Business Analytics Strategy: A 12-Month Roadmap Built From the Decisions You Actually Make
Most companies already have reports. What they lack is an agreed order of work: which questions matter most, which numbers need one definition, and what to build first so the next project rests on the last one.
A business analytics strategy is a short written plan that says which business decisions your data should support, how the numbers behind them are defined, and in what order the reports, data fixes and tools get built over the next twelve months. Lightray Solutions writes it with your leadership team, and Edward Pinela, MBA, runs every interview himself.
It suits a company that has outgrown spreadsheets without a plan: sales has one dashboard, finance has another, and the two disagree. Start with a free 30-minute strategy call. The roadmap is then quoted as one fixed fee before any work begins, and if its first item is a Power BI build, that work can run on Power BI Flex Support, from $2,500 for 20 hours.
“Great firm, they understood our company needs really quickly… their approach was very hands on…”
— Jean-Michel C., Google review
What goes into an analytics strategy roadmap?
Four documents, each short enough to read in one sitting. A decision inventory lists the recurring calls managers make, such as pricing, hiring or reorder points. A metric dictionary defines each number those calls depend on. A readiness check rates every data source. The roadmap itself orders the work by quarter, with an owner per item.
Nothing in it is a technology wish list. A tool appears only where a decision needs it, which is why the roadmap often recommends doing less than the team expected: fixing one customer list, for example, before buying anything new.
- Decision inventory: the ten to twenty decisions worth supporting, ranked by money at stake
- Metric dictionary: one written definition for revenue, margin, active customer and the rest
- Data-readiness check: each source rated for completeness, ownership and refresh
- Sequenced roadmap: quarterly items, each with an owner, a cost range and the decision it serves
Why start from decisions instead of dashboards?
Because a dashboard nobody acts on is a cost, not an asset. When the plan starts from a decision, say how much stock to order before the holiday season, it becomes obvious which data must be trusted, how fresh it needs to be and who will read the result. Dashboards then follow from that, and unused ones never get built.
This is also where most disagreements surface early. If sales counts a deal as revenue on signature and finance counts it on invoice, the metric dictionary forces one answer, written down, before any report repeats the argument in two colors.
How mature is your analytics today?
Microsoft's own Fabric adoption roadmap maturity levels give a useful yardstick. They run from level 100, Initial, to level 500, Efficient, and Microsoft suggests most organizations aim for 300 or 400 and assess each goal separately rather than the company as a whole. A 60-person firm rarely needs level 500 anywhere.
We use the levels as a vocabulary, not a scorecard. The table below shows how each one tends to look in a smaller company and the roadmap move that usually follows.
| Level (Microsoft's name) | What it looks like at 30-300 people | Typical roadmap move |
|---|---|---|
| 100 · Initial | A few people build their own reports; numbers live in personal spreadsheets | Write the metric dictionary and pick one trusted source |
| 200 · Repeatable | Some reports matter to the business, but each owner does things their own way | Standardize the core reports and name an owner for each |
| 300 · Defined | Shared definitions and a basic governance model exist and are followed | Add self-service for analysts within agreed rules |
| 400 · Capable | Approved tools carry critical reporting; usage is monitored | Consider forecasting or a warehouse where a decision needs it |
| 500 · Efficient | Analytics is routine and largely automated | Rarely a target for a smaller firm; maintain rather than expand |
Which projects belong in the first quarter?
Items that pay back quickly and unblock later ones. Typically that means agreeing the metric dictionary, cleaning the one source every report touches (often the customer or product list), and shipping a single report that replaces a manual monthly pack. Larger moves, such as a warehouse or forecasting, wait until those foundations hold.
Each later quarter is planned with a gate: the next item starts only when the previous one is in use. That keeps spend tied to adoption, and it gives you a natural point to pause if priorities change.
How does a strategy engagement with Lightray run?
Remotely, over video calls and shared documents, in three steps. Edward interviews the people who make the decisions, reviews the reports and systems they use today, then presents a draft roadmap to the leadership team and revises it once. You keep every document, and nothing depends on hiring Lightray for the build.
Lightray holds a 4.9 rating on Google, and Edward brings 20+ years of business and data work and 200+ delivered projects. He replies within 4 business hours and schedules calls himself.
- 1. Interviews. Forty-five minutes with each decision-maker and the person who prepares their numbers.
- 2. Review. Current reports, spreadsheets and systems rated against the decisions they feed.
- 3. Roadmap. Draft presented, questions answered, final version issued with owners and cost ranges.
Where does the strategy hand over to other work?
Once the roadmap is agreed, each item points to the work that delivers it. The broader business intelligence consulting practice covers the builds, and business intelligence architecture sizes the technical layers if a warehouse is on the plan. Ownership and access rules go to data governance consulting.
If leadership needs a financial case before approving anything, business intelligence ROI explains how to measure the return honestly. And if the real question is which new system to buy, start with business analysis consulting, which gathers requirements before a purchase.
Further reading: Microsoft Learn — Fabric adoption roadmap maturity levels.
Want a roadmap your leadership team will actually follow?
Book a free 30-minute call with Edward Pinela, MBA. You get an honest read on what to fix first — and if we are not the right fit, you will hear that on the call.
Frequently asked questions
What does a business analytics strategy cost?
It is quoted as one fixed fee after the free strategy call, and the price depends mainly on how many decision-makers are interviewed and how many systems are reviewed. Lightray publishes no figure for strategy work. Any Power BI build that follows can use Flex Support hours at $100 to $125 an hour.
How long does the roadmap take to produce?
The written quote states the timeline. For a company with a handful of core systems, most of the elapsed time goes into scheduling interviews rather than analysis, so having decision-makers' calendars available early is the biggest factor in how fast the final roadmap arrives.
We already use Power BI. Do we still need a strategy?
Often yes, because tools are rarely the problem. Companies with Power BI in place usually have several reports measuring the same thing differently and no agreed order for what comes next. The roadmap settles definitions and priorities so the existing licences start paying for themselves.
Can the strategy work be done entirely remotely?
Yes. Lightray has no local office and no field team; interviews run over video, systems are reviewed by screen share or read-only access, and the roadmap is presented on a call. The business address in Fullerton, California, is for correspondence, not meetings.
What do we need to provide?
Time with each person who makes a recurring decision, the reports and spreadsheets they use today, read access or a screen-share walkthrough of the main systems, and one sponsor on the leadership team who can settle disagreements about definitions.
You Won’t Get Handed Off to Junior Staff.
At most consulting firms, the senior person who sold you shows up for the kickoff — then you get handed to a team of juniors learning on your dime. That’s not how we work.
When you hire Lightray Solutions, you work directly with Edward Pinela, MBA — a principal consultant with 20+ years of experience across Power BI, web development, SEO, and CRM systems. Edward architects every engagement personally, stays involved through delivery, and answers his own phone.
Read Edward’s Full Bio“Mid-market companies deserve senior-level expertise without paying enterprise-agency prices. That’s the gap Lightray fills.”
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