Take a tour of Flexible Variance mode

While Flexible Variance mode might look slightly different from the other modes at first glance, its basic layout is the same: the toolbar along the top, dimensions on the left, and the grid in the center. It has many of the features you're familiar with in the other Analytics modes, along with some of its own.

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1. Toolbar

The toolbar at the top has menus you use to change your view of the data, as well as some function buttons.

Menus

• Mode: This menu allows you to change the mode, which is a pre-defined view of data that displays particular columns in the grid. Currently, Other modes is the only option in the menu, and it takes you back to the previous mode you were on.

• Properties: This menu allows you to change the properties (information stored about a dimension) displayed in the grid.

• Stream: This menu allows you to change the stream (series of data in the underlying database) displayed in the grid.

• Measure: This menu allows you to change the measures (numerical data) displayed in the grid.

• Period 1, Period 2, and Period (breakdown): Similar to the menu that allows you to change the period (timeframe) that applies to the data in the grid, these menus are the foundation of Flexible Variance mode. Firstly, select any two periods to compare and calculate the variance in the grid. You are note restricted to a current and previous period. Then select one of those periods (or another period) to add the applicable period columns to the grid and get a break down the data for detailed analysis and get see if it’s trending in the right direction.

• Sparklines: Sparklines display the data in the breakdown period columns in graphical format, letting you see trends over the period. For example, a sharp decrease in the sparkline might signal a drop in sales, something worth investigating. Sparklines are available for these repeated columns, as they have the same structure (stream, measure, and period). If you don't want to see the sparklines, click Sparklines > Off to remove that column from the grid.

Function buttons

• Undo and redo: Undo and redo actions related to calculation columns you added. For example, if you delete a calculation column, you can undo that action. Similarly you can undo and redo changes you make to its formula.

2. Filter and focus tools

The filter box above the grid is unique to Flexible Variance mode. This is where you perform a quick keyword filter, or access the Focus and Advanced filter features. See Filter data in Flexible Variance mode.

3. Dimensions and nest view

The left panel displays the list of dimensions, as in other modes, however, there are two additional features. The filter above the dimension list lets you quickly find a particular dimension, which is useful when there are many in the list. The Nest view feature sits right above the dimensions, making it easy to drag and drop at least two dimensions into the box to get a nested grid view (with levels you can expand and collapse). See Add levels to the grid in Flexible Variance mode.

4. Grid and formula bar

The grid contains the following elements:

Columns

• Code and Name: These property columns display the Code and Name of the entities in the selected dimension. You can add other properties as required using the Properties menu. For example, if you select the Customer dimension, you might want to add the Country and Region properties to see more details about each customer.

• Comparison group: This column group displays data (selected stream and measure) for the periods selected in the Period 1 and Period 2 menus. This data comes from your ERP. From this data, the variance is calculated:

  • Variance (Period 1 - Period 2): This is a calculation column showing the results of the variance calculation .

  • % Variance ((Period 1 - Period 2) / Previous) *100): This is a calculation column showing the results of the variance percentage calculation.

• Breakdown group: This column group displays data (selected stream and measure) for the period selected in the Period (breakdown) menu. For example, if you select the Last three months, you’ll see three columns, one for each of the three preceding months. The Sparkline column displays a summary of that data in graphical format.

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You can add take some actions with these columns and add your own custom columns. See Manage columns in Flexible Variance mode.

fx (formula) bar

The fx bar directly above the grid makes it easy to identify and understand the formulas used to calculate the values in the grid. When values in a column are based on a formula, the column header has a grey fx icon. Click any cell in that column to view the underlying formula in the fx bar. The formulas include a description of the referenced columns rather than just a reference to a cell number or coordinate, so you can easily see how the values are calculated.

If you add a calculation column, the fx bar changes to edit mode and you can enter your own formulas, either from scratch or using a range of inbuilt functions.

Right-click filter

Some columns in the grid have a context menu that displays when you right-click a cell in the column. This is a handy way to do an advanced filter based on a condition directly from the grid. See Filter data in Flexible Variance mode.

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