Short answer
You can build telecom reporting in Power BI, but the ongoing data engineering, Microsoft Graph API schema changes and chargeback rule maintenance are where DIY projects usually stall. Clarity is a productised platform with Apex BI's product roadmap behind it, delivered and supported by FirstNet.
In detail
What a DIY build has to keep maintaining:
- Data pipelines from each PBX's CDR or SMDR feed, normalised across vendors and sites.
- Microsoft Graph API connections, which change when Microsoft updates the API.
- Chargeback rules that must follow every change to departments and cost centres.
- Live wallboards for contact-centre teams.
- Immutable call-activity records for POPIA, FSCA, healthcare or education audits.
Clarity provides these out of the box: one view across FirstNet Hosted PBX, legacy PBXs and Teams, spend by department, cost centre, project, site or extension, call analytics, live wallboards and threshold alerts.
Your team's effort is limited to a one-time Graph API consent for Teams, with the PBX feed native on FirstNet Hosted PBX. Clarity runs on 12, 24 or 36-month terms, and FirstNet is the single point of contact for support, including escalation to Apex BI, so your analysts can spend their time on the insights rather than the plumbing.
Source: FirstNet Telephone Management & Cost Control service page →
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