The Report Builder feature helps you create entire reports from scratch without having to remember the Datarails formula syntax.

You can drag and drop your fields into rows and columns and then export to Excel. That way, you have dynamic formulas in your Excel workbook and can finetune the report from there.

It's also a good tool to explore how your database is set up and what the different fields include. 

Video: Using the Report Builder feature

How to access the Report Builder

There are 2 ways to access the Report Builder:

1. Through the Web portal of Datarails

   • In the left pane click on Excel-Addin

   • Click on Report Builder

     2. Through Datarails excel add-in

• Go to Datarails tab in the Excel upper ribbon
• Click Report Builder

Nested Hierarchies

You can create nested report hierarchies with subtotals (they are also called parent/child connections) by dragging fields on top of each other or show fields without connections by dragging them below each other.

Fields dragged on top of each other in the report builder feature:

Fields dragged below each other:

Aggregations

You can use Report Builder to aggregate your values. For example, you can add year-to-date and full year columns to your monthly financials. Simply click on the aggregation icon as shown in the video below.

You can add additional aggregations by adding a field multiple times. In this example, we add "Reporting Month" three times to show the values by quarter, year-to-date, and full year in the same report. 

Video: Aggregations in the Report Builder feature

Filters

Two different types of filters help you structure your reports according to your needs.

Use regular filters to show only specific years or remove zeros.

Parent filters allow you to hide items at a specific level of your nested hierarchy. For example, if your P&L has revenue and expense details, you may just want to show expense line items while showing revenue at a high level. The following video illustrates this:

Video: Parent filter

Try it now: Report Builder practice

1. Open the Excel file “P&L - Practice Report” (click here for instructions on how to locate the practice report). 
2. Add a new Excel sheet.
3. Click Report Builder
4. Select the Function called “Value”
5. Drag the field “Reporting Month” into the box labeled Columns and the fields "DR_ACC_L1" and “FS Grouping” into Rows. Make sure to move "FS Grouping" on-top of "DR_ACC_L1" to create a nested hierarchy and make FS Grouping a subsection to DR_ACC_L1.
   
6. A report preview should appear on the right-hand side of the screen. If it doesn’t, make sure Real-Time update is toggled on.
7. Click on the Filter symbol next to “Reporting Month” and deselect “Null”
8. Click on the parent filter symbol next to "FS Grouping" and deselect "ASSET", "LIABILITY", and "EQUITY" hierarchy levels to show only their aggregated values.
9. You can change the formatting with the buttons at the top of the screen center. For this example, click on the $ sign to select a currency symbol.
10. Click on Save & Publish to Excel (lower right corner). Depending on how much data you select, it can take a minute or two to load. A new sheet called “Report 1” will appear.
11. The result is an Excel report with Datarails formulas that are already written for you. When you click on one of the cells, you will notice that they have dynamic cell references. Click F2 to see where they link to. These cell references work like any others in Excel: you can drag formulas to neighboring cells and the formula will be copied accordingly. 

Here is how you can add your own calculated ratios to the report:

Export from the Report Builder to Excel and add your calculations in the spreadsheet as usual, via normal Excel formulas linked to the cells with the Datarails formulas. Then, once you click on Refresh, the Excel report will automatically populate and your ratios are updated, too.

Bonus tip:

You can add empty rows for a cleaner look by entering ;;; as a custom value format, as shown in the image below:

Further Information

• Watch an in-depth webinar covering the Report Builder features here.
• Learn more about structuring rows and columns with the Report Builder here.
• Learn how to add calculated rows and columns here.

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Next: Exercises

Updated July 05, 2023 13:26