Use case: Named sets and global template updates

This use case describes how to use named sets to update templates globally.

The business problem

Reports that run frequently, such as the monthly reporting package that most companies produce, also require frequent updates and thus become high maintenance.

For example, time definitions on the reports need to change to reflect either the current period, the year-to-date period, or other time representations based on the closing of financial periods. Users can of course modify the report templates directly to change the target periods in each report; however, if a reporting package contains numerous templates, this process can become onerous.

As an example, in the following table the first two columns with values relate to the current month and year-to-date values for the current actuals, and the final column shows the total year plan:

	November	NovemberYTD	Total Year Plan
Revenue	$1,300,000	$12,500,0000	$14,000,000
Costs	$1,150,000	$10,400,000	$11,000,000
Gross Margin	$150,000	$2,100,000	$3,000,000

On a monthly basis, the actuals for the first two columns need to be updated to reflect the closing of the previous financial period. This requires updating the Time dimension related to the actuals columns. For example, when the December period closes, the monthly columns related to November need to change. This modification is required for each report that incorporates a floating time period.

The solution

You can use named sets to globally update report definitions across all associated templates, managing changes in a single area in the Time dimension.

The benefits

Updating report settings through named sets greatly reduces report maintenance time.

An added benefit of the administrator controlling report settings through named sets is that end users do not have to make any month selection themselves when viewing or generating reports, thus reducing both unnecessary steps and errors.

How it's done

Alternatively, a named set can be used in the Time dimension to facilitate updating the reports. For example, if fifteen templates are used in a monthly report package, a single modification to the named set updates all the reports, rather than editing each report directly.

To further complement this functionality, named sets for other dimensions can be used as well (for example, with Version) to make the monthly package even more streamlined, particularly when the forecast versions change each month.

The steps to implement this functionality are as follows:

1. In Model Manager, in the Time dimension, the administrator creates the named set definition.
2. In Template Studio, in the report template, the administrator replaces the Time field with the named set.

In our example, the named set refers to the current period financials and so should be named appropriately. Next, the administrator should select the current fiscal period from the Time hierarchy. The named set is then associated with that particular time period.

Within the template, the current fiscal period must be replaced with the named set, which then appears in the Time field. Because this named set is associated with the current month (November), the values in the template do not change. However, when the December fiscal period closes, the administrator needs to update only the named set in the Time dimension, and all the templates using the named set reflect the new fiscal period.