The verdict in three sentences
Running a mid-market firm on manual Excel exports means deciding with a 3-4 week lag and constant error risk. A custom decision dashboard, wired to your ERP, CRM and accounting, is scoped between 15,000 and 45,000 EUR over 8 to 14 weeks. It cuts monthly reporting time by a factor of 5 and turns data into decisions.
Off-the-shelf (Power BI/Metabase) or custom dashboard?
A market BI tool covers 70% of standard needs. Custom takes over when business logic, margin calculations or steering UX go off the beaten path.
| Criterion | Power BI / Metabase | Custom dashboard |
|---|---|---|
| Setup cost | 8,000 - 20,000 EUR | 15,000 - 45,000 EUR |
| Timeline | 4 - 8 weeks | 8 - 14 weeks |
| Licences | 10 - 20 EUR/user/mo | 0 (owned app) |
| Complex margin calculations | possible but rigid | fully free |
| User experience | standardised | tailored, mobile |
| Data sources | standard connectors | any API/DB |
| Scalability | vendor-dependent | controlled in-house |
Many firms adopt a hybrid approach: Metabase or Power BI for exploration, a custom dashboard for the executive committee and critical KPIs.
Cost per integrated data source
A BI project's budget depends mostly on the number and complexity of sources to connect and make reliable.
| Integrated source | Complexity | Indicative cost | Timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| ERP (Sage, Cegid, SAP B1) | high | 5,000 - 12,000 EUR | 3 - 5 wks |
| CRM (HubSpot, Salesforce) | medium | 3,000 - 6,000 EUR | 2 - 3 wks |
| Accounting / cash | high | 4,000 - 9,000 EUR | 2 - 4 wks |
| E-commerce / POS | medium | 3,000 - 6,000 EUR | 2 wks |
| Excel/Google Sheets files | low | 1,500 - 3,000 EUR | 1 wk |
| HR / payroll tools | medium | 3,000 - 5,500 EUR | 2 wks |
Measurable decision impact
The real deliverable isn't a pretty chart: it's a shorter decision cycle.
| Indicator | Before (manual Excel) | After (custom BI) |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly reporting time | 3 days | 0.5 day |
| Data freshness | D+20 to D+30 | D+1 / real time |
| Consolidation errors | frequent | near zero |
| Executive mobile access | no | yes |
| Monthly reporting labour cost | ~2,400 EUR | ~400 EUR |
Mini case study
Marc, head of a 90-employee distribution firm in Nantes, spends 3 days/month consolidating margin and cash in Excel with 2 management controllers. Kolonell delivers a custom dashboard wired to Sage, HubSpot and the POS tool for 32,000 EUR in 12 weeks.
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Gain: reporting drops from 3 days to half a day (~2,000 EUR/month saved, i.e. 24,000 EUR/yr), and two stock-reallocation decisions no longer made late preserved ~40,000 EUR of margin in year one. ROI reached in about 8 months, with real-time steering permanently secured.
FAQ
Why not stay on Excel?
Excel caps out as soon as sources multiply: consolidation errors, D+30 data, no real-time view. The labour cost alone (2,000-2,500 EUR/month of reporting) funds the project in under two years.
Isn't Power BI enough?
For 70% of standard needs, yes. Custom is justified for specific margin calculations, a dedicated executive UX or avoiding recurring licences.
How long for the first version?
A first usable dashboard often ships in 4-6 weeks; full integration of 4-5 sources takes 8 to 14 weeks.
Does our data stay with us?
Yes. We host on your cloud or a GDPR-compliant European cloud, with fine-grained role-based access. No sensitive data leaves an uncontrolled third party.
What maintenance budget?
Budget 12-18% of project cost per year for changes, connector monitoring and new KPIs. That's well below the cumulative licences of a fleet of BI users.
Let's scope your project. Share your sources (ERP, CRM, accounting), your 5-8 priority KPIs and target users: indicative budget 15,000-45,000 EUR by source count. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
