Written by Nils R. | Mar 3, 2022 8:00:00 AM
How can
Forecast Input Form
s Drive Faster and Better Decisions? As Budget Managers increasingly become innovators in the Planning Process, they must rely on modern self-service corporate performance management (CPM) and business intelligence (BI) tools. Using interactive forecast input forms like the Profit & Loss Top Down Driver-based Forecast Template shown below enables them and users from the leadership teams to experience near real time planning that help drive faster and better decisions.
Who uses
Profit & Loss Top Down Driver-based Forecast
s and What are Some Key Analytical Features? In today’s fast-paced business environment, Budget Manager are under high pressure to supply end users like executives with timely and concise forecasts, often on a quarterly or monthly basis. Companies use key features like the ones below to support their users with effective analysis that helps drive more informed and quicker decisions:
- Input of drivers like Target Net Income and adjustments that automatically generate forecast figures for the remaining periods of the year
- Conveniently available actual year-to-date figures with automated annualization
- Expandable (seen collapsed in the image below) columns and rows to view individual periods and GL accounts
The Profit & Loss Top Down Driver-based Forecast template can be used as a key element of the Planning process: [caption id="attachment_30427" align="alignnone" width="1306"]
Example of a Profit & Loss Top Down Driver-based Forecast Template to Streamline the Planning Process[/caption] The Profit & Loss Top Down Driver-based Forecast is a ready-to-use forecast input form from the
Solver Marketplace.
A Brief Description of the
Profit & Loss Top Down Driver-based Forecast
Template Forecast input forms like the one seen in the image above are interactive and parameter driven and typically contain sections with revenues, expenses, sub-totals and totals. One of the important features that aid the user in the analysis process is the ability to automatically generate monthly forecast figures. Profit & Loss Top Down Driver-based Forecasts are often used in conjunction with bottom-up forecast- and annual budget templates, P&L reports, balance sheets, cash flow reports, and budget/forecast analysis dashboards.
Data Integration to Transaction Systems Most organizations these days want automated and streamlined
planning,
reporting and
analysis. However, many of the benefits described earlier rely on best of breed Corporate Performance Management (CPM) tools and/or Business Intelligence (BI) capabilities as well as data marts or data warehouses that use pre-built integrations to the organization’s ERP system. Oftentimes, they also need integrations to other key data sources like CRM, subscription systems, payroll tools, etc. Modern, cloud-based ERPs like Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance (D365 Finance), Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central (D365 BC), Sage Intacct, Acumatica, Netsuite and SAP have robust APIs which allow for dynamic integrations to CPM and BI tools that are fully automated and flexible to run on a schedule or on-demand.
Additional Resources to Aid with Research of Templates, CPM and BI Tools
- Templates from Solver that are pre-built and that work out-of-the-box using the Solver CPM cloud. Click here.
- Template examples: You find more than 500 CPM and BI Template examples here.
- Interactive Dashboard examples: Try Power BI dashboard templates from Solver here.
- Software evaluation and selection:
- Creating efficient processes:
