Everything Changes and Everything Stays the Same – Even in Cloud Strategy

Everything changes and everything stays the same.

I’ve found myself repeating that phrase more than once over the last couple of weeks, partly because it’s true, and partly because it explains a pattern I’m seeing again and again across organisations.

Most of the time, we talk about technology as if it moves in a straight line: from old to new, from on-premises to cloud, from siloed to shared, from manual to automated. But in the real world, it’s rarely a one-way journey. Strategy is cyclical. Priorities shift. Economic and political pressures change the conversation. And suddenly, decisions that felt “settled” are back on the table.

A conversation that took me back 22 years

I recently had a call with a UK local authority. I always have a soft spot for local government because that’s where I started my career in the early 2000s. In my first few years, I worked across both Caerphilly and Torfaen, and those years shaped how I think about public service, accountability, and the reality of delivering technology with limited budgets and high expectations.

When I left local authority employment at the tail end of 2004, there was a major push for shared services. The idea was simple: neighbouring authorities would combine back-office functions, IT, HR, finance and so on to reduce duplication, save money, and provide more consistent services.

I remember discussions about setting up shared service organisations across multiple councils. I kept in touch with people after I left, and I know those changes did happen.

Fast forward 22 years,  which makes me feel slightly ancient writing it down, and I’m speaking to a different local authority about SQL Server training. The reason? They’d been operating within shared services, and the DBA function was largely a contractor team. A decision had now been made to dismantle that shared model and bring services back in-house within each authority.

Full circle.

Everything changes and everything stays the same.

On-premises reporting is back in the conversation

That local authority conversation wasn’t the only “cycle” moment. Since the tail end of last year, I’ve had several separate conversations with clients about Power BI training. That’s not unusual, we deliver a lot of Power BI training, but what is unusual is the direction of travel.

Historically, most organisations wanted training aligned to the cloud-based Power BI Service, the PL-300 style path: semantic models, publishing to the Service, governance, sharing, workspaces, and deployment considerations.

And until very recently, if you’d asked me how many clients we have ever had that have been actively using Power BI Report Server on-premises, I’d have said “one” without hesitation. They were using it back in 2018 when they still had a strict “no-cloud” policy. It was a transitional step until internal policy changed and cloud adoption became possible.

But in the last few months, I’ve seen a noticeable increase in interest in on-premises Power BI Report Server, not as a short-term workaround, but as a deliberate choice.

Is this about SQL Server 2025… or something bigger?

Some of this renewed interest may be linked to the reporting changes announced with SQL Server 2025, particularly the consolidation of on-premises reporting into the Power BI Report Server model. I recently wrote about those changes because, candidly, I’d almost forgotten the announcement myself, and I know plenty of organisations still rely heavily on SSRS today.

However, based on the conversations I’m having, I’m not convinced product announcements alone explain the shift. In several chats, the motivation feels broader, and sometimes unspoken.

Some organisations are reassessing cloud dependency. Others are responding to data sovereignty requirements, governance concerns, budget controls, or procurement constraints. In some cases, it’s about cost predictability. In others, it’s about control, simplicity, and the comfort of having reporting entirely within the boundary of the corporate network.

And in a few conversations with certain clients, I’ve simply sensed a cultural recalibration: a pause and a question being asked  “Do we need or want all of this in the cloud?”

To be clear: I’m not suggesting for an instant that the cloud story is reversing wholesale. It isn’t. Azure adoption remains strong. Microsoft Fabric momentum is real. AI workloads are undeniably cloud-led. But at the same time, I’m seeing more organisations pursuing optionality: hybrid models, on-premises reporting capability, and architectures that feel internally governed.

The real constant is decision-making

Which brings me back to the phrase. Everything changes and everything stays the same.

Twenty years ago, local authorities were centralising into shared services. Today, some are decentralising again. Over the last decade, many organisations moved reporting to the cloud. Now, more are reconsidering where the balance should sit.

Products evolve. Licensing models shift. Platforms merge. But the underlying questions remain remarkably consistent:

• Where should control sit?
• How do we manage cost and predictability?
• What risk profile are we comfortable with?
• What skills do we need in-house?
• What reporting experience do users actually need day-to-day?

As a consultant and training provider, I find this fascinating,  and it’s a useful reminder that technology decisions are rarely purely technical. They’re organisational, political, financial, and cultural.

Is your organisation moving back from the cloud?

So I’m curious:

Are you seeing similar shifts? Are you doubling down on cloud-first strategies, or introducing more on-premises or hybrid components again? Is Power BI Report Server on-premises back on your roadmap?

If you’re exploring on-premises reporting, need to upskill your team, or want an honest view of the trade-offs, we can help.

If you want tailored training (Power BI Service or Power BI Report Server) or practical guidance on modernising your reporting stack, get in touch via gethynellis.com.

 

FAQ

What is Power BI Report Server?

Power BI Report Server is Microsoft’s on-premises reporting platform for hosting Power BI reports (and paginated reports) within your own infrastructure, rather than in the Power BI Service.

Why are organisations reconsidering on-premises reporting?

Common drivers include governance and data sovereignty requirements, cost predictability, procurement constraints, reduced cloud dependency, or a preference for keeping reporting fully within the corporate network boundary.

Is on-premises reporting replacing the cloud?

In most cases, no. Many organisations are aiming for hybrid capability — using cloud where it fits, while keeping specific reporting workloads on-premises for control, compliance, or operational reasons.