The Phocas grid is where you conduct most of your analysis. Even if you want to show your results as a chart, you would typically start from the grid.
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The grid at a glance
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Tools you can access from the grid
- Summary
- Dimensions
- Modes
- Properties, Measures and Streams
- Periods
- Activity filter, format and other view settings
- Lock selections
- Export
- Search
- Matrix
Record count
Record count appears in the bottom right corner of the grid once a dimension has been selected. It displays the number of rows of data on all pages, regardless of how many rows are showing on the screen.
The count is affected by the period and any selections or filters that have been applied.
Show all rows
By default only 100 rows are shown on the grid, for faster viewing. More ‘pages’ are automatically added, accessed via the arrows in the footer (as shown above).
You can change this by selecting the Paginate icon and scroll to see more rows.
How missing or incomplete data is displayed in the grid
You may also see a row with the first column as ‘###’ – this is the Phocas way of alerting you to ‘missing’ or incomplete data for a particular dimension. This means that although the data is in Phocas, it's considered ungrouped because there’s something wrong with the way it’s entered in your ERP. This could be for a variety of reasons, e.g., the data hasn’t been correctly allocated or categorised. For example, if a new customer is added to your ERP but not allocated to, say, a sales rep, territory, etc, Phocas detects that some detail is missing at the source level and highlights it. To see what detail is missing, highlight the row and go to the parent dimension.
In the image below, 'product class' code is missing.
Once the raw data has been adjusted (or 'cleaned') in the ERP system, e.g., by correctly assigning a code to a product class, the ### will automatically disappear on next build.
Sort
Once you have selected a dimension in Phocas you can sort columns. In the example below, the variance column has been sorted in ascending order, so that the products that have declined the most are at the top of the list.
You can sort in ascending or descending order, numerically and alphabetically. Phocas remembers your sort order even if you change from one dimension to another, until you reset, and when you save a favorite.
To sort, either:
- double click the column heading, or
- select any cell and right-click to display shortcut options including sort.
Freeze properties
Switch to chart view
If you prefer to see your summary as a chart select the Chart icon, shown below. Your screen will automatically update to show a simple chart, typically a bar chart. The same information is presented, just in a different format.
In Phocas, when you open a non-financial database (such as Sales, Purchasing or Inventory) via your Home page, dashboard or some other means, you access Phocas Analytics.
Analytics has three key elements, as identified by the numbers in the image below.
Grid - View and analyze your data to uncover important insights and get answers to your questions. Initially, the grid displays a summary view of the data in the underlying database. This high-level overview of the data is the starting point for your analysis. As you drill down into the data, the grid updates accordingly.
Dimensions and view options - Select dimensions to drill down into the data in the grid. After selecting data in the grid, you can click the Focus button to get a filtered view of the selected data or click the Matrix button to compare that data side by side. You can then click the Summary button to return to the high-level view of the data.
Functions and additional options - Change your view of the data in the grid, such the columns that display and the timeframe that applies. Take advantage of additional options during your analysis, such as add levels to the grid, view the data in chart format or export the data.
