PDF Report Automation with Power BI and Power Automate
Introduction
I remember when my boss at my old job would arrive, make coffee, greet us, and then spend half the day making reports… and only for our area! Nowadays, I could do the same in a fraction of the time.
How? Automating everything with Power Automate. Instead of wasting hours on manual reports, I would generate them in seconds and automatically send them to those who need them.
Companies are increasingly looking for these types of skills, and here I’m going to teach you how to do it 😉.
What is Power Automate?
Power Automate is a free tool from Microsoft, included in current versions of Windows, that allows you to automate tasks and processes across various applications. It works with both Microsoft tools like Office, Outlook, SharePoint, and Teams, as well as external non-proprietary platforms like YouTube, Gmail, Dropbox, X, and many more.
PDF Report Automation with Power BI and Power Automate
Manual report generation can be time-consuming and error-prone. Power Automate, combined with Power BI, allows you to automate this process, ensuring reports are generated and distributed without manual intervention.
🔹 Why automate PDF reports?
Automating PDF reports allows you to:
✅ Save time on manual report generation.
✅ Ensure consistency in format and content.
✅ Automatically send reports to key recipients.
✅ Facilitate distribution and cloud storage.
🚀 Automation Flow: Generate PDF Reports from Power BI
In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to configure an automated flow that extracts data from a Power BI report and converts it to PDF, sending it by email or saving it to OneDrive.
1️⃣ Prerequisites
Before starting, make sure you have:
- A report in Power BI published to the Power BI service.
- An account in Power Automate with access to Power BI connectors.
- Permissions to export reports from Power BI.
- OneDrive or SharePoint to store reports (optional).
2️⃣ Configure Power Automate to Generate a PDF Report
🔹 Step 1: Create a New Flow in Power Automate
- Access Power Automate.
- Click Create → Scheduled cloud flow.
- Define the task name.
- Define the flow execution frequency (for example, daily at 8:00 AM).
🔹 Step 2: Add the “Export Power BI Report” Action
- Press + New Step, Search and select the action “Export to file for Power BI reports”.
- Configure the following parameters:
- Workspace: Select the workspace where the report is.
- Report: Choose the report you want to export.
- Export format: Select PDF.
- Page size: Make sure to configure the appropriate size.
🔹 Step 3: Save the Report to OneDrive or Send it by Email
✅ Option 1: Save to OneDrive
- Add a new action “Create file” in OneDrive.
- Configure the file name with the current date (
Sales-Report-@{utcNow()}.pdf). - In File content, select the output from the previous step.
✅ Option 2: Send Automatically by Email
- Add an action “Send an email from Outlook”.
- Define recipients and subject.
- Attach the PDF file generated in the previous step.
🔹 Step 4: Test and Activate the Flow
- Click Test flow to verify it works correctly.
- If everything is in order, activate the flow so it runs automatically according to the established schedule.
🎯 Practical Example: Sales Report Generation
Imagine that every Monday at 9:00 AM you need to send a sales report in PDF to your team. With this flow, you can:
- Automatically export the sales report from Power BI.
- Save it in a shared OneDrive folder.
- Send an email with the attached report to managers.
🔥 Benefits of this Automation
✅ Eliminates manual report generation.
✅ Reduces errors and ensures timely delivery.
✅ Optimizes report distribution to multiple recipients.
✅ Facilitates centralized storage of historical reports.
📌 Conclusion
The combination of Power BI and Power Automate allows for fully automated PDF report generation and distribution, optimizing reporting processes in any company.
💡 Would you like to implement this automation in your company? Leave it in the comments or check the official documentation. 🚀
