency. Headquarters gets consolidated group-level views in the base currency, with live exchange rates maintained in VOGSY.
Are VOGSY Dashboards easy to roll out?
Yes. VOGSY dashboards are embedded out of the box. There's no setup or IT involvement.
Mark van Leeuwen
