NC User Conference Tips and Tricks for SAS FM June 16, 2009 Reporting 1. CDA Formula (Formatted Statement): To switch out the cell reference for the hardcoded member or dim name, you can go into the formula edit, double-click on a cell location to highlight and hit F9. Press Escape key to return to original format. 2. Hiding member in OLAP report (Financial Statements): In an OLAP or Data Entry form, differences exist between hiding (with Excel function), Hiding with FM, and Filter member Combination. 3. Override Model defaults - (Financial Statements): On a read-only tabl, ability to override the model default dim member settings with a Table default (Edit -> Table Properties) in cases where the table defaults differ from the general defaults (i.e., currency). 4. Excel-based Calculations (Financial Statements): Creating subtotals. 5. Show Contributing Data (Financial Statements): Good analysis tool for exploring data at the dimension level (Tools -> Show Contributing Data). Planning 1. Locking form (Revenue Form): Edit -> Table Properties -> Do not allow changes to table. Locking the form so that users can t drill/modify the table with drilling, etc. Sometimes they may get lost and by locking, this forces the display of (possibly) the yellow cells where they enter data. Dimensions 1. Expanding - Use the Expand button to fully expand the hierarchy without having to + expand everything. 2. Drag and Drop members - Review the drag and drop of members including paying attention to the note at the bottom left of the screen to tell you which members you re about to move and where you re dropping them. 3. Resetting As-of-Date for Model Properties (Time) When adding new time periods, remember to update the As-of-Date for the time dimension in the model properties.
TIPS AND TRICKS FOR GETTING STARTED WITH SAS FM 4.4 QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE How do I Logon to the SAS FM Portal Open an Internet Explorer Browser Window All Users: Copy and Paste the Portal URL address into the browser Press Enter. All Users: Login to the SAS Portal using your user Network login ID and password. How do I view/access my Budget Forms and Reports in SAS FM? You must be logged into the SAS FM Portal to access all Budget Forms and all Reports. Budget Forms are the data entry forms you will use to enter all budget and forecasted data. All Budget Forms will reside in the Manage Financial Forms area of the Portal. Note: See Below. Reports will include all of the financial reports that have been created either by you or for your review. All Reports will reside in the Manage Documents area of the Portal. Note: See Below. How do I access Budget Forms? In the SAS Portal, click on Manage Financial Forms Select Edit in the Actions column next to the form name you want to open. Note: The Excel Workbook will open. How do I access Reports? In the SAS Portal, select Manage Documents Ensure that Finance is selected for the Repository. Ensure that Documents is expanded. Use the + sign if necessary to Expand. Open the Shared Documents folder. Note: a list of all of the reports will display to the right. Click on the Name of the report you want to open. Note: The Excel Workbook will open. How do I Logoff of the SAS FM Portal? In the SAS Portal, there is a link in the upper right corner of the page that says Log Off <With Your Name displaying>. Click on Log Off. Note: The main SAS Portal Logon page will display. Quick Tips Guide on Getting Started with SAS FM
TIPS AND TRICKS SAS FM 4.4 REPORTS NAVIGATION QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE ACCESSING REPORTS REMINDER: When toggling between open forms and reports, click the Lightning Bolt in the report after ALL data has been entered into the forms. The Lightning Bolt refreshes and calculates the ENTIRE WORKBOOK. You could also select SAS Solutions View Refresh All while in the report. Accessing Reports from the SAS Portal In the SAS Portal, select Manage Documents From the Document Manager page, Navigate to the folder where the report was saved. Note: Ensure the Finance Repository has been selected Open the report by clicking on the Name of the report you wish to review Accessing the SAS Financial Management (FM) Excel Add-In Directly Open Microsoft Excel on your PC Select SAS Solutions Log on Expand Options to verify correct server Log on using your UserID and Password Open/Use a blank worksheet to create a new report Quick Tips Guide on SAS FM Reports Navigation
OLAP / READ ONLY REPORTS Creating a new OLAP/Read-only report Within Microsoft Excel, select SAS Solutions Insert Read-only Table Follow the wizard to create the layout and members for the report Modifying the Layout of an OLAP/Read-only report Place cursor within the report, Right-click Members Pivot Modify the dimensions by using arrow keys or by clicking and dragging into the desired layout Modifying the displayed Members of an OLAP/Read-only report Within an OLAP/Read-only report, place cursor on the dimension for which you want to modify, Right-click Members Show Members Expand/collapse the left side panel to select members and move selections to the right Preview panel Choose Selection rules such as Member, Member and Descendents, etc. Select Labeling Method Click OK when done Hide rows with Zero values of an OLAP/Read-Only report Select the Row or Column dimension to hide zero values Right-click Edit Styles Check the Do not display zeroes box click OK Values can also be scaled in this window Format cells of an OLAP/Read-only report Select the cell or range of cells to format Format the cells as desired using standard Excel formatting functionality Highlight the entire group of cells you formatted and Right-click Edit Attach Modifications Save the report: SAS Solutions File Share Report Change the name of the report if desired or leave the same, Click Save Filter Members within an OLAP/Read-only report Select the member to remove from the report display Right-click Members Filter Member Combination Display member previously Filtered from display Select the dimension that the members exists within Right-click Members Filters Select the Table tab Highlight the filter to remove and select Remove (or Remove All ) OK. Quick Tips Guide on SAS FM Reports Navigation
CDA REPORTS Creating a new CDA report - layout Within Microsoft Excel, select SAS Solutions Insert CDA Table Follow the wizard to create the layout and members for the report Create a CDA report from an Existing OLAP/Read-only report Open an existing OLAP/Read-only report from Excel Log on Select SAS Solutions menu Edit Copy as CDA Follow prompts to complete the copy Standard Excel formatting functionality may be used to format report Sharing a report to the SAS Portal Open a Report in Excel Log into SAS FM if report was not opened directly from the SAS Portal Select SAS Solutions File Share Report Give the report a new, unique name Select the Repository = Finance Select the Shared Documents or user specific folder to place the saved document into Click Save Quick Tips Guide on SAS FM Reports Navigation
TIPS AND TRICKS SAS FM 4.4 FORMS NAVIGATION AND WORKFLOW QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE BEFORE YOU START ENTERING DATA IN YOUR FORMS CONSIDER THESE TIPS Turn Pop-up Blockers OFF prior to launching forms. To change the number of forms that display in the Financial Form Manager: When logged into the portal, click on Options Preferences In the Other section, select the number of records you want to display per page Click OK. The ENTER key moves to cells DOWN the page Right and Left Arrow keys move to cells ACROSS the page from left to right or right to left. All data is entered into Buff/Yellow colored cells. To spread data: Highlight the cells you want to spread data across Right Click Edit Spreads Select Equal or Pre-defined, etc. FORMS WORKFLOW STEP 1 Accessing and Entering Data in Budget Forms In the SAS Portal, select Manage Financial Forms From the Financial Form Manage page, Select Edit in the Actions column next to the form name to access the Excel Workbook will open You can also click on the form name in the Target Member Then click Edit the Excel Workbook will open Enter data in any yellow cell Modify Slicers if necessary to access desired crossings for data entry Enter data through Direct Entry, Copy/Paste, or Spreading functionality Save a copy of the form locally to a personal folder, if desired STEP 2 - Submitting Planning Forms for Approval In the SAS Portal, select Manage Financial Forms Identify the planning form to submit Select Submit in the Action column for the form. Note: there is no need to open the form to submit it. Enter a comment, if desired (comment will be included in email notifications) Select OK. The form will be automatically routed to the first level Reviewer and will display in their Financial Forms Manager page. Quick Tips Guide on Forms Navigation and Workflow with SAS FM
STEP 3 Approving or Rejecting Planning Forms In the SAS Portal, select Manage Financial Forms To View the form, select View in the Action column for the form to open the Excel workbook Review the data and forms at the necessary level of detail After all data has been reviewed, close the workbook (you do not have to save changes) In the SAS Portal, select either Approve or Reject in the Action column for the form (rejecting the form will require the form author to review, update, and resubmit the form) Select OK Enter a comment, if desired If rejected, the Form will be routed back to the Submitter where it can be accessed through the Financial Form Manager page. The Submitter can update the budget values and resubmit the form. OPTIONAL STEP - Recalling Forms (after they have been submitted for approval but before they have been approved) In the SAS Portal, select Manage Financial Forms Select Recall in the Action column for the form (form author will need to update and resubmit the form) Enter a comment, if desired Select OK Quick Tips Guide on Forms Navigation and Workflow with SAS FM
BEFORE YOU SAVE YOUR FORMS PLEASE CONSIDER THESE TIPS SAMPLE SCREENSHOTS TIPS AND TRICKS SAVING FORMS WITH SAS FM 4.4 QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE Please DO NOT use standard Excel functionality when saving form design changes in FM. Use Save Form steps noted below instead. Turning off the automatic calculation feature in Excel may help improve performance when saving forms to a personal folder or Desktop. To turn off auto calc: Click Tools Options select Calculation tab uncheck Recalculate before save. Quick Tips Guide on Saving Forms in SAS FM
TO SAVE FORM, PERFORM THE FOLLOWING STEPS: Click on SAS Solutions File Save Form Design... Click Yes to Save the Form Quick Tips Guide on Saving Forms in SAS FM
Will see popup box that Form Save was successful. Click ok. Note: All subsequent saves of the form will render a pop-up window that asks if you want to replace the form template that already exists. Click Yes to save the newest version of the form. If you have made an error and don t want to save over your previous version then click no make changes and then resave. Quick Tips Guide on Saving Forms in SAS FM