How to Customize Budgeting Report
Imagine how challenging reading a book with the chapters out of order would be. Whereas reading a properly organized book gives a much higher understanding of the subject matter. Setting up your Business Intelligence (BI) solution with folders or “playlists,” sometimes referred to as “storyboards,” can organize reports and dashboards into a structured analysis.
Putting thought into the order of content in analysis can play a huge role in a company’s ability to make world-class decisions. Without this structure, a company with hundreds of reports from different systems will struggle with analysis. This hardly empowers the average BI user.
Ideally, employees can access a single web portal with organized playlists. The playlists can start with big-picture items, then reports and dashboards with specific focus areas. Below is an example of how a “playlist” can enable faster and better decision-making.
Types of Corporate Budgeting Reports
A “Corporate Playlist” can be organized with reports and dashboards in this order:
1. Exception Report
This report quickly presents any business issue as represented by a Key Performance Indicator (KPI) by only showing KPIs where a given threshold is breached. The BI solution could then distribute an “alert report,” saving users from repeatedly log in to a system in order to find exceptions.
2. KPI Report
This report provides a structured list of all the KPIs for a business unit. One can easily monitor these metrics with the option of diving into any KPI of interest for further analysis. There should also be a comment feature so the user can notes for their peers.
3. Dashboard for KPI 1
This first dashboard follows the KPI report. The goal is to show graphical analysis with comparative and trend analysis for the first KPI (KPI 1) in the KPI report.
4. Financial Statement or Operational Report for KPI 1
This would be the first detailed report, such as a financial statement or a sales report. The goal of the report is to provide numerical analysis for the first KPI 1, with drill down to underlying transactions.
5. Dashboard for KPI 2
This second dashboard follows the KPI report, and the goal is to show graphical analysis with comparative and trend analysis for KPI 2 in the KPI report.
6. Financial statement or Operational Report for KPI 2
This would be the second detailed report, such as a financial statement or a sales report. The goal of the report is to provide numerical analysis for KPI 2, with drill down to the underlying transactions.
7. Dashboard for KPI 3 (and so on)
This third dashboard follows the KPI report. The goal is to show graphical analysis with comparative and trend analysis for KPI 3 in the KPI report (see above).
8. Financial Statement or Operational Report for KPI 3 (and so on)
This would be the third detailed report, such as a financial statement or a sales report. The goal of the report is to provide numerical analysis for KPI 3, with drill down to the underlying transactions. Here in an example of a BI portal with reports and dashboards organized similarly to how it is described above:
Types of Departmental Budgeting Reports
A modern BI solution should provide each with a tailored set of reports, dashboards and planning templates for each department. These departmental-level templates allow managers to “drill down” into detailed information, improving the communication and understanding of individual operational areas.
Departmental Dashboard – Product Sales
This dashboard targets a single area like sales and within it, provides a product point of view.
Transaction report – Product Sales
This type of report is particularly powerful within a BI solution, specifically when tied to a KPI report or a dashboard. Having the necessary information within the BI portal saves money on software licenses. Now, a manager doesn’t have to use an ERP system for transaction-level analysis.
Operational P&L Based on Allocations
While companies produce profit and loss reports with relative ease, producing profitability by product, customer or project requires more work. This is usually because most companies do not book all or any of their expenses by business area. Therefore, a good BI tool should deliver advanced allocations and produce an array of profitability reports at ease.
Cross Drill Transaction Reports
It is very powerful for any information worker to have KPIs, dashboards and reports easily available within the same BI tool. Due to time, skills, and access rights, analysis sometimes becomes amputated because it stops with a transaction report. Modern CPM tools allow for a cross drill.
Transaction Report with Drill to Scanned Invoice
An increasing number of companies are going paperless in many areas of their operations. This typically includes acquiring a document management system that can upload receipts and invoices to the ERP system. These scanned documents often contain detailed information not booked in the ERP system. A document management system reduces dependency on the accounting department to find and access scanned documents.
Customer360 Reports
“Customer360” refers to a type of report that provides a 360-degree view of a customer. As organizations automate administrative and operational processes , there is an increasing amount of data available for customers, products, salespeople, etc. All the information is collected into a single database like a data warehouse and then produced into a single report. This, ultimately, enables world-class decisions. This report should provide key information about a specific customer and produce a single score.
Get the Reports You Need from Solver
Organizations depend on accurate reporting to drive high-level decisions. However, the variety of reports available shows us that a top BI solution can provide deep insights with ease. From readily identifying recurring issues to calculating certain clients or projects’ profitability, the reports described above show the value of reporting. If you need assistance or help, Solver has a team of experienced professionals that can help your company.
