5 Key EPM / NSPB Updates - December 2022
The Pivot2 team have compiled a list of some of the most useful updates to be included over the last month, that could specifically help your business process.
Please reach out for a chat by contacting us here if you would like any further information.
SUMMARY
SMART VIEW
1 Direct Drill Support in Smart View
REPORTING
2 Ability to Import Reports Background Colour Into Excel Workbooks
FCCS
3 New Copy and Clear Data Process Automations Added Within Task Manager
4 Enterprise Journals External Validation Enhancement
NARRATIVE REPORTING
5 Report Package - Embedded Content Tables Support For Repeat Headers in Word
SMART VIEW
DIRECT DRILL SUPPORT IN SMART VIEW
You can now use Smart View to perform a direct drill. When direct drill is configured and you drill from Smart View, the drill down data from the source system is displayed directly in a new Excel sheet.
Direct Drill enables you to drill through directly from any platform-based form to source data when you use the Quick Mode method to load data. Source data can be queried and launched using an external URL or and EPM Integration Agent query.
Using Direct Drill, you can drill to source data without staging the data in Data Integration. It also provides the flexibility to simplify the drill bypassing the landing page. Additionally, you can customise the scope of the drill region using Essbase member functions, which simplifies maintenance and improves performance.
To leverage this functionality, install the latest version of the Smart View client.
Business Use Case:
You can now drill and view drill data directly and instantly in Excel. This can be very useful when you need to drill down to the transaction level of a particular GL account to perform detailed review and analytics such as monthly variance analysis. In addition, as the drill-down data from the source system is displayed directly in a new Excel sheet, this can be used as a supporting document for your analysis and shared with the reviewer such as Finance Manager or Cost Centre Manager.
REPORTING
ABILITY TO IMPORT REPORTS BACKGROUND COLOUR INTO EXCEL WORKBOOKS
When importing a report to Excel, the background colour specified for the report in the Report Designer is now applied to the Excel worksheets.
Business Use Case:
Previously, background colour was not imported with the report. With the new feature, users do not need to spend extra time applying background colour in Excel. It will now be automatically applied, ensuring the consistent colour schemes in all worksheets and reports. This can be useful when you have a standardised organisational reporting colour scheme.
FCCS
NEW COPY AND CLEAR DATA PROCESS AUTOMATIONS ADDED WITHIN TASK MANAGER
The Task Manager is enhanced with new integrations that allow to automate the copying and clearing of data within Financial Consolidation and Close and Tax Reporting. These automated tasks are available for both local and remote Financial Consolidation and Close and Tax Reporting connections.
Business Use Case:
This enhancement lets you use Copy Data and Clear Data as an automated process in Task Manager. Previously this process was not able to be added to the Task Manager. With the newly enhanced feature, the System Administrator is now able to ensure that the process of copying and clearing of data is automated and tracked within the Task Manager. Like other processes within the Task Manager, once it is completed it will be marked as complete which provides improved internal control of the processes, and minimising human errors such as a task being missed during the month-end process.
ENTERPRISE JOURNALS EXTERNAL VALIDATION ENHANCEMENT
In Enterprise Journals, you can now externally validate the journal before submitting the results to the Approver. The External Validation option is available on the Create Targets screen with drop-down options None (no external validation is performed) or Custom (external validation is performed as per your configuration on this screen).
The following validation features are provided:
Validation Status - Displays the current validation status and appears as a tile at the top of the Journal Actions dialog before the Posting Status and also on the Journals Dashboard.
The Validation Status is available as a list filter and also as a new column. If the Validation Status is "Valid" or "Failed", clicking on it brings up the Validation Results dialog. The following statuses are available:
Not Validated
Ready To Validate
Validation In Progress
Valid
Failed
Validation Message - This shows the results of the last validation attempt, even if the Journal Validation Status has returned to "Not Validated". The Validation Message is available as a new column.
Validation Results Link - If there is a validation message, clicking on the message link brings up the View Validation Results dialog.
Business Use Case:
Previously without this enhancement, the journal process from preparing to reviewing and approval can be repetitive and inefficient as validation can only be done after it is approved. This often means that a journal needs to be rejected and revised, and then to be reapproved before it can be revalidated. Now with the enhancement, it allows an Enterprise Journal to be validated against any source system before it is approved, making the process a lot more efficient as well as easier for users to identify errors and the ability to rectify the problem before submitting to the approver for approval.
NARRATIVE REPORTING
REPORT PACKAGE - EMBEDDED CONTENT TABLES SUPPORT FOR REPEAT HEADERS IN WORD
The Report Package’s Embedded Content now supports repeating table headers within Word.
For Excel Tables, there will be some configuration required to enable the repeating header option.
For Report Grids, the repeat headers option will be inherited from the Report definition.
Previously without this enhancement, when the table size is larger than one page, the header is only visible on the first page, making it less user-friendly when viewing the subsequent pages without the header.
Reports support repeating headers by default, most existing embedded content tables from a Report Reference Doclet will automatically have the repeat headers option enabled. This will be a change in behaviour seen upon a refresh of the embedded content within the Word doclet. If you require the embedded table to not support repeating headers, the underlying Report definition will need to update accordingly.
Business Use Case:
Previously, when the table is larger than one page, it is less user-friendly when viewing the subsequent pages without the table header. Now with this enhancement, you can view the table more easily with a fixed header upon scrolling to multiple pages.