A big job. It doesn't have to start as one.
Most organisations we speak to already know something isn't working. What's missing is a clear view of where to begin, what it will cost, and whether it's worth it. The Data Assessment answers those three questions before you commit to anything. Think of it as a short data maturity assessment and the first draft of a data strategy, in one: a scored view of where you are, and a costed roadmap for what comes next.
- Reports take days to put togetherSomeone rebuilds the same spreadsheet every week or every month end.
- The numbers don't agreeTwo reports, two answers, and a meeting spent working out which is right.
- Problems surface too lateYou find out at month end what you needed to know on Monday.
- One person holds it togetherIf they're off, the reporting stops.
- Work goes round by emailApprovals, forms and updates chased by hand, or typed into two systems.
- Hiring feels like the only answerMore people to do the copying, rather than less copying to do.
Data comes first. The assessment also looks at your CRM, your finance system, including Business Central, and the manual work Power Apps and Power Automate could take off your team, so the roadmap covers the whole picture rather than one product.
Four steps. About three hours of your time.
There's no workshop programme and nothing to install. We don't connect to your systems: the assessment is a structured conversation with the people who know how your business runs.
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01 · Before the call
Fill in the questionnaire
Twelve short questions about your organisation, your reporting, your systems and what's frustrating you. It tells us where to focus the call.
About 10 minutes -
02 · The call
Talk it through on Teams
We introduce MPowerUp, then walk through how your business runs on information: the reports, the systems, the decisions you make, and the jobs still done by hand. Before we finish, we book your playback.
Up to 2 hours -
03 · After the call
We write your roadmap
We review the call transcript alongside your answers and turn them into a costed roadmap with a value case built from your own figures.
Within 5 working days -
04 · Playback
Agree the first step
We walk you through the roadmap, answer your questions and agree the first step with you. The roadmap is yours to keep either way.
45 minutes
Who should join the call
- Someone who understands how data is used in your business, or the applications you run. Usually someone in IT or a subject matter expert from a department
- Anyone who builds the reports or does the manual work day to day
Recording and privacy
With your agreement, we record and transcribe the call in Microsoft Teams, so we can quote your team accurately and nobody has to take notes.
We reserve the right to use AI tools to help review the transcript and prepare your roadmap. We delete the recording and transcript 30 days after we deliver it. Privacy & data handling →
A data roadmap you can take to the board.
Ten to twelve pages, written in plain English. It starts with a one-page summary for whoever signs off spend, and every cost in it sits next to what it gives back.
Inside the roadmap
- One-page summaryWhere you are, where you could be, the first step, what it costs and what it gives back.
- What we heardThe problems, in your team's own words.
- Where you are todayYour systems on one page, the hours spent on manual reporting and retyping, and a score across six areas.
- Where you could beWhat a normal Monday looks like in 12 to 18 months.
- The roadmapThree stages, StartUp, GrowUp and ScaleUp, across data, apps and automation, CRM and finance. Each stage stands on its own.
- Costs, as rangesProducts, licences and build work for each stage, with a first-year total and the yearly cost after that.
- The value caseTime freed, hires avoided and licences you already own, in your own numbers.
- One recommended first stepSized to start small, with a price.
Your score, today and in 12 months
We score six areas from 1 to 5, using what we heard on the call. The roadmap shows where each one sits now and where the next stages would take it.
- Data and trust
- Reporting and insight
- Process and automation
- Customers and sales
- Finance and operations
- People and skills
- 1 · ReactiveAnswers take days
- 2 · RepeatableSame reports, built by hand
- 3 · TrustedOne source, refreshed on a schedule
- 4 · ProactiveAlerts and self-serve answers
- 5 · PredictiveForecasts and AI
See a finished roadmap
Eleven pages for Westbridge Office Supplies, a fictional wholesaler: the summary for the board, what we heard, the score, the roadmap, the costs and the value case.
Open the example
How a roadmap reads
Not every lane moves at every stage. Starting small is the point.
| Lane | StartUp0 to 3 months | GrowUp3 to 9 months | ScaleUp9 to 18 months |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data and reporting | Weekly sales report, automatedFrom Business Central, through Fabric Express | Finance, CRM and stock joinedOne trusted layer, through the Fabric Accelerator | Forecasts and an AI agentQuestions answered in plain English |
| Apps and automation | Purchase approvals off emailOne Power Automate flow | Site visit appReplaces the paper form and the retyping | Exceptions flagged automaticallyAlerts sent to the right person |
| CRM | No change yet | Pipeline out of spreadsheetsInto Dynamics 365 Sales | One view of each customerSales and finance data side by side |
| Finance | No change yet | No change yet | Budgets and forecasts in one placeInstead of a dozen spreadsheet versions |
Costs set against the upside, in your own numbers.
The roadmap shows what each stage gives back, not only what it costs. Often the answer is getting more from the people and licences you already have, rather than recruiting.
Only your figures
Hours, headcount and costs come from what your team tells us on the call, not from industry averages.
Shown, then halved
We show the working, then count half of it as the cautious case, so the numbers hold up when someone checks them.
Payback on hard value only
Payback is worked out on time freed, hires avoided and licences you already own. Everything else is listed as upside.
Cash kept apart
Money collected sooner is counted once, as cash, and never mixed into the yearly savings.
Counted towards payback
- Time freedHours spent building reports, retyping and reconciling, shown in pounds and as a share of a role.
- A hire you don't need to makeThe analyst or administrator you were planning to recruit.
- Licences you already pay forCapabilities in your Microsoft 365 plan that aren't being used yet.
Listed as upside
- Proactive, not reactiveKnowing on Monday rather than at month end, with earlier warning on cash, stock and overdue work.
- Better days at workPeople doing the work they were hired for, and less resting on one person.
- Confidence in deliveryFixed stages, each with a check before the next one starts.
For example: three people spending half a day each on the Monday report is about 520 hours a year. The roadmap shows the full figure and its cost, then counts half of it towards payback.
Start with ten minutes.
Twelve short questions, mostly ticks and dropdowns, about your organisation, your reporting and your systems. Detail comes out on the call, so if you don't know an answer, say so.
What happens next
- 01We read your answers and reply within two working days.
- 02We send a Teams invite for a time that suits the people joining.
- 03We book your playback on the call, within five working days of it.
The Data Assessment, answered.
What is a data assessment?
A short, structured review of how your organisation uses information today: your reports, systems, licences and manual work. Ours ends with a costed roadmap that scores where you are, shows what good could look like in 12 to 18 months, and recommends a first step sized to start small.
How is it different from a data maturity or Microsoft Fabric readiness assessment?
It covers the same ground in far less time: one questionnaire and one call rather than weeks of workshops. It also goes further than a readiness check, because the roadmap includes products, licences and build costs as ranges, set against the time and money each stage gives back.
Is there a charge?
Not while we run our first assessments.
Do we have to buy anything afterwards?
No. The roadmap is yours to keep. If you'd like help with the first step we'll quote it, and you're free to take the roadmap elsewhere.
Is it only about Microsoft Fabric?
Data comes first, but the roadmap also covers CRM, finance systems including Business Central, and Power Apps and Power Automate, wherever they'd make a difference.
Do you need access to our systems?
No. The assessment is a conversation. We don't connect to anything or ask for any data.
What happens to the recording?
With your agreement we record and transcribe the call in Microsoft Teams. We reserve the right to use AI tools to help review the transcript and prepare your roadmap. We delete the recording and transcript 30 days after delivering it.
Who should join the call?
Someone who understands how data is used in your business or the applications you run, usually someone in IT or a subject matter expert from a department, plus anyone who builds the reports or does the manual work day to day.
How firm are the costs?
They're ranges, based on what we learn in one call. They firm up when the first stage is scoped, before you commit to anything.
Find out where to start, and what it's worth.
Ten minutes now, one call, and a roadmap within five working days of it.
The Data Assessment is run by MPowerUp, a Microsoft Partner based in Winchester, UK.