Implementing Asymmetric Crosstab in Power BI

A recent requirement called for an asymmetric crosstab report in Power BI. Transitioned to Adventure Works, the final report looks like this.

The Internet column shows the sales amount from FactInternetSales. Then, the matrix pivots on the BusinessType column in the FactResellerSales. Because, Internet sales don’t relate to BusinessType, it doesn’t make sense to pivot it. Instead, we want to show Internet sales in a single static column before the crosstab portion starts.

Implementing such a report in SSRS is easy thanks to its support of adjacent groups and static columns but not so much in Power BI. The issue is that Matrix would happily pivot both measures and the InternetSalesAmount would be repeated for each business type.

Fortunately, with some blackbelt modeling and DAX, we can achieve the desired effect. I attached the pbix file and here are the high-level implementation steps:

1. Add a ReportCategory table (you can use the Enter Data feature), with a single column Category and two values: Internet and Reseller. Add a Category calculated column to FactInternetSales with a value of “Internet”. Add a Category calculated column to FactResellerSales with a value of “Reseller”. Create relationships FactInternetSales[Category]->ReportCategory and FactResellerSales[Category]->ReportCategory. These relationships are required because Matrix doesn’t support unrelated tables. Your model schema should look like this:

   

2. Create a SalesAmount measure with the following formula:

    SalesAmount = IF(SELECTEDVALUE('ReportCategory'[Category]) = "Internet" && NOT ISINSCOPE('FactResellerSales'[BusinessType]),

    SUM(FactInternetSales[InternetSalesAmount]),

    SUM(FactResellerSales[ResellerSalesAmount]))

   The IF condition checks if the measure is under the Internet category. NOT ISINSCOPE(‘FactResellerSales'[BusinessType]) will return TRUE only for the total column in the Internet section. Otherwise, it will return the reseller sales. Because there are no reseller sales in the Internet category, only Internet sales will be shown. Note that SELECTEDVALUE will return FALSE for empty cells which is why I had to create the ReportCategory table.

3. Add Matrix viz and bind Product[Color] to rows, ReportCategory[Category] and ResellerSales[BusinessType] on columns, and SalesAmount in Values. Expand the columns to the next level (to show the BusinessType level).
4. In the Matrix format properties, go Subtotals, enable the “Per column” setting, and turn off the Category subtotal to avoid showing the reseller sales total twice.

Although Power BI has made great progress on the visualization side of things, it still lacks in flexibility. The two features that miss the most from SSRS are nesting visuals (to create repeat sections) and the flexible Matrix layout. However, with some black belt modeling and DAX, workarounds are possible.